You are right that flushing medications down the toilet causes harm to the environment, and the best way to dispose of medications (so that your other concern--chance of drugs getting into the wrong hands---is avoided) is to:
1. Look on label for any information/instructions on how to dispose
2. If no instructions are given, throw the drugs in the household trash, but first:
* Take them out of their original containers and mix them with an undesirable substance, such as used coffee grounds or kitty litter. The medication will be less appealing to children and pets, and unrecognizable to people who may intentionally go through your trash.
* Put them in a sealable bag, empty can, or other container to prevent the medication from leaking or breaking out of a garbage bag.
There are a list of drugs that are RECOMMENDED by the FDA to flush down the toilet, as they are more worried about accidental exposure of these medicines (including Percocet, Oxycontin, Morphine, Demerol, etc). Read complete list: Safe Disposal by Flushing Certain Medications.
A few other tips before disposing of your medication:
- Scratch out all identifying information on the prescription label to make it unreadable.
- Make sure your city, state, pharmacy and/or doctor's office does not have a "drug take-back" program
- Ask your pharmacist if you are still unsure about how to dispose of the medication
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The FDA has a Q&A site for how to properly dispose of medications: FDA: How to Dispose of Unused Medications.
You are right that flushing medications down the toilet causes harm to the environment, and the best way to dispose of medications (so that your other concern--chance of drugs getting into the wrong hands---is avoided) is to:
1. Look on label for any information/instructions on how to dispose
2. If no instructions are given, throw the drugs in the household trash, but first:
* Take them out of their original containers and mix them with an undesirable substance, such as used coffee grounds or kitty litter. The medication will be less appealing to children and pets, and unrecognizable to people who may intentionally go through your trash.
* Put them in a sealable bag, empty can, or other container to prevent the medication from leaking or breaking out of a garbage bag.
There are a list of drugs that are RECOMMENDED by the FDA to flush down the toilet, as they are more worried about accidental exposure of these medicines (including Percocet, Oxycontin, Morphine, Demerol, etc). Read complete list: Safe Disposal by Flushing Certain Medications.
A few other tips before disposing of your medication:
December 8, 2009 - 2:56pm- Scratch out all identifying information on the prescription label to make it unreadable.
- Make sure your city, state, pharmacy and/or doctor's office does not have a "drug take-back" program
- Ask your pharmacist if you are still unsure about how to dispose of the medication
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