Spring has arrived and the time has come for some spring cleaning.
One of the most overlooked places to clear out is the medicine cabinet.
Whether over-the-counter or prescribed, there comes a time to toss out those unused and old medications.
“I go through my over-the-counter medications once a year and I look at the expiration dates,” said Felicia Villaroman, the pharmacy manager at Sharp Coronado
“We encourage our patients to pay attention to that date and throw away any expired drugs.”
And while taking expired meds typically won’t have any dangerous side effects, they may not be as affected.
“If you need relief right away, you will want to make sure all medications are up to date,” added Villaroman.
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Villaroman shared tips with NBC 7 Responds about how to do just that.
One thing to avoid; flushing any expired medications down the toilet.
“If you flush something down the toilet, it can get into our water supply,” said Villaroman. “We want to make sure our water stays clean.”
Villaroman suggests mixing in old medications with used coffee grounds, dirt, or even used cat litter. Doing so, says Villaroman would prevent the expired medications from getting into the wrong hands.
In addition to throwing old medications away, Villaroman says there are numerous public health agencies that are willing to take and discard them for you.
