Expired pills: dangerous or not?

1

Of course, you should not use expired products and medicines if you are not sure of their safety. As scientists have found out, expired pills do not lose their properties.

Recently, British scientists conducted an interesting experiment. They decided to evaluate the effectiveness of expired pills. These were pills intended for employees of the British Antarctic Service, which were not used and returned. These medicines are delivered in the hold of a ship, where there is no temperature control, and it travels through the tropics for about three weeks. Temperature drops are provided. And at least a couple of times – on the way there and back.

The shelf life of the drugs by the time of the experiment expired on average four years ago. A total of five types of drugs were used: atropine (for the treatment of poisoning), nifedipine (calcium channel blocker), fluoxacillin (antibiotic), bendroflumethiazide (diuretic), naproxen (anti-inflammatory painkiller).

As a result, the researchers concluded that all the drugs were stable and effective. There was no difference between the “fresh” samples and the expired ones. Scientists are sure that this is good news for those who work in remote parts of the world, where the healthcare system is not developed and expired drugs are sometimes the only ones that can be found.

But, if you are not in the African jungle and can buy drugs with a normal shelf life, you should not take any risks. And remember, scientists have only tested a few drugs – this does not mean that all expired medications are safe and effective.