Shelf life for OTC items

[radar's girl]

Anyone know how long one can store tylenol, advil. asperine, viamins, first aid cream, other medicine cabinet essentials? My husband asked me, and I figured someone on here might know. Thanks.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

I've had all that in the medicine cabinet for 50 years. Jack.

 

[Cowgirlup]

I routinely use Tylenol and ibuprofen way past the posted date. Aspirin too. I think antibiotic ointment can lose strength over time as can the OTC meds but won't hurt you. Vitamins suspended in oil can go rancid and sometimes tablet ingredients can separate and start to smell off. I won't take vitamins that have obviously started to go.

 

[snax]

You can go by the expiration date first, It is usually good beyond that. Literally keep it in a cool, dry place.
They can devlop different side effects. They can even have delayed effects, causing people to take too much when they think it's not working.
Try vaccuum sealing them if you can to remove the oxygen.
Personally, I wouldn't go beyond a year, as long as it's stored correctly. But that would be my own personal use. I wouldn't give it to my kids.
Every drug is different. They have to do studies and submit them to the FDA and other various regulatory bodies for approval.
I would bet that the expiry in one country is not the same as another.
I know the Europeans are usually more strict on stuff.

 

[FrugalFannie]

We are currently working on a bottle of ibuprofen that expired 6 years ago. I don't use it but my husband does. No complaints from him. I am also using an antihistamine generic form of benadryl that expired almost 5 years ago and it works as well as it ever did.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Prescription RXs have tow expiration dates - the one printed on the package (that you may or may not get when you pick up the drug) and 1 year from date of issuance or the actual expiration date the pharmacist applies on the label.

 

[enbloc]

Cool and dry storage will always push out almost any expiration date. Food, Meds or otherwise... (My opinion)

 

[radar's girl]

Would a platic 50 cal. ammo can be good storage for these ite. Can never have too many ammo cans!ms? it's light and portable and has a moisture seal

 

[Uzi2]

Would a platic 50 cal. ammo can be good storage for these ite. Can never have too many ammo cans!ms? it's light and portable and has a moisture seal

Yes.

 

[Sunny]

One of the biggest scams in ANY industry.

Medical supplies RARELY become unusable (let alone affected at all) past their expired date. There is zero evidence to support that Tyenol loses potency, or a pack of sterile gauze is no longer sterile once expired.

I'm not sure what the numbers are, but I reckon it's in the tens of millions of dollars in waste per year. f***ing atrocious.

 

[wra]

I will say I had a container of "all natural ingredients" aspirin in my med cabinet up until a few days ago (I forget the brand name). Expiration date was 2017 (goes to show how much I use it). When I opened the bottle there was an incredibly foul vinegar smell inside. Needless to say I went without for the night.

I would imagine other "all natural" type meds are more sensitive to the expiration date on the label than good all pharma stuff.

My next bottle will probably be plain old Bayer stuff which should last some time.

 

[PaulR]

I always re-load on cold meds after I get sick, then don't get sick for 3 years...Then my next cold I'm always slugging down meds 3 years past the expiration date.
rinse, repeat.

 

[Len-2A Training]

One of the biggest scams in ANY industry.

Medical supplies RARELY become unusable (let alone affected at all) past their expired date. There is zero evidence to support that Tyenol loses potency, or a pack of sterile gauze is no longer sterile once expired.

I'm not sure what the numbers are, but I reckon it's in the tens of millions of dollars in waste per year. f***ing atrocious.

Yup, the height of absurdity about expiration dates is take a look at distilled water bottles . . . what does distilled water turn into in a year or three?

 

[Cowgirlup]

Yup, the height of absurdity about expiration dates is take a look at distilled water bottles . . . what does distilled water turn into in a year or three?

It's not the water that expires. The plastic starts to break down in most of those bottles that are like milk jugs. The water starts to get plasticky and if you wait long enough the container will develop small leaks.

 

[one-eyed Jack]

The only things that get less useful and shittier over time are democrats. Jack.

 

[Robert Peel]

Would a platic 50 cal. ammo can be good storage for these ite. Can never have too many ammo cans!ms? it's light and portable and has a moisture seal

I wouldn't trust the plastic ammo cans, they are not airtight.

 

[FrankNA]

Bet if you vacuum sealed fresh (fill in the blank here) it would last for quite a long time past the expiration date. Wonder if throwing it in the freezer afterward would also help extend the life?

 

[bfm]

I remember a study that tested asprin for fallout shelters every ten years and found no noticable change after 50 years.

Drug expiry debate: the myth and the reality

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

 

[Robert Peel]

I wouldn't trust the plastic ammo cans, they are not airtight.

I saw a demo where a guy took 2 rolls or toilet paper, put one roll in a metal ammo can and the other in a plastic one. Put them both under water for about 5 minutes, the metal one held the water out. The plastic one let in a bunch of water and the TP got soaked. So I only use plastic ones for stuff that doesn't need to much protection.
But that's me.

 

[MisterHappy]

The theory is that the expiry/use by date on these things is tested - it's like a label claim, it has to be backed up, or have a disclaimer (These statements have not been evaluated....etc.}

If a product has a 2-year expiration date, then the manufacturer has theoretically run stability studies, to prove that the product still has the active ingredients in the stated amounts, at that date. It's not in the manufacturer's best interests to put 10-year expiry dates, as if people pitch out the pills at the date, and buy more....cha-ching! another sale.

I used to be in that biz (just shipping, not Mad Scientist stuff), and found that regular multi-vitamins had some of the shortest shelf-lives. They'd not gone bad, but two years past the date, it might not have the same kick of a given vitamin as it did when freshly made.

If you're prepping, rotate stock; if you're in need of a pill, don't "flint out"- go buy a fresh bottle. If it's TEOTWAWKI, the cannibals and ravening mutated locusts will be more of an issue than a date on a bottle.

 

[APFSDS]

The only thing that I know of that becomes dangerous after expiry is doxycycline. That apparently gets toxic.

 

[Sparky123]

Anyone know how long one can store tylenol, advil. asperine, viamins, first aid cream, other medicine cabinet essentials? My husband asked me, and I figured someone on here
that know. Thanks.

They only put expiration dates on products so that you will throw them away and buy new ones. I worked at a food pantry and all canned products can be safely used up to two years after the expiration date. I'm sure it's the same with most medicines. Yes, I used to be one of those people that threw everything away.

 

[MaverickNH]

Buy some heavy foil laminate heat-seal bags, water and oxygen absorber packets and double-bag & vacuum seal your stuff. Keep them in the bottom freezer drawer. If the power ever goes out long enough from a SHTF event then put them where it’s cooler, like your basement.

 

[fencer]

The only things that get less useful and shittier over time are democrats. Jack.

And ex wives.

 

[APFSDS]

So apparently this used to be true of doxy/tetracycline, but this was long ago and doesn't seem to happen any more:

Can You Take Expired Antibiotics? Here’s When You Can! - Prescription Hope