home Audience 3 Will use expired one. Is it possible to take medications after their expiration date? The dangers of expired cosmetics

Will use expired one. Is it possible to take medications after their expiration date? The dangers of expired cosmetics

I continue answer reader questions website regarding the use of medications. Today we will discuss Is it necessary to throw away the drug? immediately after its expiration date.

And another question (also important and interesting for me) - on expiration dates drugs. I tried to find information on this topic, but it varies. Some doctors and pharmacists write that medications are safe for at least another month - maximum six months after the expiration date stated on the package. It is not recommended to take them afterwards. There is also other information. They refer to studies conducted in the USA a couple of decades ago. Expired drugs were not thrown away, but then checked - and many (most!) of them turned out to be effective even after 10-15 years. For example, it says that aspirin can generally be stored for decades (almost 50 years). Then why does the manufacturer give it only a period of four years?

First an anecdote.

Inscription on the packaging sea salt: “The salt was extracted from a 270-million-year-old formation. Shelf life - 2 years."

And if jokes aside, then, for example, iodized or fluoridated salt has a limited shelf life (usually 1 year). After this period, salt must be sold as salt without additives. This occurs due to evaporation or decomposition of fluorine or iodine compounds. For the same reason, packages of such salt that have been started should be stored tightly closed, otherwise healthy supplements will disappear from it quite quickly.

I tried to find this information too. I found out that every manufacturer tests the drug for only a limited time, during which its effectiveness is guaranteed, then it is not guaranteed, and the drug is not tested. This " verified period” and is called the “expiration date”. It may follow from this that the “expiration date” is a myth, or a half-truth. " Best before date" means only " guaranteed period of effectiveness“, further - no one says that it will be effective, but no one claims that it will be ineffective. This is what I want to figure out (“for myself”).

However, the manufacturer writes: “ Do not use after expiration date" Why? Why doesn't he write like this: " Safety and effectiveness beyond the expiration date have not been established."? Or: " After the expiration date, safety has not been established and you use the medicine at your own risk.»?

Because they are taking medications ordinary people that do not have pharmaceutical or medical education. They are unable to adequately assess risks(this is not a joke, just read the news about overdue loans or the passion for foreign currency mortgages). People need clear instructions - it is possible or not. If there is no direct prohibition, this means permission to take risks. And many will take risks, assuming that nothing dangerous will happen. No one has studied what processes occur inside an expired drug and how this will affect the patient. But then drug consumers can file multi-million dollar claims against the manufacturer - they say the manufacturer did not warn them about the consequences (“ I thought nothing bad would happen», « If I had known in advance, I would not have accepted it"). Lawsuits have been filed in the past for a cat that died because the instructions for the washing machine there was no direct ban wash pets.

In addition, almost all drugs have side effects. Sometimes not weak. If you take an expired drug, it will be unclear what caused the side effect - the drug itself or the consequences of its spoilage? There's a very fine line here.

As you can see today, the maximum “gold standard” of all manufacturers is 5 years; a longer period is not set for medications (I have not seen). I wonder if it was the same in the USSR? But this does not mean that the medicine after 5 years or on the first day next year will it lose effectiveness?

No. I believe that the expiration date of any medicine can be throw 10% of the time, during which it can be consider fit(for example, with a shelf life of 5 years, it can be consumed for another six months). However, this advice only applies to a home first aid kit. In pharmacy chains The sale of expired medications is strictly prohibited, and sellers make serious discounts in order to sell a drug that will soon have to be written off. In this way, I bought drugs at 2 times cheaper than the regular price (of course, not in reserve, but for current use). However, it is not advisable to give children even slightly expired medications. And for small children - it’s not allowed at all.

And one more factor. Must adhere to those recommended on the packaging storage conditions (desired temperature, dark place). If you constantly carry pills in your car, then change them more often or take them with you later (preferably not in your pocket), because temperature changes from minus 20° in winter to +50° in the sun in summer can turn anyone good drug V unexplored chemical weapons. And long before the end of the official expiration date. By the way, for these reasons, since 2015 in Belarus, new car first aid kits are no longer required to have validol And nitroglycerine.

Why does the manufacturer limit the maximum shelf life of drugs - so that people buy more drugs, that is, for commercial purposes? Or are there other reasons?

It is possible that there was constant demand for drugs. If everyone buys drugs for 10 years in advance, how will the manufacturer survive? Close the factory?

Now any difficult Appliances It has limited service life. For example, the instructions for my music center indicate a service life of 7 years, although in reality the equipment will work longer.

It is clear, for example, that the same alcohol (it also has a lifespan of 5 years) in a closed package will not lose its properties and effectiveness after 20 or 30 years (I like alcohol - exclusively for external use, of course - to wipe your hands and face after shaving - it does not stain the skin like iodine). Potassium permanganate can also clearly be stored for longer than five years - not in the light or under normal temperature. Aspirin - they claim that it is effective and retains its properties even after decades.

The main thing is not to get lucky potassium permanganate(potassium permanganate crystals) to Ukraine. There, since 2013, it has been equated to potent and narcotic substances and is sold in pharmacies only with a prescription. The reason for the ban is that potassium permanganate is used in the manufacture of certain drugs.

Why do I ask and want to know. There are always some medicines at home - many of them are widespread and well-known. The same Vishnevsky ointment, for example, eye drops sodium sulfacyl. Once I got hold of Vishnevsky’s ointment, which had already expired (I often have pimples on my face or forehead - and sometimes I can’t squeeze them out the first time, and I have to use the ointment). This ointment is just as effective in appearance and properties. Then why should we throw away medicines just because the date indicated on the package has passed? In the interests of pharma. companies? How to navigate this issue?

Drugs for outdoor use not so critical according to expiration dates, like drugs for oral or parenteral administration. If something " goes wrong», external preparation can be quickly washed off with water. I do not advise anyone to inject long-expired medications, except in cases where the situation requires action, and there are no normal medications nearby (for example, you are on a desert island). Oral preparations are between external and parenteral. Sometimes you can manage to induce vomiting and do gastric lavage if the drug is not absorbed very quickly.

Expired medications should only be used if if you accurately imagine the expected effect(that is, have used it before). If you are using an expired drug for the first time, it is better to buy a fresh one.

This is also relevant because during a crisis, many medicines, and what can I say, almost everything, like everything in general, increase in price. But if I can buy a pack of paper or a bar of soap, and I know that they can sit there until they are needed, then what should I do here? The expiration date is only the period during which the manufacturer “authorizes” the use of the medicine (guarantees its effectiveness). But this does not mean that it will not be effective after its expiration.

There is no clear information on this topic on the Internet. There is information of this kind that most drugs remain effective for decades, and only a small part (no more than 10-15%) lose their effectiveness or become unsafe and toxic. They also write that doctors supposedly know which medications need to be thrown away and which ones can be continued to be used (but this seems to be the case big secret, so there is still no publicly available information on this matter).

To know this, you need to get this information from somewhere. Or check for yourself. But this is unreliable and dangerous. I also heard that medicines are being made " with a shelf life reserve", but certain acceptable time limits no one spoke. Perhaps future pharmacists and pharmacists are told a little about this.

I don’t have doctors among my friends or relatives, so I don’t have anyone to ask - neither about symptoms nor about other points. You have to figure it out yourself and look for information. But if “doctors know this” (as claimed - I don’t know whether this is true or not, and whether all doctors know - and why then their opinions differ: some throw away drugs after the expiration date, while others “know” which ones can and continue to apply), that means there is literature, or it is being studied somewhere, that is, there are, again, textbooks or some sources. But where then to look for this information?

It is unlikely that such literature even exists, because no one in their right mind would invest money in studying the safety of expired drugs. With the possible exception of the military departments, but they will only check their limited list of drugs that are produced in large quantities and are necessary when wounded on the battlefield or in the nearest hospital.

I can act at my own discretion, but I would still like to hear your opinion. We are not talking about drugs that have changed their appearance, covered with mold, etc. Let's assume that the appearance is perfect, the packaging was closed (blister, etc.) - I'm interested in this case. The deadline has just expired, that is, the date has passed. For example, the chamomile that I buy, it says: “ shelf life - 1 year" Another manufacturer has 1.5 years. This does not mean that after this period everything that was not used should be thrown away. I also read that hospitals also use expired medications, but they don’t talk about it.

Quite possible.

We are not talking about some little-known medicines, but mainly about the most common ones that many people have at home or that are used for first aid (validol, vitamins, sodium sulfacyl, sodium thiosulfate, drotaverine, valerian tincture, asparkam, paracetamol, maybe something else). I already understood that the manufacturer sets the expiration date based on some of its own criteria, as well as on the basis of how long it tests this medicine (it does not need to test it for 10-15 years for economic reasons). I have also seen that the medicine is the same, different manufacturer It has different period suitability. In general, I want to sort this out somehow, at least a little.

The period the manufacturer checked is what it writes. If the shelf life is short, the drug cannot be stored for a long time; it will have to be sold out quickly (this is unprofitable, because pharmacies may prefer an analogue with a longer shelf life). If the period is long, its development may be delayed and clinical application, because you need to wait a period and then check the drug again.

There is one more consideration. You can’t make the shelf life too long, because during this time may appear important information for rare side effects or combinations various drugs, which should be reflected in the updated instructions for the drug. And people will keep and use old instructions, which can harm them.

I have already written several times and will repeat again: always read the instructions to a drug that is new to you before using it for the first time.

Update dated September 9, 2015

(some clarifications from the American report on drug expiration dates)

Best before date(Expiry date) indicated for unopened packaging and recommended storage conditions.

A study of several hundred of the most common drugs in the USA and Western Europe found:

84% of medications remain fit another 5-25 years after the expiration date if the packaging is UNOPENED,
the remaining 16% are partially destroyed, in them remains 50-70% from the stated content. The drug becomes less effective, but not useless;
in none Of the analyzed expired drugs, the content of decomposition products of the main components did not reach a level hazardous to health.

Special mention must be made about vitamins. Vitamin molecules are very unstable and are quickly destroyed in unfavorable conditions (light, heat). To ensure the declared content by the end of the shelf life, vitamins contain 50-100% excess components. Therefore, newly manufactured vitamins can cause an overdose. An overdose is really dangerous only for fat-soluble vitamins (A, E) and is safe for other vitamins, the excess of which is easily excreted in the urine.

Adviсe:

tablets in individual packaging (blister, plates of 10-12 pieces) will be guaranteed to be valid until the end of the stated shelf life,
tablets in general packaging (bottle of 50-100 tablets) are recommended to be stored after opening no more than 1 year for several reasons:
- tablets are able to absorb or release moisture from the air, which changes their rate of absorption in the gastrointestinal tract,
- can get into the bottle and multiply dangerous bacteria (coli, staphylococcus, salmonella, etc.) and other microbes, especially when the tablets are removed with your finger. It is even more dangerous if the contaminated medicine is then taken by a susceptible person (primarily a child).

Eye drops definitely must be destroyed after the expiration date, since by this time the effect of the preservative usually ceases, and bacteria begin to multiply in the drops.

Store your medications in a refrigerator, only if the packaging states “ Store at 2-8°C».
If storage is required room temperature, then store in a dark place in the living room, EXCEPT storage near a window, a radiator, on the refrigerator and next to the stove.

Paraphrase from the source: http://lady-tiana.livejournal.com/501161.html

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8 comments to the post “Can medications be used after the expiration date?”

Thank you, doctor, very useful article. Thanks especially for the September comment.
I remembered the revealing episode about the use of very expired pills in The Wolf of Wall Street)))

What about the balm “Zvezdochka” (“Golden Star”)? How are things going with her?

Vietnamese balm contains several essential oils: clove, cinnamon, eucalyptus and peppermint oil. Oils are susceptible to oxidation and rancidity, becoming harmful. Oxidation accelerates if the Zvezdochka balm was stored at a temperature above the prescribed 12–15 °C. The shelf life of the balm is quite long - 5 years, so I do not recommend using it after this period for children, or if it was stored in elevated temperature or has a rancid odor or appearance.

Is it possible to use medical disposable masks after the expiration date (5 years)? Will they be effective? Or are they no longer usable?

I believe that exceeding the expiration date does not in itself lead to loss of sterility or impairment of consumer properties. Therefore, you can use them.
In 1979, the US military invested $1 billion in drug stockpiles and began testing more than 100 drugs to see if the drugs would work as well after their expiration dates. The results show that about 90% of them were safe and worked effectively for a very long time, even after the initial expiration date had passed, according to at least, even 15 years after it.

In light of these results, former director testing program, Francis Flaherty, says he concluded that:
“The expiration date that manufacturers set usually has nothing to do with the drug, and it can be used much longer.”

Mr. Flaherty noted that drug manufacturers set this period in order to prove that during this period the drug will work most effectively.
The expiration date does not mean or even imply that the drug will become less effective after it, or that it will become harmful.

“Manufacturers set expiration dates based on their marketing company. It is unprofitable for the manufacturer to set the shelf life of the medicine to 10 years or more. They want high turnover,” says Mr. Flaherty.
The Ministry of Health warns that there is not enough evidence that all batches of drugs are effective beyond the expiration date because... Only individual batches were checked.

However, Joel Davis, former FDA chief inspector, says that:
“With a few exceptions, notably nitroglycerin, insulin and some liquid antibiotics, all other drugs are likely to be as effective beyond their expiration date, as trials in military personnel have shown. Most drugs lose their properties very slowly. In all likelihood, you can take the drug and keep it in your home for many years, especially if it is refrigerated."

The pharmaceutical industry does not dispute the FDA's testing results that the stated shelf life is very short. They recognize that shelf life is more of a commercial concern. But they add that: “they put it relatively short time suitability from a safety point of view. Therefore, new, more “useful” drugs can be introduced to the market very quickly.”

From the companies' perspective, any liability or safety risk is reduced when the shelf life of the drug is very short and the consumer cannot begin to abuse it or improperly store the drug.
“Two to three years is the most convenient shelf life for a drug from a marketing point of view,” says Mark van Arandonk, senior director of pharmaceutical development at Pharmacia & Upjohn Inc. “This gives us enough time to produce the product, load it and ensure it sells.”

Now that the FDA has found that many drugs still work well after their expiration dates, why isn't it advocating for longer expiration dates?

“In many cases, the manufacturer can extend the shelf life again and again, but to do this, he will have to conduct research on this drug, how it affects people and what consequences it causes from taking it, and this information, in most cases, does not have positive dynamics.”
Mr. Davis adds: "The FDA's job is not to worry about the economic interests of consumers."

Today, a lot of attention is drawn to the expiration dates of drugs and medicines. For example, we know of one campaign (out of thousands) that works in partnership with some drug sellers and encourages people to stop using drugs before their expiration date. They argue that: “Medicines should be thrown away ahead of schedule validity, because Manufacturers set an inflated deadline, which can lead to various troubles.” Many doctors and pharmacists constantly cut the shelf life of a drug so that it becomes invalid after just one year. In fact, some states even require pharmacists to do this.

Meanwhile, poor countries turning to the World Health Organization often reject donations extremely necessary medications, if they have less than 1 year of shelf life left. It's unknown how much of the $120 billion annually goes toward replacing expired drugs in the U.S. alone, but in a survey conducted for The Wall Street Journal, 70% of 1,000 respondents said they were likely not to take medications after their expiration date.

"People think that when they expire, drugs turn into toxic waste or lose all their properties," says Philip Alper, a professor of medicine at the University of California.

In his practice, Dr. Alper often sees many patients who cannot afford expensive medicines, often throw them away just because the expiration date was one week ago... He calls on manufacturing companies to test drugs over a longer period of time and set realistic expiration dates.

Some manufacturers first began putting expiration dates on drugs in 1960, although they were not forced to do so. When the Federal Agency began requiring this in 1979, it wanted to establish uniform testing and reporting guidelines. But on this moment The FDA requires that manufacturers review a drug's potential, uniqueness, potency, quality and purity, according to certain manufacturer guidelines. If a company has tested its drug for two years, then the drug should not expire beyond that period.

A shelf life of up to two years does not entail daily testing and statistics during this time. Most often, the drug is tested in a closed atmosphere of intense heat and humidity for several months, and then a chemical analysis of it and the strength of each ingredient is analyzed. The FDA also uses chemical analysis in testing for possible shelf life extensions, but does not test the drug in humans. The test conditions are such that any drug that has a shelf life of 2 years is likely to be greatly underestimated and real time much more than the FDA and pharmaceutical companies We completely agree.

Consider aspirin. Bayer AG sets a period of 2 or 3 years on it and states that it must be destroyed after this period. Chris Allen, vice president of Bayer, says that this period is “quite conservative.” When we tested aspirin after 4 years, it was 100% effective." So why doesn't Bayer set the shelf life of aspirin to four years?

That's because the company changes packaging frequently and works on a "continuous improvement program," Mr. Allen says. Every change in the structure of the drug necessitates testing. A shelf life of 4 years would force us to conduct tests (not on humans, but as described above in the chambers) for more than four years, and this is impractical! Bayer will never put an expiration date of 4 years on aspirin.”

But Dr. Carstensen, professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin, writes: “I have done research various types aspirin, and five years later, Bayer's aspirin was still of excellent quality! Aspirin, when made correctly, is very stable.”

We found only one report from the medical community about an expired drug that caused problems in a person. In 1963, the Journal of the American Medical Association (AMA) wrote an article that expired tetracycline caused kidney damage. However, even this article has been questioned by other scientists. Mr. Flaherty states that "tetracycline has a shelf life of at least 3 times longer than 2 years and there is no way it could cause kidney problems."

In 1981, a program to increase the military readiness of the US military began, and they began to purchase a large number of drugs and medical equipment. Four years later, warehouses were filled with more than $1 billion worth of drugs. The Air Force General Accountability and Audit Office conducted inspections and found many medications that were expired or nearing their expiration dates. They decided that the Air Force should replace more than $100 million worth of drugs by 1990.

Main office medical department The Air Force asked the FDA to extend the shelf life of these drugs. Since the FDA has the equipment to test drug stability, it did it. Testing for the Air Force began in late 1985. In the first year, they submitted 137 drugs to the FDA, including penicillin, lidocaine, intravenous and intramuscular drugs. After testing, the FDA extended over 80% of expired medications for 33 months!

In 1992, another FDA test was conducted and more than half of the expired drugs that were tested in 1985 were in excellent condition. Even today, some of them are in good condition. These results were a revelation to George Crawford, a US Army colonel, when he took over military oversight of the program in 1997. He works as a pharmacist. “No one ever told us, either at the pharmacy or at the institute, that the shelf life of a drug is calculated from turnover and profit and is the prerogative of the marketing company,” he says. (Although drug manufacturers disagree with his point of view.)

The U.S. Air Force base dedicated the darkest room of its barracks at Fort Detrick, Maryland, to host the program. A team of military officers led by Lt. Col. Greg Russi, who recently took over from Colonel Crawford, is tracking drugs that are past their expiration dates, giving priority to drugs that have already had their expiration dates extended several times. They send them to the FDA for testing.

An FDA laboratory in Philadelphia recently tested injections containing an antidote for chemical poisoning, for which the testing conditions were specifically changed: for 3 months they were tested in conditions of even higher temperature and greater humidity than the FDA requires for consumer testing of drugs. As a result, the drug pralidoxime chloride, by isolating its ingredients and measuring the strength and quality of each, they determined whether the shelf life could be extended.

It had an original expiration date of November 1985. The FDA re-tested it periodically each time it reached its expiration date and approved continued use. Most products made by Ayerst Laboratories, now Wyeth-Ayerst, which is owned by American Home Products, have shown excellent results 28 years after the expiration date.

A Wyeth-Ayerst spokeswoman says it "cannot comment on the shelf life of drugs tested by the FDA."

Shelf life extensions "are not good for companies," Mr. Flaherty (a military officer who was involved in the above program) said in 1992. He claims that:

“If the FDA extended the validity period by 36 months, then many drugs can be taken safely and effectively for at least another 72 months. There are very few drugs that cannot have their shelf life extended. We found that water purification tablets, anti-malaria and mefloquine hydrochloride consistently failed testing beyond their expiration dates, so we removed them from this program.”

"We also removed intravenous solutions large volumes, such as saline, but for a completely different reason. I would hate to be in the hospital and see that the solution expired three or more years ago. This will be bad for the morale of the soldiers and will cause resonance,” says Colonel Crawford.

Mr Flaherty stated that:

“We recently tested a large batch of expired medications that were surprisingly effective when they expired. In one case, we stored medicines at room temperature for 5 years in a warehouse in Oman. After expiration dates, drugs such as the topical pain reliever lidocaine, atropine, an antidote to nerve gas, and drugs used by ophthalmologists to dilate pupils have been shown to good results, and almost all were in good condition and excellent quality."

Molecular stability

The FDA has approved the antibiotic ciprofloxacin hydrochloride, called Cipro, from Bayer. One batch had an expiration date until March 1989. More than 10 years later, the FDA found that the pill was still in excellent condition, and they extended it for another 24 months, after which there was a total extension of 8 more years, and when the drug came to the FDA for research in 2011, it was unable to pass them. It turns out that its shelf life was... from 1985 to 2009 - 24 years!

Albert Poirier, director of quality assurance at Bayer, says that:

“I am not at all surprised by this result, since Cipro is a very stable drug molecule in tablet form. We set expiration dates based on patient safety. We want the drug to be used for no more than 3 years. We wouldn't want people to use our drugs for 5, 10 or 20 years. During this time, we will make much more effective and safe formulas that will have a better effect on the body. Moreover, we cannot study it over such a long period of time and do not know how patients will store it. this drug».

Other medicines that have had their shelf life extended by at least two years:
Diazepam, sold as Valium;
Cimetidine, sold as Tagamet;
Phenytoin, sold as Dilantin;
All tetracycline antibiotics;
Penicillin.

The US Air Force saved a lot of money by running such a program. In the very first year, they paid the FDA $78,000 for the research and saved 59 times the research amount if they had purchased new lots of the exact same drugs. From 1993 to 1998, the military spent about $3.9 million on research and saved $263,400,000.

Mr. Flaherty and Davis were clearly aware that they would be attacked by businesses... and quite possibly have their authority undermined. However, FDA officials confirmed that “during the entire duration of this program, drug manufacturers have never objected to any of their (Flaherty and Davis) opinions or conclusions. It’s possible they didn’t like what they were doing, but there was no way they could challenge their data.”

Many pharmacists, druggists and doctors also play a role in shaping the “correct” opinion of society. A US scientific group, which was independent and not focused on profit, conducted research and found back in 1985 that many pharmacists set the shelf life of the drug to no more than one year, despite the manufacturer’s shelf life of 2 years.

“New drug containers and jars may allow more moisture and heat to pass through than the containers and jars the manufacturer uses for stability studies, which accelerates drug degradation,” says USP general counsel Joseph Valentino.

"Most pharmacists have reduced expiration dates (despite the expiration dates from drug companies) on prescription drugs to one year or less," says Susan Winkler, a spokeswoman for the American Pharmaceutical Association.

In fact, in 17 states, the law now requires pharmacists to do so! Ms Winkler says: “It makes sense to shorten the shelf life of medications because many people store their medications in damp areas, such as the bathroom. The rule of storing drugs at home for no more than one year is motivated not by profit, but by the integrity and quality of the drug.”

Now you understand that “drug shelf life revolves around marketing, sales and profits.” Over the past two decades, US spending on prescription drugs has increased from $40 billion to over $230 billion. If pharmaceutical companies convince you to clean out your drug cabinet or shelf every year, their profits could increase significantly! The US military conducted such a program and saved more than $263,400,000 in drug costs. Why not take advantage of their experience in our country?

If you don’t have nitroglycerin, insulin or liquid antibiotics in your first aid kit, then you can safely use it again for a long time, despite the expiration date of some medications.

But the main tragedy is that many third world countries needlessly refuse drugs that are sent to them... and could actually save someone's life... But they refuse them due to lack of information.

I want to write about personal experience: Finalgon ointment helped a relative with lower back pain quite well. We recently took it out and discovered that the expiration date expired 5 years ago, but that didn’t stop us. The ointment was used and literally within half an hour a reaction was noted in the form of the appearance of erythematous spots on the skin, spreading beyond the area where the ointment was applied. To be safe, I injected dexamethasone =).

Much depends on what kind of product it is, what packaging it comes in and how you stored it. Lipstick, blush and eye shadow can be stored for quite a long time, but it is better not to use foundations and skin care products after the expiration date. How long can it be stored? different types cosmetics?

Expiration date after opening

Many cosmetic products have a special icon on their packaging - image open can, and in it there is a number and the letter M. The number indicates how many months you can use the product after opening. Of course, this is not an ironclad rule, but it is still useful to focus on this period.

Sometimes this icon may not be on the product itself, but on its box. In order not to forget exactly when to get rid of a particular product, write it down. For example, you can mark with a marker on the package when you opened the product, or keep a separate notebook in which to write down the dates of purchase of cosmetics.

This is especially important for skincare products. They usually contain antioxidants and other active ingredients that lose their properties over time.

How to determine if a product has gone bad

If the product has changed its color, texture or odor, causing unpleasant feeling appeared on the skin or on it, which means it’s time to throw it away. Moreover, products with a soft and liquid texture deteriorate faster than powder products. And if cosmetics are marked “without preservatives,” bacteria will begin to develop in it faster, so it is better not to store it for a long time.

Mascara is worth mentioning separately. Usually it is advised to change it after three months, but few people actually do this. A 2013 study found that 70% of participants used expired mascara that contained harmful bacteria and fungi. Investigation on the use of expired make-up and microbiological contamination of mascaras.. Although you may not notice any effects after four or five months, you still shouldn't keep mascara for years.

Throw away dried mascara immediately; do not try to dilute it with water. Water is an ideal environment for the development of bacteria.

How long can you use cosmetics?

Decorative cosmetics

Mascara (regular and waterproof) and eyeliner - 3–4 months.
Liquid or cream foundations and concealers - from 6 months to a year.
Powder products (blush, bronzers, shadows) - 2–3 years.
Lipsticks, pencils and lip glosses - 2–3 years.

Care products

Tonics - from 6 months to a year.
Moisturizing creams and serums - from 6 months to a year.
Cleansers - year.
Products with AHA and BHA acids - one year.
Lip balms - year.

Please note that eye or lip products you use when you are sick (flu or conjunctivitis) become contaminated. Such cosmetics must either be disinfected after each use, or thrown away after recovery.

How to extend the life of cosmetics

Keeping your makeup and brushes clean will help them last longer. Try not to touch the products themselves with your fingers to prevent bacteria from getting into them from your skin. To protect decorative cosmetics, you can use a special disinfectant spray.

Here are a few more rules that will help extend the life of your favorite products:

If cosmetics have bad smell or the texture has changed, it needs to be thrown away or

Expired medications won't kill you, but there are a few things you need to know.

Of course, if you have a question about any specific means, you should consult your doctor. We under no circumstances advise you not to take seriously what is written on the packaging. We just want to explain that medicines do not spoil like food products. They may simply become less effective.

There was one case in the 1960s where some people developed kidney problems after taking expired antibiotics, but the treatment was quite simple and quick. Apart from this incident, expired medications have never again led to any serious consequences.

In medicines that have expired, some components may lose their properties and therefore the medicines become less effective. Until this period expires, all components are in full force.

However, even after the expiration date...

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Is it worth taking medications with expired? The expiration dates of drugs are always indicated on the packaging, but we still have questions. Is it possible to take medications after the expiration date? When do medications expire and can they be taken after the expiration date indicated on the package.

For safety reasons, pharmaceutical companies slightly underestimate the shelf life of drugs. Therefore, if necessary (if it is not possible to purchase new drug) you can independently extend the shelf life of the tablets indicated on the packaging. But in any case, you can take expired tablets only if they were stored in a closed package and have not changed color and structure (have not become friable, do not crumble, etc.). However, if the color and structure of the tablet changes, you cannot take it, even if the expiration date has not yet expired. If you use special pill boxes for taking medications (where they are laid out for a day or a week), remember: the maximum period...

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Is it safe to take expired medications?

Almost all of us will definitely have medications in our medicine cabinet that have already expired. Most people do periodic “cleanses” and get rid of drugs that have become unusable. In view of high cost most drugs, this approach often causes significant damage family budget. Therefore, many people are concerned about the question of whether it is possible to take medications after the expiration date without fear for their own health. Doctor medical sciences Israel, associate professor at Harvard Medical School Robert Shmerling decided to look into this issue.

US Air Force Study

The doctor's attention was drawn to the results of a study of effectiveness and safety medical supplies conducted by US Air Force specialists in 1985. Subsequently, studies were carried out in other American military services. The military gathered...

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According to existing legislation, all pharmaceutical companies are required to indicate the expiration date of the drug. For what? The manufacturer guarantees that during this period the drug will perform its function with efficiency close to maximum and with relative safety for health. In the United States, studies have recently been conducted on expired drugs. The result is that almost all drugs whose shelf life has expired turned out to be not only usable, but also effective. Their effectiveness could decrease slightly, by 5 percent, and up to 50 percent, but none of them became hazardous to health. A rare exception was Tetracycline, which, as a result of the onset chemical reaction, turned out to be potentially harmful. Even after 10 (!!) years, most drugs retained their medicinal qualities. Of course, if the drug is vital for you, you should not take it after its expiration date, but if you need to relieve a headache...

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Can expired medications make your health worse? There are several factors that determine whether medications can be taken after their expiration date. It depends on the type of drug, how much time has passed since the expiration date, and whether the drug was properly preserved, says David Nierenberg, chief of clinical pharmacology and toxicology at medical center"Dartmouth Hitchcock."

If you are using a drug whose expiration date expired several months or a year ago, but the storage conditions were met, then you are unlikely to have any problems. This is true for most drugs, Nierenberg says. However, pharmaceutical companies do not guarantee this.

Medicines without a prescription

This is especially true for medications that are sold without a prescription, such as aspirin. Pharmaceutical companies test the effectiveness and safety of a drug over a certain period of time (usually...

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Questions about expiration dates of medications

Question:

Yulia: Hello, I would like to know how dangerous it is to take expired antibiotics...
This is an American antibiotic, its name is doxycycline hyclate. I took it for about a week, and then it appeared sharp pain in my lungs, I can’t eat or drink, I’m very severe pain on the right side.
Please advise something!
Best regards, Yulia

Answer:

It all depends on how expired it is. All reputable pharmaceutical companies have drugs with a certain safety margin - the ability to give the declared effect even after the expiration date (no more than a few months). Pay attention to whether the drug has changed color (a sign of oxidation or another reaction), whether a sediment/turbidity has appeared in the solutions, whether the tablets have lost their shape, or whether they are crumbling. Please also pay attention to whether the storage conditions were appropriate...

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Do medications really stop working after the date written on the pack/bottle? In 1979, the US military decided to find out.

They invested $1 billion in drug stockpiles and began testing to see if the drugs could work just as well after their expiration dates. This testing ultimately included more than 100 drugs.

The results, never before reported, show that about 90% of them were safe and worked effectively for a very long time, even beyond the initial shelf life, at least 15 years after that.

Francis Flaherty

In light of these results, the testing program's former director, Francis Flaherty, says he concluded that:

“The expiration date that manufacturers set usually has nothing to do with the drug, and it can be used much longer.”

Mr. Flaherty noted that drug manufacturers set this deadline in order to...

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Pills

For safety reasons, pharmaceutical companies slightly underestimate the shelf life of drugs. Therefore, if necessary (if it is not possible to purchase a new drug), you can independently extend the shelf life of the tablets indicated on the packaging by a maximum of 2 months. But in any case, you can take expired tablets only if they were stored in a closed package and have not changed color and structure (have not become friable, do not crumble, etc.). However, if the color and structure of the tablet changes, you cannot take it, even if the expiration date has not yet expired. If you use special pill boxes for taking medications (where they are laid out for the day or for the week), remember: the maximum shelf life of the medicines in them is 10 days. So it is not advisable to prepare them more than a week in advance.

Medicinal syrups

Medicinal syrups are a favorable environment for the proliferation of microbes due to the presence of sugar. Under no circumstances should they be used after...

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Can I take medications after their expiration date? If so, which ones and for how long? Which ones are definitely never allowed? How to store medications?

We have many questions about the expiration date of medications. Are there any medications that can be taken after their expiration date? What medications should be thrown away literally on the same day as indicated on the package? How to store medications? For many of us, the answers to these questions are important, because not everyone can afford to endlessly replace old medications with new ones.

What does "best before" mean?

The expiration date of the drug means that the manufacturer guarantees the full indicated effect of the drug and the degree of safety described in the instructions only until this date. All medicines, prescription and non-prescription, dietary supplements and herbs sold in pharmacies must have an expiration date indicated. Since many drugs cannot remain stable forever, the manufacturer does not promise that the drug will have the desired effect...

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Recently a controversy arose on this topic. I am sure that you should not use drugs that have expired; after all, they are chemicals and it is not for nothing that the deadline is indicated. The opponent insisted that the expiration date is bullshit, consumers are being fooled and the effect of most drugs does not change.

The arguments are as follows.
Medicine manufacturers play it safe by indicating an expiration date that is significantly shorter than the actual one. In addition, when introducing a new drug to the market, pharmaceutical companies are interested in releasing it as quickly as possible in order to start making a profit. If they guarantee that the pills are effective for two years, they will only test them for those two years. No one checks what happens to the medicine afterwards. In fact, the average is supposedly about 5 years. And some medications have a much longer lifespan. At the same time, try to find a medicine that has an expiration date of more than two years. The task is not easy. This is easy to explain...

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Hello, Lyudmila Makarovna.

If an expiration date is indicated on a drug, this is done for a reason. Not a single person will eat, for example, sausage that has expired a month ago, this is understandable, the sausage can spoil and a person can get poisoned. However, with regard to medications, such a desire sometimes appears, especially if the drugs are expensive. Although medications can also deteriorate during long-term storage, for example, under the influence various conditions environment can change chemical structure medications, and best case scenario Using such a medicine will not bring any benefit to the body, and in the worst case, it can cause harm to it.

As for the shelf life of drugs, according to experts, the drug’s packaging indicates the expiration date of the drug, which is actually slightly less than the period during which the drug can be used, and this difference can be from three to six months....

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The date stamped on medications is based on scientific evidence that shows how long the drug's effectiveness lasts. Drug manufacturers test them various states, temperature, humidity level, to understand when the effectiveness of the drug will weaken so much that its use becomes risky.

According to pharmacist Michael Vossler of the American College Clinical Pharmacology, general rule is this: if the effectiveness of a medicine has decreased by 10%, then its useful life has expired. According to Vossler, using a medicine that is months, even years past its expiration date is unlikely to cause any harm. But it won't help either.

It's okay if you're healing headache but if you are struggling with bacterial infection Using antibiotics, for example, such as amoxicillin or ciprofloxacin, which are not fully effective, will not only not cure the disease, but may also worsen your condition.

Mohammed Jalloh, representing the American Pharmacists Association, says...

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Should I take expired medications? The expiration dates of drugs are always indicated on the packaging, but we still have questions. Is it possible to take medications after the expiration date? When do medications expire and can they be taken after the expiration date indicated on the package.

For safety reasons, pharmaceutical companies slightly underestimate the shelf life of drugs. Therefore, if necessary (if it is not possible to purchase a new drug), you can independently extend the shelf life of the tablets indicated on the packaging. But in any case, you can take expired tablets only if they were stored in a closed package and have not changed color and structure (have not become friable, do not crumble, etc.). However, if the color and structure of the tablet changes, you cannot take it, even if the expiration date has not yet expired. If you use special pill boxes for taking medications (where they are laid out for the day or for the week), remember: the maximum shelf life of the medicines in them is 10 days. So it is not advisable to prepare them more than a week in advance.

“The expiration date that manufacturers set usually has nothing to do with the drug, and it can be used much longer.” Drug manufacturers set this period in order to prove that during this period the drug will work most effectively. The expiration date does not mean or even imply that the drug will become less effective after it, or that it will become harmful.

1. Information on the packaging (Expiry date, EXP, also known as expiration date) means the date until which the contents of the unopened package comply with international standards (ISO), and in Russia GOST.

2. If the tablets are individually packaged (so-called blister), the opened pack can continue to be used until the expiration date.

3. It is recommended to store a printed bottle of tablets for no more than a year from the moment it is opened, otherwise there is a risk of developing gastrointestinal tract infections. intestinal problems. As experiments have shown, such pleasant things as E. coli, salmonella, staphylococcus and their other relatives begin to multiply in an open bottle. In addition, tablets/capsules can, depending on their properties, either dry out or, on the contrary, absorb moisture from the air, and this all affects how the medicine is then absorbed in the body. Pharmacists who dispense prescription medications from large packages into small jars have strict instructions to dispose of the drug one year after opening the container, regardless of how much is left in it.

4. Ophthalmic preparations must definitely be disposed of after the expiration date, since by this time the effect of the preservative usually ceases and bacteria begin to multiply in the drops.

5. According to researchers covering hundreds of the most popular North America and Europe of drugs, 84% of drugs remain valid for another 5-25 years after the expiration date, provided that the packaging is intact. For the remaining 16%, the active ingredient content is reduced to 50-70% of the amount stated on the label. That is, the drug becomes less effective, but not completely useless.

6. In none of the drugs analyzed many years after the expiration date, the content of decomposition products of the main components reached a level dangerous to the health of patients.

7. Solutions for injections. Do not use ampoules with expired injection solutions as they may be toxic. Do not use injection solutions, even if they have not expired, if they have changed color or have a cloudy sediment - this can be fatal.

All of the above does not apply to vitamins. These preparations are very unstable, vitamin molecules usually decompose at a tremendous speed, so in order to ensure the content stated on the label by the time the expiration date expires, a 50-100% excess of each ingredient is initially added. Thus, by taking newly released vitamins, we regularly provide ourselves with a decent overdose. There is no point in being indignant and complaining about this, since until now the vitamin industry in North America has had virtually no legislative regulation. Now the FDA is gradually getting its hands on this matter, but it is still far from complete restoration of order.

Previously, the shelf life of many drugs was long. Now, finding a medicine that has a shelf life of more than 36 months is not an easy task. These two shortened years are explained mainly by someone's financial interests. Guess whose.

It is very important to store medications at the temperature indicated on the package. If there are no recommendations about the refrigerator, you can keep them in the room, but in no case on the refrigerator, not on the window or near the stove - there the temperature is obviously higher than room temperature, and this can lead to premature aging or spoilage of medicines. By the way, putting drugs into the refrigerator that are not marked “Store at 2 - 8 degrees” (or something like that) is also not recommended for the same reasons.

We can clearly see some valuable ideas from this incredible article. Now you understand that

“Drug shelf life revolves around marketing, turnover and profits.”

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A little history

For thousands of years, humanity has been subject to infectious diseases, which have claimed millions of lives and been the leading cause of death. In 1929, the English microbiologist A. Fleming discovered the first antibiotic, penicillin. This became one of the most outstanding discoveries of the 20th century. Started new era in biology and medicine era of antibiotics. Since the 40s medications, which kill or inhibit the growth of microorganisms, are widely used medical practice. The ability of antibiotics to successfully fight infectious diseases previously considered deadly was perceived as a panacea. However, soon after the start of using antibiotics, doctors were faced with the problem of antibiotic resistance - bacteria that were insensitive to their action began to appear. Unfortunately, every year the number of antibiotic-resistant microorganisms is growing steadily. This is largely due to the fact that, forgetting about caution, many people use antibiotics at their own discretion.

What necessary know if you are going to use antibiotics:

Antibiotics are only effective against bacterial infections infectious diseases, that is, for diseases caused by bacteria

The majority of the Russian population has antibiotics in their home medicine cabinets and uses them independently when colds, fever, intestinal upset, which is not only completely meaningless and useless, but also harmful.

Antibiotics are useless for:

ARVI, influenza these conditions are caused by viruses, on which antibiotics have no effect;
elevated temperature antibiotics are not antipyretic or painkillers;
inflammatory processes antibiotics do not have an anti-inflammatory effect;
cough there are many causes of cough: viral infections, allergies, bronchial asthma, increased sensitivity bronchi to irritants external environment and many others, and only a small proportion of coughs are associated with microorganisms;
Intestinal disorder it is not at all necessary that this state is a sign of an intestinal infection. Abnormal stool can be caused by many reasons, ranging from simple intolerance to any product to food poisoning when it is not the pathogen that enters the body, but the toxin it produces. In addition, it should be noted that most intestinal infections are caused by viruses, but even if the causative agent is bacteria, the use of antibiotics often increases the duration of the disease.

Antibiotics should be used according to strict indications and only when the doctor diagnoses an infectious disease

All drugs in this class, unfortunately, are not universal and are by no means harmless. Each antibiotic has its own spectrum of action, i.e. acts only on certain microorganisms that are sensitive to it. Only a doctor can determine which antibiotic is needed for a particular disease.

Self-medication with antibiotics contributes to spread of infections(for example, syphilis). Independent use antibiotics can lead to “erasing” signs of the disease, and it will be very difficult (if not impossible) to detect. This is especially true if there is a suspicion of acute stomach, when the patient’s life depends on a correct and timely diagnosis. Ineffective treatment antibiotic may lead to chronic course diseases(gonorrhea, chlamydia, intestinal infections).

Only a doctor can determine the required dose and duration of antibiotic use.

Despite detailed instructions, accompanying almost everything medicines, there are many factors that can only be taken into account by a doctor. So, small dose or short course may lead to development of microorganism resistance to antibiotics, in which case treatment will need to be started again. It must be remembered that an improvement in well-being or a decrease in temperature is not a reason to discontinue the antibiotic, since only full course of treatment may lead to recovery.

Exceeding the dose or taking too long a course may have toxic effect on the body. In addition, many people suffer from diseases of the heart, liver, kidneys, nervous system, diabetes mellitus etc. and are forced to almost constantly take other medications. Only a doctor can take into account possible interactions between drugs and choose the safest one for this person antibiotic.

Antibiotics should be used under the supervision of a doctor and you must inform him of any changes in your health during treatment.

When choosing an antibiotic, you should also take into account the possible side effects that each drug has, because no medicine without side effects . These are allergies, individual intolerance, toxic effects on the kidneys, liver, blood and much more. In most cases, side effects from medications are rare. However, serious drug companies always indicate possible adverse changes in a patient's condition, even if they were probably not related to the drug. Only a doctor can assess the true risk associated with a particular drug.; If side effects occur, decide whether to continue treatment, discontinue the drug, or prescribe additional treatment.

It is NOT ACCEPTABLE to use drugs that have expired

For expired drugs (especially tetracyclines) the likelihood of side effects increases significantly. It is very difficult to predict how the drug will behave in the body. An expired medicine will have more harm than good.

Antibiotics should be used especially carefully in children, pregnant and lactating women

You should know that many widespread and “popular” antibiotics among the population (tetracycline, doxycycline, chloramphenicol, etc.) prohibited for use in children, pregnant and lactating women. They have a toxic effect on the fetus and child.

The free sale of antibiotics in Russia is not a reason for a frivolous attitude towards them. These are drugs that must be used according to STRICT indications and ONLY as prescribed by a doctor! Do not try to treat yourself, trusting only the instructions for the drug and medical reference books!