<p>I think we’re not supposed to post links so just search, “Dispose Old Medications .gov” and you will get some good suggestions. Do NOT flush meds down the toilet and pollute waterways.</p>
<p>Per the FDA, here are the guidelines:</p>
<p>The American Pharmacists Association (APhA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service say just three small steps can make a huge difference: </p>
<ol>
<li><p>DO NOT FLUSH unused medications. Consumers were once advised to flush their expired or unused medications; however, recent environmental impact studies report that this could be having an adverse impact on the environment. While the rule of thumb is not to flush, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has determined that certain medications should be flushed due to their abuse potential. Read the instructions on your medication and talk to your pharmacist.</p></li>
<li><p>When tossing unused medications, protect children and pets from the potentially negative effects. APhA recommends that consumers: </p></li>
</ol>
<p>•Crush solid medications or dissolve them in water (this applies for liquid medications as well) and mix with kitty litter or sawdust (or any material that absorbs the dissolved medication and makes it less appealing for pets or children to eat), then place in a sealed plastic bag BEFORE tossing in the trash.
•Remove and destroy ALL identifying personal information (prescription label) from the medication container.
•Check for approved state and local collection programs or with area hazardous waste facilities. In certain states, you may be able to take your unused medications to your community pharmacy.
3. Talk To Your Pharmacist. Research shows that pharmacists are one of the most accessible healthcare professionals. As the medication experts on the healthcare team, pharmacists are available to guide you on how to properly dispose of your unused medications.</p>
<p>Following these simple steps can help protect your family and community, minimize a potential negative impact on the environment, and prevent the illegal diversion of unused medications.</p>
<p>When cleaning out my parents pantry, I have found home canned goods from the previous decade. They looked pretty bad and I did not deem it necessary to also use a smell test.</p>
<p>At my Mom’s, I recently found a bottle of Coke syrup (used for upset stomach) in the medicine chest. The pharmacy had the name of the city with a ZONE (anyone remember those?) rather than a zip code. I looked it up on Google, and zipcodes started to be used in 1963, so the Coke syrup had to be at least 45 years old…</p>
<p>Whenever I buy spices, I mark the date on the label with a Sharpie. Do the same when I put leftovers in the freezer or put a half jar of something in the fridge. It saves my poor brain a lot of worry about how old something really is.</p>
<p>Started doing this after a family gathering at granpa’s house where my husband’s siblings found numerous canned goods and spices older than them – and they were in their 40s at the time.</p>
<p>When my daughter is home she has a fit when she finds old things in the pantry or fridge. Like the box of cake mix from a middle school event, or the items that are so old there is no expiration date on them. The last time she was home she started throwing things out because she said they were old, but she was throwing things away that I had bought recently. She insisted they were in the fridge when she was last home; I let her know that I can buy the same items a second time!</p>
<p>Guilty on all counts-- spices, liquor, salad dressings, mayonnaise. DH now checks every container before using its contents, just cuz I inadvertently used Miracle Whip that had expired 3 years earlier. :o</p>
<p>must confess I have repeatedly found salad dressings waaay back in my pantry that were several years old, 2002, 2003. so much for buying things on sale to save money. the bad thing is I could barely read the label, good thing the dressing is pretty discolored after that much time…</p>
<p>On the other hand, I have multiple boxes of baking powder and soda because they always seem to expire, so I buy new ones without tossing the old. H & I both shop so we also have multiples of things like ground nutmeg or cumin. Those jars will still be around when I die and will then qualify for this thread, if it’s still around past its exp. date, that is.</p>
<p>July, 1943. For some strange reason, my husband brought an old glass bottle of Wesson Oil to our house when he cleaned and sold his mother’s house. My mother-in-law always labeled things with the date that she purchased them. I gave up arguing with him and just put it on the top shelf of the kitchen cabinet.</p>
<p>They must be teaching this stuff in schools or something, because my kids check the dates on just about everything they pull out of the pantry or fridge and they toss if past the date. I’m a pretty good tosser if something old surfaces, but I sure don’t check everything. With 3 boys over 6 ft and 200 pounds in the house food doesn’t last long enough to expire…except mabe for a jar of capers.</p>
<p>Boxes of baking soda in my spice cupboard: 4 (just bought a new one on Friday-woops!)
Containers of curry powder: 4 ???
Oldest spice: expired in 2000</p>
<p>Does anyone remember ST37? It came in a dark blue or purple bottle and I think it was intended for canker sores?</p>
<p>My dad had a bottle from the mid-1960s when I was a kid and as late as the mid 1990’s he was still pullin that old bottle out anytime anyone had mouth pain, a cut, whatever. He claimed it could cure anything and complained the new stuff just didn’t work as well :eek: We finally took it away from him in the early 2000’s when it was nearly 40 years old. That stuff wasn’t getting near my kids!</p>
<p>True story: My exercise instructor was helping her elderly mother clean out her basement and they found a can of BACON. There was no expiration date, but the mother thought she got it “around WWII, or was it the Depression?”</p>
<p>They also found an unopened box of Luden’s cherry cough drops, still with the plastic around it. The price was 10 cents.</p>
<p>Great link to McCormick; unfortunately, my old spices are all Spice Island. The problem I have with many of my spices is I can read the faint stamp on the bottom of the bottle; for some reason they are printed on the curve of the base where it is distorted. Sometimes I can make out the month and day, but of course not the year!!</p>