From whom did you learn storing, managing and disposing medicine? Answers for most of you would be parents. But have you ever thought what they taught us could be wrong? Shouldn’t we explore if there are better ways to manage your medicine stock? We should, right? That’s why, in this article, we’ll learn about the best ways to store medicine in your home. Let’s get started!
1. Avoid Storing Medicine in Bathroom Medicine Cabinets
Surprised? Well, you should be. Contrary to popular belief, the bathroom cabinet isn’t the ideal place to store your medicine. We know they’re quite convenient to store your liquid oval bottles and pharmacy vials, but there are other aspects that you must consider as well. Medicines should be stored in a place where there aren’t many fluctuations in terms of temperature. When it comes to bathrooms, the temperatures are constantly fluctuating due to variations in heat and moisture. That’s far from ideal and can affect the impact of medicine in the long run. So, you better avoid “medicine cabinet.”
2. Don’t Give Children Reasons to Get Curious About
Now you’d be thinking, “what exactly is a safe place?” Okay, so let us answer you that. In terms of medicine storage, a safe place is a place which is at height, far from the children areas and away from their eyesight. Children are curious animals that can get to any lengths to satisfy their curiosity. And you should store at a place that gives them minimum reasons to be curious about.
3. Lock Your Medicine Storage Space
Sometimes, no matter how much we try, children find their way to things. And even if they don’t, we should always take precautions as we’re dealing with drugs that could be deadly for them. That’s why, even if you’ve stored it at a safe place with child-proof containers, always lock your drawer/cabinet so that children cannot get access to the medicine inside. Don’t take a chance!
4. Don’t Give Medicines Reasons to React Chemically
Just like you should give minimum reasons for children to be curious about your medicine storage, you should give minimum reasons to your medicine to give a chemical reaction. Therefore, you must not store at a place that is high in temperature and has moisture. Moreover, you should store medicines in such a way that they don’t come in direct contact with each other.
5. Not All Medicines are the Same
Most of us store all medicines at a certain place in our house and that’s why we call it medicine cabinet or box. Well, they might come in the similar pharmacy bags, we should always keep in mind that not all medicines are the same. Some medicines might be required to store in refrigeration, some might be required to store inside glass pre roll tubes and some might be required to be stored at a dry place. Always check for the medicine cover to know the correct method of storage.
6. Don’t Store Medicines in the Glove Box of Your Car
Some of you might be spending a good amount of your time in commuting to and from your work. And that’ why it’s wise to store your medicines in your car so that you don’t forget. However, you should be mindful of the storing place as children could sit in your car in your absent. Therefore, you shouldn’t store medicines in the glove box of your car as it’s quite easily accessible. You should insist on carrying a medicine box that can be locked.
7. Don’t Just Throw the Expired Ones Out
Okay, we’re not telling you to store your expired medicines. Instead, we’re asking you to throw them correctly. A medicine isn’t just any other garbage and that’s why, we should always treat it separately. And of course, you shouldn’t flush it out. To throw the expired medicines out, first mix the pills or capsules into an inedible substance (such as kitty litter or used coffee grouds). After that, pour the mixture into a container that can be sealed. Only after that, you should throw them out. If this sounds like a lot of hard work to you, then you could also consider dropping off your old medicines in drop-off kiosks in pharmacies or clinics.