Has your medicine cabinet had its annual check-up? Health professionals recommend you inventory your medicine cabinet once a year. If it’s been a while since your medicine cabinet had its check-up, Baptist Health System (BHS) offers these tips to help you get started:
- Take everything out of your medicine cabinet and examine each item carefully.
- Check expiration dates and throw away all outdated medicines, over-the-counter drugs, ointments and medicated creams.
“It’s important to realize the chemical content of drugs can change as they pass their expiration dates,” said Arthur Mueller, a registered pharmacist and director of pharmacy services at Montclair Baptist Medical Center, one of the 11 hospitals in BHS.
- If medications are not in their original containers and labeled clearly, throw them away.
- Discard old tubes of cream that have become hardened or cracked and any liquid medications that appear cloudy or filmy.
- Dispose of any unused antibiotics.
“It’s important that patients complete all of their antibiotics as prescribed by the physician to make sure that the infection is gone,” Mueller said. People who self-medicate using left-over medications run the risk of building up an immunity to the antibiotic or masking a more serious problem.”
Never share prescription antibiotics with a family member.
- Re-evaluate where you keep your medicines.
Every medication is a potential poison, Mueller cautioned. “If you have children in your home, — and this can apply to visiting grandchildren as well — keep medications locked in a high cabinet.
Bathrooms are actually one of the worst places to store medications. Since the heat and humidity in a bathroom can cause medicines to decay rapidly, the American Medical Association recommends keeping them in a cool, dry place like a bedroom closet.”
While each family’s needs will vary, the following medicine cabinet staples can help you cope with minor emergencies and illness until you can reach your physician: •Acetaminophen, aspirin and/or non-aspirin pain reliever.
Be sure to check with your doctor or pharmacist before taking any over-the-counter medications.
Mueller also recommended another task related to medications — make a list of all the medications you take. It’s easy and costs nothing, but is important, especially for seniors. Include personal information such as your name, all telephone numbers, address, city, state and zip code, emergency contact, physician names and phone numbers. Keep this list in your wallet or purse — close to your health care cards.
“Be sure to include everything you take — vitamins, cough syrup, pain relievers, eye drops, blood pressure medication,” Mueller advised. “You may also want to make a list for each member of your family.” (BHS)
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