Why You Shouldn’t Flush Out Old Medications and What to Do Instead
Yes, you can technically wash off your old pills, and in some cases, the FDA even recommends this as a last resort. (This is one of three good ways to get rid of old drugs .) But enough unpleasant things end up in the sewer, so it’s best to get the drugs out of there whenever possible.
When you flush the toilet, that water and its contents must go somewhere. In many places, it ends up in sewage treatment plants and then discharged into the nearest body of water. This means that whatever goes through the treatment ends up in the environment and ultimately back into our drinking water.
So far, scientists do not have conclusive evidence that drugs are harmful to human health (probably not, since they are so diluted), or there is no exact data on what happens in the environment – for example, how drugs affect fish. Remember that the medications you take also end up in the wastewater: anything that passes through your body will eventually be flushed away. Most of the time, your body breaks down the drug into various chemicals, but not always, and sometimes these smaller chemicals are potentially active as well.
Fortunately, wastewater treatment can remove some pharmaceuticals. Some studies show that, depending on the drug, 95 percent is removed; others speak only half . It turns out that it is difficult to study the effect of pharmaceuticals on water in the environment because there are so many different drugs to look for, and they are so diluted that their effect may not be noticeable.
Where better to dump drugs
Trash is a popular option, but two problems remain: people can find your medicines in the trash, and drugs in landfills can also potentially affect the environment. For this reason, the packaging of fentanyl patches instructs to rinse them; You would not want your pet or toddler to receive a dose of medication if they find it in the trash. It is often a good idea to mix old tablets with coffee grounds or cat litter, and that’s okay, but that won’t stop those who decide to get your old OxyContin.
So your options really depend on how important it is to get the medicine out of your home immediately. Most medicines are best brought to a drug disposal site or event at your convenience. But if it is an opioid or something that is potentially dangerous to keep with you, the trash and toilet can be used as a last resort. The FDA has a list of these drugs here ; they say it is better to rinse them and add a little water than risk them falling into the wrong hands. But even they say that you should only do this if you cannot get them to the proper disposal site.
How to find a medication center
A formal drug return is your best option. You bring your medicines to a designated place – often in a storage box – and they go to incineration, which destroys the chemicals inside the medicine.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is announcing a bi-annual drug day (next October 27, 2018) and encouraging communities to host drug return activities. You can find it, for example, at your local library or community center. Check this locator year round for DEA approved collection points for controlled substances ; next to me are mostly hospitals and several pharmacies.
Some pharmacies take medicines back, but not all. Walgreens lists their Dropboxes here and says they are working to make them available in more locations. (Five state laws do not allow them.) CVS also has a few of these, and searches for them also include police stations with Dropbox.