Throwing your medicines in the trash is endangering the environment and everyone’s health. ©Belga Image
If they are not stored properly, your medications may quickly become ineffective. The cause: the heat and humidity, which often reign in this room, and which are real enemies of medications.
So how should we store our medications? In a closed container, according to Koen Stratemans, director of the APB (Belgian Pharmaceutical Association), who stresses that it is absolutely necessary to opt for “a room with low humidity, and a temperature between 8 and 25°C”he explains.
And above all, out of reach of your toddlers, because an accident can happen quickly. Sometimes, the use of unsuitable medication is even intentional, this is particularly the case with adolescents. According to the VAD (the Flemish Expertise Centre on Alcohol and Other Drugs), more than 16% of them have already taken anxiolytics and/or antidepressants.
Although the consumption of this type of medication is decreasing, the Belgians remain the European champions in terms of consumption. However, these treatments are supposed to be temporary. But for some, the presence of these constitutes an irresistible temptation. In these cases, returning the remaining blister packs to your pharmacy is the best solution. The same applies if they have expired: even if throwing them in your trash is an easy solution, it is strictly forbidden.
Antibiotics in the trash, bacteria boosted
Whether it’s in a trash can, a sink, or a toilet: throwing your medication in there is a very bad idea. Firstly for the environment. It is very likely that some of these tablets will end up in wastewater, then in rivers. Harmful to flora and fauna, they sometimes even cause sex changes in fish!
Then, it is a very bad idea for our health, since these same molecules end up in our drinking water and elsewhere. Thus, bacteria come into contact with these molecules and become more resistant…
As you will have understood, the reflex to throw away your medicines and syrups is the pharmacy. “It is an obligation for pharmacistsrecalls Koen Stratemans. You are asked to bring back only the medication packets, not the entire box.“On the other hand, syringes must be placed in a hard, closed package (a plastic bottle will do) before being deposited in a recycling center.
Drug donations, a poisoned chalice?
Nearly 600 tons of medicines are wasted each year, a real aberration. The cause is too many prescriptions, and especially boxes of medicines that are too big, therefore more profitable for the companies. In this context, it seems natural to donate them to destitute people, to associations… “Officially, we absolutely cannot give out medication, simply because we have no guarantee that these medications have been properly stored.”warns Koen Stratemans.
But in practice, citizens, and even pharmacists, donate these drugs. One of them, Julien Sfeir, created a buzz on Instagram with his song entitled “I throw away boxes”. Exasperated by the overconsumption of drugs, he wanted to raise awareness among the general public, a successful bet!
