Disposing of Unwanted Medications
Mayor Brede's office recently received an community inquiry concerning the proper disposal of prescription medication.
Rich Peter, Director of Environmental Health Olmsted County, referred the caller to the posted information from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's website. It is excellent information to keep in mind to keep our neighborhood’s safe and healthy.
There is some evidence that these compounds cause problems in the environment when disposed by flushing them down the toilet.
The MN Pollution Control Agency has developed a set of guidelines for denaturing small household quantities of these compounds and disposing of them, with the household trash.
Expired or unwanted prescription or over-the-counter medications from households have traditionally been disposed of by flushing them down the toilet or a drain.
Although this method of disposal prevents immediate accidental ingestion, it can cause pollution in wastewater, which has been demonstrated to cause adverse effects to fish and other aquatic wildlife. When the water is eventually reused, it can also cause unintentional human exposure to chemicals in medications.
Disposing of medications at home
Your unwanted medications may be disposed of in your trash. Follow these precautions to prevent accidental or intentional ingestion.
- Keep the medication in its original container. The labels may contain safety information and the caps are typically childproof. Leaving the content information clearly visible, scratch the patient's name out or cover it over with permanent maker.
- Modify the contents to discourage consumption.
- Solid medications: add a small amount of water to pills or capsules to at least partially dissolve them.
- Liquid medications: add enough table salt, flour, charcoal, or nontoxic powdered spice, such as turmeric or mustard to make a pungent, unsightly mixture that discourages anyone from eating it.
- Blister packs: wrap packages containing pills in multiple layers of opaque tape like duct tape.
- Seal and conceal. Tape the medication container lid shut with packing or duct tape and put it inside a non-transparent bag or container such as an empty yogurt or margarine tub to ensure that the contents cannot be seen.
- Discard the container in your garbage can—do not place in the recycling bin. Do not conceal medicines in food products because they could be inadvertently consumed by wildlife scavengers.
