Do you have partly-empty containers of unused or expired drugs in your medicine cabinet? When you do your next tidy-up of this cabinet, what are you going to with these old drugs? If you’re like most people, you flush them down the toilet so that you won’t have toxic medications lying around the house posing a danger to pets or children. Some estimates suggest that up to three-quarters of all drugs eventually get tossed this way.
Bad idea. Scientists have actually found measurable levels of antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers, sedatives and sex hormones in our drinking water because of improperly discarded drugs dumped down the drain.
Although public utilities insist that our water is safe, the presence of so many prescription drugs - as well as over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen and ibuprofen — in our drinking water is heightening worries among some about longterm consequences to human health. Results of pharmaceutical screenings are rarely released, according to a report from Associated Press. For example, the head of one California water utility insisted that the public “doesn’t know how to interpret the information” and might be unduly alarmed.
It’s a serious concern for the environment and for each of us. Here are Health Canada’s guidelines to dispose safely and responsibly of any unused drugs:
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