Expiration dates of canned goods.

[ChadAmberg]

Not all medications are good for an exuberant amount of time. Each medication is specific to it degradation capabilities and times. Some oxidize and die, some unravel all by themselves over time, some are very UV or IR sensitive. It all depends on the molecular structure of the medication and the packaging and storage. Hell, some can degrade into some really nasty stuff. So remember this about old meds, "hey kid, don't put that in your mouth. You don't know what in it or where it's been."

If you're careful with medicine storage, they can last a significant amount of time past what you'd think. From Harvard:

It turns out that the expiration date on a drug does stand for something, but probably not what you think it does. Since a law was passed in 1979, drug manufacturers are required to stamp an expiration date on their products. This is the date at which the manufacturer can still guarantee the full potency and safety of the drug.

Most of what is known about drug expiration dates comes from a study conducted by the Food and Drug Administration at the request of the military. With a large and expensive stockpile of drugs, the military faced tossing out and replacing its drugs every few years. What they found from the study is 90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.

So the expiration date doesn't really indicate a point at which the medication is no longer effective or has become unsafe to use. Medical authorities state expired drugs are safe to take, even those that expired years ago. A rare exception to this may be tetracycline, but the report on this is controversial among researchers. It's true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date. Excluding nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military. Placing a medication in a cool place, such as a refrigerator, will help a drug remain potent for many years.

Is the expiration date a marketing ploy by drug manufacturers, to keep you restocking your medicine cabinet and their pockets regularly? You can look at it that way. Or you can also look at it this way: The expiration dates are very conservative to ensure you get everything you paid for. And, really, if a drug manufacturer had to do expiration-date testing for longer periods it would slow their ability to bring you new and improved formulations.

[SA Friday]

If you're careful with medicine storage, they can last a significant amount of time past what you'd think. From Harvard:

It turns out that the expiration date on a drug does stand for something, but probably not what you think it does. Since a law was passed in 1979, drug manufacturers are required to stamp an expiration date on their products. This is the date at which the manufacturer can still guarantee the full potency and safety of the drug.

Most of what is known about drug expiration dates comes from a study conducted by the Food and Drug Administration at the request of the military. With a large and expensive stockpile of drugs, the military faced tossing out and replacing its drugs every few years. What they found from the study is 90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date.

So the expiration date doesn't really indicate a point at which the medication is no longer effective or has become unsafe to use. Medical authorities state expired drugs are safe to take, even those that expired years ago. A rare exception to this may be tetracycline, but the report on this is controversial among researchers. It's true the effectiveness of a drug may decrease over time, but much of the original potency still remains even a decade after the expiration date. Excluding nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics, most medications are as long-lasting as the ones tested by the military. Placing a medication in a cool place, such as a refrigerator, will help a drug remain potent for many years.

Is the expiration date a marketing ploy by drug manufacturers, to keep you restocking your medicine cabinet and their pockets regularly? You can look at it that way. Or you can also look at it this way: The expiration dates are very conservative to ensure you get everything you paid for. And, really, if a drug manufacturer had to do expiration-date testing for longer periods it would slow their ability to bring you new and improved formulations.

I don't disagree with the above at all, but this information doesn't cover each drug in specificity. Tetracycline can become some pretty nasty stuff depending on how it degrades. Most antibiotics, including the solid pill forms, have a tendency to degrade from heat and UV, some fairly quick. Some will last for years after the expiration. I'm not a pharmacist, but have to deal with this info in chemistry class all day, and the bottom line is you have to research the meds you want to keep long term and understand their different storage capabilities and how to test them. Titration is the best method of testing most antibiotics for their potency, but I suspect the mass majority have no idea hot to titrate and then do the stoichometry afterwards to determine how much denigration has occurred. Then, you have to figure out how much to administer based on the % potency remaining from the current stock. In other words, do I take two or three or four pills?

You start getting into specialized drugs, and all standards do not apply. Stuff like mercaptapuran and methotrexate are highly specialized drugs sub derived from nitrogen mustards and their synthesized counterparts. One of their uses is to suppress the immune system in lupus patients. Another use is low grade leukemia chemotherapy. Nitrogen mustards are the same precursor used in making mustard gas. If either of these two degrade, you literally could have a concoction of nasty stuff. A lot of drugs like the above utilize amine chemical groups in their molecular structure. It's rare, but with multiple amine groups in a highly acidic compound, the degradation can result in a compound called hydrazine. That stuff is just plain poison.

Most over the counter drugs, you are going to be ok. Prescription stuff? Better off doing the research ahead of time.

[hollohas]

Off Topic...

SA Friday, I know you study chemistry but not only that, it seems like you LOVE IT. For that I say...nerd. Kidding.

I did some chemistry while getting an engineering degree and while I didn't think it was extremely difficult (rather basic classes of course), I was not fond of it in the slightest.

I hope your love of chemistry pays off and you invent the next Viagra or something.

Back on topic....now.

How long can one store something like a vitamin C supplement? That is a biggie in my book. I don't want to get scurvy when SHTF and I don't know of many citrus trees in CO. Rose Hips have lots of vitamin C but we don't have tons of roses either. Vitamins in a bottle seem like the best bet.

[Nix]

As my parents/aunts/uncles aways said:

"expiration dates didn't exist when we grew up. You opened something and looked at it. If it looked OK, you smelled it, if it smelled ok you tasted it. If at any point it did not appear good (look/smell/taste) throw it out otherwise eat it."

[Bootifus]

As my parents/aunts/uncles aways said:

"...If it looked OK, you smelled it, if it smelled ok you tasted it. If at any point it did not appear good (look/smell/taste) throw it out otherwise eat it."

I have taken the same approach to women...

[ChadAmberg]

I have taken the same approach to women...

I can see you in a bar now... "Excuse me miss, you're pretty hot, but I need to check for mold..."

[tmckay2]

Foods aren't a huge risk. If it looks and smells ok it's probably fine. May have little to no nutritional value but still fine. Depends a bit on the food. Medications are a risky business. If it's past a year old I wouldn't use it unless life or death

[HoneyBadger]

How long can one store something like a vitamin C supplement? That is a biggie in my book. I don't want to get scurvy when SHTF and I don't know of many citrus trees in CO. Rose Hips have lots of vitamin C but we don't have tons of roses either. Vitamins in a bottle seem like the best bet.

I'm curious about this as well. I have a few bottles of centrum multivitamins that I hope aren't worthless in 5 years.