# Expiration dates on OTC meds **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 6, 2023, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085 "2023-06-06T03:20:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/1 "2023-06-06T03:20:12Z")
I’m talking about aspirin, ibuprofen, antihistamines, diarrhea meds, etc. What’s your tolerance on these WRT expiration dates? Six months? A year? Five years? I have a sore throat and stuffy head so I went rooting around looking for antihistamines and found some other stuff. HEB Allergy Relief (Claritin clone) - exp. 5/2033 No prob there! I took one. I also found Mucinex - exp. 1/2022 Wal-Hist - exp. 8/2018 HEB Gas Relief - exp. 9/2018 Benadryl - exp. 8/2016 In fairness to me, I do have some OTC meds that aren’t expired, too, but I didn’t list them. Discbot pulled up this thread from 2006. > [@OTC drugs past expiration. Any danger?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/otc-drugs-past-expiration-any-danger/364209): > > My mom once told me that once over the counter drugs hit their expiration date, they might become less potent, but they won’t actually hurt you. Is this generally the case? Are there exceptions? I related this rule of thumb to my fiancee the other day when I told her I was taking an Immodium one month past the expiration date. She seemed to think it was a big deal. I said I couldn’t imagine anyone would let something on the market (OTC, no less) that would become poisonous after a certain l… ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/2 "2023-06-06T04:34:23Z")
It will depend on the drug, and how they were stored. Cool and dry is best. [Here is a test](https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3516397-Expired-drugs-research-letter.html#document/p2/a343541) that was done measuring the potency of 28-40 year old medication found in a pharmacy. Acetaminophen was fine, but aspirin had degraded. They can’t speak to the storage conditions over that time, so it might have been particular unfavorable to the drugs that did degrade. They don’t appear to have tested anything that was on your list. There are lots of articles saying that it isn’t necessary to throw drugs away because a clock ticked 1 second past the expiration date. All the expiration date represents is the latest date the manufacturer can guarantee the drug still has full potency. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/3 "2023-06-06T04:42:57Z")
Aspirin develops a vinegar smell as it goes bad. Basically, if it smells normal it’s still fine to use. And i don’t think it’s dangerous after it starts decaying, it just doesn’t work very well. But each drug is different. Some i toss when they get old, and others i keep. I have some 20 year old cough syrup that’s still totally fine. At some point i cut it 50/50 with whiskey to prevent stuff from growing in it, and I’ve been (slowly) using it ever since. Pepsid (famotidine) doesn’t keep well at all. It develops a nasty flavor and stops working if it gets too warm or too old. I toss that if it’s much past the expiration date, or if it smells at all off. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/4 "2023-06-06T04:45:01Z")
I just finished the last of the calcium supplements I inherited from my mother, who died in 2010 and enjoyed shopping at Sam’s Club even though she lived alone. I’m still working on the acetaminophen. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/5 "2023-06-06T05:18:53Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > Aspirin develops a vinegar smell as it goes bad. Basically, if it smells normal it’s still fine to use. And i don’t think it’s dangerous after it starts decaying, it just doesn’t work very well. > > But each drug is different. Some i toss when they get old, and others i keep. Agreed. Aspirin noticeably degrades with age and is especially sensitive to moisture. The byproducts of decomposition are mainly salicylic acid and vinegar, and the vinegar smell is noticeable in degraded aspirin: [https://files.mtstatic.com/site\_4334/121034/0/webview?Expires=1686030194&Signature=dmECfwtqzkrjvEyvh6LU-UNxDzME43VCwRDXZPkjyUweuAIlo18CgdSRhgzZV5bYDE4XzRt~~oOFPjoXORd1wgqL5BBztSoCwaKP6tCt5sPRmlCFhq3ZGzJgAznhbF~itBbZN3Y7cP~6afGtVnbxo95sSiIB2qmVN6pPMEJKWdQ\_&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJ5Y6AV4GI7A555NA](https://files.mtstatic.com/site_4334/121034/0/webview?Expires=1686030194&Signature=dmECfwtqzkrjvEyvh6LU-UNxDzME43VCwRDXZPkjyUweuAIlo18CgdSRhgzZV5bYDE4XzRt~~oOFPjoXORd1wgqL5BBztSoCwaKP6tCt5sPRmlCFhq3ZGzJgAznhbF~itBbZN3Y7cP~6afGtVnbxo95sSiIB2qmVN6pPMEJKWdQ_&Key-Pair-Id=APKAJ5Y6AV4GI7A555NA) And yes, some drugs are stable and effective well past their expiry dates, others are not. One of the OTC drugs I’ve found to be long-lived well past expiry is spray decongestant. If it works, it’s going to work in seconds, and for me it always has, seemingly no matter how old it is. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/6 "2023-06-06T07:46:51Z")
The image I posted above showing how aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) combines with moisture to create salicylic acid and vinegar shows up on the computer I posted it on but not on others. Here’s the image again with a more reliable link: [![](https://i.imgur.com/uckM93y.png) ](https://i.imgur.com/uckM93y.png) ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/7 "2023-06-06T10:12:43Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > At some point i cut it 50/50 with whiskey… I like your style. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/8 "2023-06-06T12:51:01Z")
I’ve certainly used any number of OTC meds ~5 years after expiration date. The big exception being aspirin as already noted; once it stinks, pitch it. As part of my last move we jettisoned everything (food & meds) that was old and have since bought only what was needed as needed and in small packages even if the bulk pack is cheaper per dose. I don’t spend $50 per year on OTC meds. Why should I always be taking 5yo meds to save $50? Not really seeing the upside to that. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/9 "2023-06-06T22:24:28Z")
About five years ago I wanted some OTC cold medicine and every box of the (store) brand I wanted was almost a year past its expiration date. I told one of the pharmacist techs. She whispered to another one. He grabbed a basket and pulled the ones I’d pointed out. Then he found others that were also expired. I don’t know how many he took because the first tech helped me find another brand. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/10 "2023-06-06T22:29:39Z")
Aspirin always smells of vinegar to me, even freshly bought. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/11 "2023-06-06T22:49:21Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > Why should I always be taking 5yo meds to save $50? Not really seeing the upside to that. It’s not to save money, it’s that it’s nice to already have it around if you get sick. I just asked my doctor to renew my prescription for cough syrup “because i don’t want to have to get it if I’m sick”. He said he would. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/12 "2023-06-06T23:50:32Z")
> [@puzzlegal](#): > > I have some 20 year old cough syrup that’s still totally fine. At some point i cut it 50/50 with whiskey Ooh, that’s almost like laudanum: opium dissolved in alcohol. That stuff knocked me on my butt (but sure solved my diarrhea issues) back in the early 1980’s. It did lead to other issues for me though. ;-D ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/13 "2023-06-06T23:51:17Z")
Codeine, but yes. I think i have some ancient paragoric knocking around, too. I think that is opium in alcohol. It’s great for diarrhea. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2023, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiration-dates-on-otc-meds/985085/14 "2023-06-06T23:57:51Z")
Yeah, paregoric is a diluted version of laudanum, it’s 1/25th the strength of the latter with only 0.4 mg/ml of morphine vs 10 mg/ml in laudanum. Opium itself is a mix of morphine, codeine, and thebaine along with trace amounts of other opioid-like molecules. But morphine provides the main kick.