# "expiry dates" on prescription tablets.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [February 4, 2004, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463 "2004-02-04T10:30:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Psammead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c0e974/32.png) [@Psammead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Psammead)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463/1 "2004-02-04T10:30:41Z")

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I’m currently feeling under the whether (que violins :P) and im un-able at the moment to get hold of any medication such as Ibuprofen (painkiller type tablets), well not any new ones. I found some in my cupboard which have a date on them - 09/2002, are they safe to take? what will happen if i take them?

Thanks.

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**Author:** ![Kymodoce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8797f3/32.png) [@Kymodoce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kymodoce)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 10:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463/2 "2004-02-04T10:43:45Z")

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> [@Psammead](#):
>
> I’m currently feeling under the whether (que violins :P) and im un-able at the moment to get hold of any medication such as Ibuprofen (painkiller type tablets), well not any new ones. I found some in my cupboard which have a date on them - 09/2002, are they safe to take? what will happen if i take them?
> 
> Thanks.

They will be just fine… I have recently read a long article on this, too long to print here in full, and the general thrust of it is that medications such as these have no effective time limit on their efficacy or safety (certainly not a few years over their ‘use by date’ anyway). I will find the article and post a link, if nobody beats me to it…

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**Author:** ![Psammead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c0e974/32.png) [@Psammead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Psammead)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463/3 "2004-02-04T10:45:58Z")

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Thanks ever so much for your help!

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**Author:** ![Kymodoce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/8797f3/32.png) [@Kymodoce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kymodoce)\
**Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 10:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/expiry-dates-on-prescription-tablets/227463/4 "2004-02-04T10:47:44Z")

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Here is a link to the article… it is the ‘Do Medications Really Expire’ article, about half way down.

[http://www.indstate.edu/soe/iseas/Oct03Ca.html#do](http://www.indstate.edu/soe/iseas/Oct03Ca.html#do)