What exactly is going on?Americans have been told for decades to flush unused prescription drugs down the toilet without giving a second thought to it. Well, no more...
The amount and variety of drugs used by Americans has skyrocketed. Only recently have the effects on health and the environment even begun to be realized through research, surveys, and independent analysis. Federal law only requires that water be tested for 1 drug: Nitroglycerine, and efforts to curb the pollution have yet to receive funding.
What Consumers Can Do
· Dispose of unused or unwanted medications at take-back sites or events. Click here to find a medicine take-back location
· Do NOT dispose of any medication down the toilet or in the trash
· Purchase drugs in small amounts, limiting expired medications
· Ask for medications with low environmental impact
· Encourage your provider to take-back unwanted drugs
· Share the message of safe disposal with family and friends
· Commit to wellness strategies to reduce your reliance on medications
· Practice healthy product stewardship
An excellent brochure on safe disposal of drugs and pollution prevention <http://www.teleosis.org/pdf/GreenPharmacyBrochure.pdf>
· Dispose of unused or unwanted medications at take-back sites or events. Click here to find a medicine take-back location
· Do NOT dispose of any medication down the toilet or in the trash
· Purchase drugs in small amounts, limiting expired medications
· Ask for medications with low environmental impact
· Encourage your provider to take-back unwanted drugs
· Share the message of safe disposal with family and friends
· Commit to wellness strategies to reduce your reliance on medications
· Practice healthy product stewardship
An excellent brochure on safe disposal of drugs and pollution prevention <http://www.teleosis.org/pdf/GreenPharmacyBrochure.pdf>
- Office of National Drug Control Policy, Proper Disposal of Prescription Drugs, October, 2009. <
14 comments:
I see the problem. But I am at a loss to see a ready solution. Is the solution more oversight into cleaning and purifying the drinking water? Is it to make illegal the disposal of pharmaceuticals except in regulated manners? It's less than comforting to know that our "purified" bottled water is nothing more than tap water. Such should be subject to more regulation, I think--it's downright fraud to market water in such a way when it's the same thing that you get out of the tap or even out of your toilet.
Had to click on "1 comment" to leave my comment. Didn't see any other way to leave a comment. Reading all this just makes me want to drink less water... not like I drink that much anyway. I do wish there was a better purification system used on tap water that would detect and clean up all those pharmaceuticals that can get by what is already in place.
With the abundance of potential contaminants that endanger our fragile water supplies, the accumulation of prescription drug residues had really never crossed my mind. For years the public has been told to flush unused drugs, and there are no simple solutions or remedies that will easily undo the effects. Will the public be content to live under the adage of "what you don't know won't hurt you"? First and foremost, legislation mandating thorough and appropriate testing standards for drugs is needed on a national scale.
It never occurred to me how drinking bottle water was the same as pouring a glass from my sink. I always felt I was doing myself a "healthy" favor, I guess I will reconsider my habits. I did learn in Microbiology, from my wonderful instructor, that filters are not always that sanitary either. She always told me to make sure to allow the water to filter for at least 30 seconds to a minute before I poured a glass of water. She said that the water from my last pour would sit in the filter and "spoil". Never would have it entered my mind. So yes the phrase "What you don't know, won't hurt you" does play an important role on a lot of my decisions.
Thank you for your links and references on how to dispose of unused medications. I actually have some medications that I no longer need and need to dispose of. I will be calling Walgreens soon to see if there is a take back program in our area. I had not thought of mixing medication with kitty litter!! Ha!!
It seems that America has become a very lazy society in some ways. We are used to getting things fast and done quick. Instead of bothering to call to see if there are donation sites for unused meds, some may think, "why not just flush it down the toilet?" Out of sight, out of mind, right? Pretty scary!
Everyone always makes fun of the fact that I cant drink tap water--it just tastes gross to me! I was feeling good towards the beginning of the video as they explained all the pharmaceuticals found in the water throughout the US. Then, they said that even the bottled water was at risk! There is no escape and not enough testing; what are we supposed to drink?? I wonder what the long term side effects will be for ingesting so many drugs even if they are in trace amounts right now?
It is scary to think what could be in our drinking water. It makes me would if I should be giving it to my baby. I hope that a better solution to purifying our comes soon.
This is outrageous! Like many others, I was sticking to the bottled water because I thought it was better than tap, and because it tastes just a little better than tap. But now I see, I might as well be drinking Dr. Pepper! Then at least I wouldn't be ingesting antibiotis, antiepileptics, hormones, or who knows what else! Good information.
Thanks for the links and information on how to properly dispose of unused medications. The information provided here makes me wonder how many years of data has been collected and if there is a trend. As the general population ages it seems that there may be a significant rise on the levels being detected. What is safe to drink? What about all those soft drink stands at fast food places ... do they use filtered tap water? We think twice about drinking tap water at home but never worry about it when we are getting refills.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
Very true, non-prescription medicines are widely used in U.S. and findrxonline say the number of people taking painkillers such as Vicodin has increased in the last 4 years for an alleged chronic disease.
WASHINGTON — A new study commissioned by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) found that tap water in 31 of 35 American cities is highly contaminated with hexavalent chromium, according to a press release. http://plumbingjudge.com/
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