
Many medicines deteriorate with time, and this results in changes to their chemical composition. These changes can make the medicines less effective or, in some cases, potentially harmful and toxic if they are used after their expiry date.
Disposing of old or unwanted medicines should be done with care.
Throwing these in the garbage or down the toilet, into our waterways is dangerous. Studies have shown medicines disposed of in landfill have leached back into the food chain via water or fertilisers made from land fill.
The only safe way to dispose of these unwanted medicines is through the Return Unwanted Medicines (RUM) scheme. Simply Pharmacy have special bins where consumers can dispose of their unwanted medicines.
As a result, the RUM Project provides the safest, easiest and most environmentally appropriate way to dispose of unwanted and out-of-date medicines. It makes it possible to return all household medicines to any pharmacy for free and to ensure safe collection and disposal.
Make sure to read the labels on your medicines and check the expiry dates. Remove them from your home, and return them to your local Simply Pharmacy, where your pharmacist will put them in a secure bin for collection and safe disposal.
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