By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: Expired medicines cannot be sold in pharmacies due to strict rules and inspections by the ministry of health. But many people store unused medicines at home, which then expires. This rarely happens with antibiotics, as the prescribed dose is consumed completely in a few days. Unconsumed medicines are usually painkillers, eyedrops, cough syrups, etc.

Many people believe it won't hurt to use expired medicine - at most it won't bring relief. But this is not always the case, as medicines differ according to their purpose of use. According to pharmacist Dr Riham Ahmad, it's never recommended to consume expired medicines. "Consuming some kinds of expired medicines can harm the patient, especially the liver. I advise people not to take the risk. In some medications, the expiry date does not include the day, and only the month and year are mentioned. In this case, it can be used till the end of that month," she told Kuwait Times.

Storing medicines properly is more important than the expiry date. "The way of storing medicines is always detailed in the leaflet. In general, most medicines should be stored at room temperature of around 25 degrees Celsius. Wrongly storing medicines will make them useless even if the expiry date is still valid," stressed Ahmad.

"Besides the temperature, ideal storage conditions include avoiding humid places and storing medicines very close to the roof or the floor. Hot weather may lead to a loss in some of the medicine's efficacy. Some medicines should also be stored in the refrigerator, such as insulin, eye pressure drops and others. But these should be stored at room temperature after opening. Conversely, some medicines should be stored in the fridge after opening, such as children's antibiotic syrups after dissolving in water. The remaining quantity should be always stored in the fridge," she explained.

"Some medicines do not include the expiry date on the packaging, and instead only include a number like 6, 9, 12 or others. This indicates the expiry of this medication or skincare product is six months after opening. This is usually for creams and skincare products. For this reason, we can open these products for the customer to smell, for instance," concluded Ahmad.