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Dangers of Flushing Drugs

Flushing unused or expired prescription drugs down the toilet might seem like a good way of clearing out the medicine cabinet, but this seemingly no-nonsense solution to cluttered shelf space is causing serious problems downstream.

Sewage facilities are designed to filter out industrial pollutants, not medications or the chemicals found in cosmetics, perfumes and sunscreens. As the nation grows increasingly dependent upon medications and over-the-counter drugs, doctors are growing increasingly concerned about what happens to these products when they end up in our lakes, streams and drinking water supplies.

The Environmental Protection Agency has yet to conduct comprehensive studies on the issue, though its experts say the potential consequences of such pollution include sex and behavior alterations in fish due to steroid exposure; hastened resistance to antibiotics in people and animals; and shellfish spawning disrupted by exposure to anti-depressants.

Doctors continue to encourage the disposal of drugs that have passed their expiration date, but urge people to discard them properly by checking with local hospitals, senior centers and police stations to find an appropriate site for dumping.

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To read more about this and other environmental health issues, go to: www.environmentalhealthnews.org, www.ourstolenfuture.org, or www.healthandenvironment.org