I'm sure that there are folks who have used really old meds that seemed to work OK, but as far as scientific evidence goes, there is little. The Department of Defense's Shelf Life Extension Program demonstrated that most (but not all) samples they tested were still usefully potent several years past expiration. However, one major caveat is that I believe that they only evaluate unopened meds, which have been stored properly.

With an old, opened bottle of acetominophen that you keep in the medicine cabinet--I don't think anyone can say with much confidence without actually testing it since there is so much variation in temperature and humidity from one person's situation to the next.

So...not really a definitive answer, but that's pretty much about the extent of the scientific research. The rest will be personal accounts, which can be useful, but maybe only apply to their own situation.

I have used pain killers that were 5-years old and had them work. But I don’t know really know the answer as to how long meds really keep. I would guess that they are made to expire in a short time as they would not want lots of old meds floating around for years. And it’s more profitable to have people always buying more. I can understand this in a way. But I don’t think you will get a good answer as to how long they will last beyond the expiration date.

In practice I buy the cheap versions of medicine rather than the advertised brands. This makes them cheap enough that I don't care about the cost of throwing them away unused after a year or two.

I'd expect them to retain some potency, albeit reduced, more or less indefinitely. One problem is that although you know their potency is reduced, you don't know by how much. You might find your usual dosage doesn't fix your headache, and then be tempted to try a double dose, when in fact the potency hasn't yet halved, leading to an overdose.

I'm not a gambling man. In a survival situation I wouldn't throw expired medication away, but I would only use it at the standard dosage. If that turns out to be not strong enough any more, tough; it's better than nothing. And if it's something esoteric that I don't think I understand, I would throw it, in case it decomposed over time into something dangerous.

I have only one word to add: candles.

Well, OK, three more words: lots of candles.

I am having heart palpatations from the extreme short-sightedness of the gentlemen above...

CHOCOLATE!

I would be extremely careful about trading ammo. Opinions change, and I would certainly hate to be offed with my own ammunition.

I read an article a couple of years ago where they said MANY medications have passed the test of time for up to 30 years. Again, that was unopened medications. But some really are time-sensitive, and will break down. Neomycin and tetracycline, and I think aspirin is another. When you have specific medications, ask your pharmacist and explain you're asking 'in case of emergency'.

Sue

To the list I would rice, sugar, flour, barley and oatmeal. Oh, and dried beans and peas.

-Bill Liptak

There have been times in my life I would have paid a lot for a bar of soap. I know that you can make a so-so substitute, but I would prefer the real stuff...

Hi NorCalDennis,

Your thoughts prompted me to Google "Aspirin shelf life".

As expected, there was much to peruse...below is one link that I looked over, it seems pretty straight forward and on the level. YMMV

http://www.endtimesreport.com/Prescription_longevity.html seemed to have some interesting information.

This was just one link of many, and there may be other conflicting data / opinions etc. so before making any long term plans, I would certainly advocate doing more due diligence research as your particular situation and needs may dictate.

Without rehashing the entire article, it indicated that the FDA had been involved in testing quite a few medicines that the military had in stock (which were at the end of their marked shelf life).

The results were rather comforting to learn of, the US military has saved several hundred million dollars due to this testing, among which included aspirin, cipro, antibiotics, and many others.

Regards,
Comanche7

Thing is, for "LONG term" (aka years) type stuff, soap is fairly easy to make. All you need (for all intents) is fat and lye (or other saponification agent). Lye is fairly easly gotten (run water through wood ash). As for fat, I assume in the situation I'm talking about (multi year) you're killing something for meat, so you have fat

You have to do a lot of thinking like "the old days". Harvest time was a BUSY, both in bring in the goods, but also preserving them. Heck, it's a busy time today if you do your own canning - everything is ready in the same few weeks, so you work - NOW, and party later (think 'Thanksgiving" and all the other harvest festivals)

You bring in those deer in the fall for a reason - you have some extra days of cold to work on preserving (salting and drying etc) the meat, and while your at it, using your fires to boil up all the stuff you are preserving, you're making lye from the ash, and boiling the fat and lye to make soap

Harvest time was/is an "All hands on deck" situation

Thanks Comanche7 - that link is a great article. I will follow up with a Google search too. That is quite an eye-opener, yet not suprising, to learn that expiration dates are more closely tied to profits than safety.

Thanks,
Dennis