I think I've posted this before, but so-called expiration dates on both over the counter and prescription medications are allowed, even encouraged, by the FDA without any evidence whatsoever. The practice seems to be to put a 2- year "expiration" date from the date of manufacture, without the manufacturers being required to submit such claims to outside testing.

One can imagine that this is done to encourage the credulous consumer to unnecessarily buy more of their product, reward the shareholders, etc.

Our tax dollars continue to fund a study by the Air Force on the mythology of prescription meds "expiration" dates called the Shelf Life Extension Program: https://health.mil/Military-Health-Topic...tension-Program

Some civilians have done the same: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shot...-myth-than-fact

The meds that do seem to lose potency are Nitroglycerin and aspirin and some liquid medicines.

The ONLY medication that may become hazardous is outdated tetracycline, and even with that claim, the last time I checked there was only one patient with kidney trouble attributed to outdated tetracycline.

If the medications can be retrieved from the trash please do so; not discarding still useful medicines keeps them out of the landfills, and eventually out of the water supply.