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Can Spilled Extract Liquid On Medicine Be Harmful?
Question: We realized that our daughter spilled cooking extract inside the cabinets when she baked cupcakes 2 days ago.
I have 2 questions because our medicine cabinet is on other side.
1 - the extract liquid got on no meds directly because they are on second shelf but i noticed today that our pills in our 1 month daily scheduler seemed slightly brittle?
2- unfortunatly, i noticed this as i took my meds this morning and didnt catch it until my third pill.
I got concerned and called poison control. She said my wife and i would be fine.
I asked if the meds were okay and she said she thought so.
She said that what probably happened was, though they didnt get wet from the spill, they likely got kind of humidified from the moisture of the spilled extracts sitting in a closed cabinet..
Made sense to me but i want a doctors opinion.
So, since wife and i have taken these meds, are we safe? Are pills likely safe?
Wife thinks im being OCD crazy but i want to make sure everything is okay.
Its also several hundred dollars in medicine so, if its likely fine, that would be fantastic.
I have 2 questions because our medicine cabinet is on other side.
1 - the extract liquid got on no meds directly because they are on second shelf but i noticed today that our pills in our 1 month daily scheduler seemed slightly brittle?
2- unfortunatly, i noticed this as i took my meds this morning and didnt catch it until my third pill.
I got concerned and called poison control. She said my wife and i would be fine.
I asked if the meds were okay and she said she thought so.
She said that what probably happened was, though they didnt get wet from the spill, they likely got kind of humidified from the moisture of the spilled extracts sitting in a closed cabinet..
Made sense to me but i want a doctors opinion.
So, since wife and i have taken these meds, are we safe? Are pills likely safe?
Wife thinks im being OCD crazy but i want to make sure everything is okay.
Its also several hundred dollars in medicine so, if its likely fine, that would be fantastic.
Brief Answer:
You are safe, pills are safe.
Detailed Answer:
Dear XXXX,
Thank you for trusting us at HCM with your question.
Good news you are safe and the pills are safe.
I have to agree with the officer from the poison control on her opinion. Since the extract liquid did not get on the meds directly it is probably the humidity that caused them to be slightly brittle as you noticed. Since liquid was not poured directly on the meds, there is nothing to be worried about.
Just clean the cabinet with a dry towel to reduce humidity. To prevent such intendant from happening again in the future if the medicine cabinet is in the kitchen, maybe you want to move it to somewhere else away from liquids.
Kind regards,
Dr. Nazzal
You are safe, pills are safe.
Detailed Answer:
Dear XXXX,
Thank you for trusting us at HCM with your question.
Good news you are safe and the pills are safe.
I have to agree with the officer from the poison control on her opinion. Since the extract liquid did not get on the meds directly it is probably the humidity that caused them to be slightly brittle as you noticed. Since liquid was not poured directly on the meds, there is nothing to be worried about.
Just clean the cabinet with a dry towel to reduce humidity. To prevent such intendant from happening again in the future if the medicine cabinet is in the kitchen, maybe you want to move it to somewhere else away from liquids.
Kind regards,
Dr. Nazzal
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
Thank you for answering as Im sure its a bizzare question.
Yes, i cleaned the cabinet without chemicals and its now completly dry. Seems the only meds that were affected were the tablets without coatings stored in the 30 day organizer, everything else seemed ok.
Yes, tablets are definetly all intact and still solid and looking normal aside from the strong vanilla smell.
Probably because 30 day organizer is not sealed like an actual bottle.
I know that extracts have some alcohol in them which im guessing is a non issue as well?
Thanks again as you saved us multiple doctors appointments, time, money and explaining what we feel is a bit of an embarrising occurance.
Pharmacist said its best to keep meds away from kitchens and bathrooms, which i thought was weird since almost every person i know has their med cabinet in those exact locations.
Anyway, thanks again
Yes, i cleaned the cabinet without chemicals and its now completly dry. Seems the only meds that were affected were the tablets without coatings stored in the 30 day organizer, everything else seemed ok.
Yes, tablets are definetly all intact and still solid and looking normal aside from the strong vanilla smell.
Probably because 30 day organizer is not sealed like an actual bottle.
I know that extracts have some alcohol in them which im guessing is a non issue as well?
Thanks again as you saved us multiple doctors appointments, time, money and explaining what we feel is a bit of an embarrising occurance.
Pharmacist said its best to keep meds away from kitchens and bathrooms, which i thought was weird since almost every person i know has their med cabinet in those exact locations.
Anyway, thanks again
Brief Answer:
Glad that my answer helped
Detailed Answer:
It is my pleasure to answer your question, and it is not bizzare at all to ask such a question, as it is important to make sure your meds are still intact for your own safety and safety of your beloved ones.
Since the liquid was not reaching the pills directly it is not a problem and that applies to all meds you had in the cabinet (even if they contained alcohol).
Yes I agree with the pharmacist, the idea is you want to keep meds away from high temperature and to store them in places with low humidity. Kitchen and bathroom can be humid and warm.
It is common practice to keep meds in kitchen and bathroom since it is convenient that those places already have cabinets, but it is not the best practice to keep medications. I would recommend having a cabinet in regular room that is high enough to be out of reach from kids and children.
Thank you again for your follow up question and I am glad that my previous answer helped in making you feel safe.
Kind regards,
Dr. Nazzal
Glad that my answer helped
Detailed Answer:
It is my pleasure to answer your question, and it is not bizzare at all to ask such a question, as it is important to make sure your meds are still intact for your own safety and safety of your beloved ones.
Since the liquid was not reaching the pills directly it is not a problem and that applies to all meds you had in the cabinet (even if they contained alcohol).
Yes I agree with the pharmacist, the idea is you want to keep meds away from high temperature and to store them in places with low humidity. Kitchen and bathroom can be humid and warm.
It is common practice to keep meds in kitchen and bathroom since it is convenient that those places already have cabinets, but it is not the best practice to keep medications. I would recommend having a cabinet in regular room that is high enough to be out of reach from kids and children.
Thank you again for your follow up question and I am glad that my previous answer helped in making you feel safe.
Kind regards,
Dr. Nazzal
Note: For more detailed guidance, please consult an Internal Medicine Specialist, with your latest reports. Click here..
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Vaishalee Punj
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