This post is paid advertising by Compass Mark.

Keeping unused or expired medications in your medicine cabinet can lead to misuse or accidental ingestion. The newest option for the disposal of unused and expired medications are medication disposal bags. We are now offering Deterra® medication disposal bags to individuals and community organizations.

How Medication Disposal Bags Work

Each bag contains a small pouch of a carbon compound. Unwanted medications are placed in the bag and warm water is added. The water works to dissolve an inner pod, releasing the activated carbon within. This disposal process works on pills, patches and liquids, allowing them to be absorbed by the carbon and rendering them inert and non-retrievable. The bag and its contents can then be safely disposed in a household trashcan.

Environmentally Friendly

While flushing medications down the drain can contaminate water supplies and harm aquatic life, the Deterra® bags are made of environmentally sound materials that allow for the degradation of the plastic pouch and zipper through the use of organic additives that are consumed by microbes found in landfills.

Teens at Highest Risk

Rates of teens who use prescription drugs to get high are dropping, which means that our prevention efforts are working! The number of 12th-graders, for instance, who have misused any prescription drug in their lifetimes has dropped every year since 2012. In 2020, however, 14.2% of 12th-graders in the U.S. still reported that they have used their or someone else’s medication inappropriately, so we still have work to do.