Do you Know How to Store Your Thyroid Medication?

If you take any type of thyroid medication, or any medications at all, did you know that how you store your medications can affect a medication’s effectiveness?  Because of the shortage of natural dessicated thyroid hormone, there are some patients who have ordered additional supplies of natural thyroid hormone either from Canada or through other suppliers. We’ve received many questions about the best way to store larger amounts of thyroid medication for patients who have additional supplies on hand.

Note: If you have any questions about how to store a particular medication it is a good idea to ask the pharmacist or even the manufacturer of the product on what is recommended for safe storage. So use the below just as  a starting point and always check with your pharmacist directly with regards to questions about your own medications.

Here’s a tip that is not well known with regards to your thyroid medication. If you’ve ordered a large supply and/or even if you wish to keep the medication that you’re currently taking “fresh”. It can be a good idea to have 2 separate original  bottles to use for your thyroid medication. When you fill you fill your prescription ask the pharmacist if they can split the amount of tablets into 2 bottles, or give you a larger bottle for storage purposes. One for example, would be the large bottle that you may have received let’s say if you ordered a 6 month supply of tablets, and a second bottle that you would store and open every day which contains just either a month or two of your supplies. This way you are not opening up a large bottle every day which would expose all of your tablets to air and could affect the efficacy of your medication. Now, each manufacturer may have different tips or suggestions but as a general rule, not exposing your medication to air each day can be a good idea. It is VERY important if you are using two different bottles of medications to properly label your bottles or better yet, to have the pharmacist do this for you at the time when you place your order so that you know exactly what is in the bottle, the expiration date, and your medication instructions.

Medication Storage Hints:

Store medications at room temperature: 59 to 86 deg F, 15 to 30
Celsius, in a dry place away from direct light. Good sites are a
kitchen cabinet away from stove/oven, and inside a dresser away from
windows. Keep medications out of the bathroom. Moisture from the
shower/bath can damage and degrade tablets and capsules.
Always check the label or package instructions for special storage
precautions.

Keep those little moisture-grabbing desiccation packets in medicine
bottles when storing for longer periods. If medication comes with
packing cotton, remove it, as it can hold moisture.
Keep containers tightly closed.

Refrigerate only those medications that call for refrigeration. Never
freeze medications unless directed to do so by your pharmacist.

Keep medications in their original containers to protect the drugs
from the damaging effects of moisture and light. Original labels
provide important information on drug identity, expiration & dosage.
Never place different medications together in a container. Storing
drugs together can cause unwanted interactions.

Traveling with Medications:

Suitcases are often stored at extreme temperatures in the luggage
compartment of a plane, bus or car. Always keep your medications with
you as a carry on item on the airplane. A medication that must be refrigerated
at a constant temperature (such as liquid amoxicillin) will need to be
kept in a cooler for travel.