throwing insulin away...

[mom24grlz]

it just doesn't feel right! I was going through Ashleigh's supplies taking an inventory of what she currently has. Decided to check the date on the vials of insulin. Turns out 1 vial expired this month and 2 more expire in July. Would you chance it and use the July insulin or just say forget it and toss the thing. Feel bad, i know there are people in the world who need this and here i am throwing away 3 vials of the stuff. We went through a time where our insurance would not approve the amount of insulin my daughter needed so we got samples from the doctor. The samples are what is ready to expire.

[Jan74br]

I wouldn't feel too bad. It is not like you're throwing it away every month, you know? It is a one off occasion.

[bdelatte]

Id still use it honestly. Its only June. Id def still use them but if you do throw them away, dont feel bad. Like Jan said, its not like you do it all the time. It's the samples so its okay

[jenb]

I'd use it. If they've been refrigerated properly they'll probably be just fine. If in doubt, test frequently; if the results are not what you expect then discard the vials. My doc gave me 7 insulin pens last year that were all over 8 months past expiration and every one of them was fine.

Jen

[bdelatte]

I think they put expiration dates on stuff way earlier so you have to buy more....i never go by it exactly unless its like milk or something lol then i def smell it and never go past like 2 days after the date..gross ha

[Hooterville]

June isn't even over yet...Yes, it is tomorrow but July sure isn't over. I always go by the end of the month if something expires in a given month, not the first day of the month. Also, personally, I'd still use it after July if I knew it had been properly stored and it had a normal appearance. That's your decision though and should you decide not to, don't feel bad.

[daniela1219]

I would still use them, but it's your decision. In case you decide not to use them, why don't you give them to someone that needs insulin instead of throwing them away? Or wait.. If that isn't legal, never mind. Lol.

[Scratch]

I think they put expiration dates on stuff way earlier so you have to buy more....i never go by it exactly unless its like milk or something lol then i def smell it and never go past like 2 days after the date..gross ha

To be a bit annoying, I'm going to point out that the date on milk cartons is a sell by date, not an expiration date. Stores are required to remove the milk, but the milk itself will still be good.

Expiration dates on insulin have a similarity of sorts to sell by dates. The expiration date is a guarantee that if the insulin has been properly handled up to that point in time, it will still be good. It would obviously be rather strange for the insulin to suddenly all go bad the very next day. Of course the fact that the insulin is still likely to be good and effective long after the expiration date has to be weighed against one's own potential for feeling unease about now being in possession of something which is no longer guaranteed.

[art]

Freeze it.

Really

Art

[jbmacomber]

Freeze it.

Really

Art

i thought you couln't freeze insulin?
And scratch i was thinking same thing, date is sell by date.
my dr.s' have told me many times expire date is really just a recomended time, not all meds are bad then.

[Jan74br]

my dr.s' have told me many times expire date is really just a recomended time, not all meds are bad then.

My doctor said that the only thing you should never take expired is antibiotics (though nowadays, as they give you the exact number of pills, that wouldn't happen), cause if there is a loss of even 5% potency, it is enough for it to be ineffective.

But other stuff, like Advil or seasickness meds? He said expired ones that still look ok will at most be a teeny bit less effective, but will still deal with that headache or seasickness, so go ahead and take it.

[Jan B]

In my experience, I can smell the milk going bad before the expiration date. It makes me crazy when I see a date a couple days away on milk at the store. I feel like people are being suckered into buying something rotten. I can almost guanrantee it would already stink. However, I've had other people smell the stuff, and they couldn't smell what I could. Hope I didn't annoy you Scratch; interesting what you said though. I guess I have a "super" nose.

I'd use the insulin unless it's been expired for a few months. But if by using it and letting newer insulin expire in the process, I can see why you might want to get rid of it.

[Scratch]

In my experience, I can smell the milk going bad before the expiration date. It makes me crazy when I see a date a couple days away on milk at the store. I feel like people are being suckered into buying something rotten. I can almost guanrantee it would already stink. However, I've had other people smell the stuff, and they couldn't smell what I could. Hope I didn't annoy you Scratch; interesting what you said though. I guess I have a "super" nose.

I'd use the insulin unless it's been expired for a few months. But if by using it and letting newer insulin expire in the process, I can see why you might want to get rid of it.

The problem is that you might be predisposed to smell something because you've seen the date on the milk.

I've quite often used milk in my own fridge a few days past the sell by date. I haven't gotten sick from it yet. But maybe I'm just dancing with the devil in doing that.

[Jan74br]

The problem is that you might be predisposed to smell something because you've seen the date on the milk.

I've quite often used milk in my own fridge a few days past the sell by date. I haven't gotten sick from it yet. But maybe I'm just dancing with the devil in doing that.

I think there is also a huge variation in how cold your grocery store keeps the milk.

I've touched milk that was barely cold, and milk that was nearly frozen.

[notme]

You can't freeze insulin. However, I would use it without a second thought. The worst case scenario is it will lose potency, then throw it away if her numbers are a bit higher than usual.