We all know that food expires, but did you know that health and beauty items also have an expiration date?
I was thinking about sharing this topic with you all today and decided to go in my closet to find an expiration date to take a photo of (I am all about the photos) and low and behold the first thing I picked up had expired TWO years ago!
Expiration dates on tubes of medications and toothpaste are located on the stem of the tube. Since this is a hard to notice area, many times this expiration date goes unnoticed.
Expiration dates are located on the back or side of bottles of over the counter medicines. If you are unsure of where the expiration date is located, go ahead and give the company a call. I did this last summer with one of the toothpaste manufacturers and they sent me a coupon to replace the expired tube!
Makeup also expires. Powder is good for 2 years, cream and gel cleansers are good for 1 year, eyeshadow will last up to 3 years, lipstick lasts 1 to 2 years and foundation is usually good for 18 months. (Always call the company if you are unsure.)
Using an expired product isn’t necessarily going to hurt you, but it will make the product less effective. And if you are using an expired over the counter medication, that lack of effectiveness is going to matter!
To make sure you use a product before it expires, I suggest you write the expiration date somewhere on the product with a permanent marker. Try to only open one like item at a time and make sure you use it completely before opening a new one. And always keep your stock rotated. Items that expire soon go in the front!
If you are new to Couponing, you might want to take a moment to read more in my Getting Started Couponing series.
According to the Clark Howard radio show, the AMA stated that the soonest any over the counter medicine starts to break down is 10 years past the expiration date. The only exception is eye medication. He wondered is it was a marketing tactic to get us to buiy new medications…..