An Update on Drugs and its Expiration Date

This article was first posted on one of my blogs dated May 21, 2011. However, the content of this article has no expiration date. Enjoy!

The e-mail below was sent by Dr Sulit to Annie Miles, Current President of MI, Inc:
This e-mail, I believe was Dr. Sulit reaction due to a recent incident about the free drugs we gave to the poor and needy patients in the province of Marinduque during our last medical mission in the island. My personal reaction follows:

"Dear Annie,
Attached are two of many articles about drug expiration dates which pharmaceutical companies are required to put on the labels of medicines which they manufacture. The expiration dates do not mean that the "expired drugs" immediately become ineffective and harmful after the expiration dates. Unfortunately, medicines which have passed that date are perceived as ineffective and harmful and create an alarming concern among practitioners and the patients. These articles should help clarify that some expired medicines which were among the left over drugs from the recent medical mission which were donated to the Marinduque health system are still good and safe to dispense to the patients.I thought that it is good to share
these information with other people so that they are also informed in case that the question is brought up to them, Warm regards, Hector"

As a former FDA employee ( I was Chemistry Team Leader), one of my many duties and responsibilities is to approve expiration dating of all new drugs submitted for approval in the Division Of Anti-Infective Drugs.

In general, tablets and capsules are still good and effective from 1 to 3 years after expiration when stored at room temperature. I have approved an anti-malarial tablet that was stable for 10 years. The stability of the drug is dependent on several factors,three of the important factors are storage temperature, packaging and its formulation.

In general, suspensions,syrups and aerosols, will still be good from 1 to 3 months after expiration. Most of these drugs have short expiration dates perhaps not more than 18 months or less.

Educating the general public and our missioners regarding drug expiration dating should be MI, Inc primary goal during our medical mission.

I remember an incident during our mission in Buenavista last February. Macrine and I were working in the pharmacy section one afternoon. Macrine gave a bottle of tablets to an elderly patient. The woman looked at the bottle and she saw that expiration date was December, 2010. She wanted to return it, but I interjected that the tablets are still good. She took the drug back with an attitude that we were giving her a "Poison".

This attitude is not an isolated case. The general public believes that once the drug has past its expiration date, it is no longer good and must be discarded immediately. My rule of thumb is: For capsules and tablets-one year after expiration is still good. For suspensions, syrups and aerosols, 3 months after expiration should be the norm.
However, drugs that are use for life threatening diseases such as insulin should never be taken past its expiration date.

Do you find this article informative. I will appreciate your feedback. Cheers!

2006: Macrine's 70th Birthday, Medical Mission and Other Photos

Macrine 70th Birthday Celebration at Chateau Du Mer. Boac, Marinduque, Philippines

Invitation to the Party

Roasted pig and birthday cake

MI.Inc Medical Mission of Love, 2006





Ditas, Governor Arnold S and Me



Feed the Hungry from DC in Marinduque

Nick, Ditas and Gov Brown (top) and Carenna

Typhoon Reming Help and Food Distribution

Carenna and Angelina Reyes Reddy( daughter of Tifanny Reyes Reddy) and Ditas

Marina Katague with Whiskers

Putong Ceremony Lyrics ( Boac Version)

Time for Some Romantic Music-Romance de Amor

Photo from music-bazaar.com ( Paul Mauriat-Japan)
Yesterday was not a typical day for the month of August here in Northern California. It was not a sunny day. In the afternoon it was even punctuated with gentle drops of rain, a very,very rare event during the month of August. The temperature was in the high 70's F. Normally we are in the 90's or even in the 3 digits. After spending an hour in the INTERNET, and making sure that the closing date for my loan mortgage refinancing is confirmed for this coming Thursday, I got tired and need some easy listening and relaxation music.

I choose three renditions of Spanish Romance (Romance De Amor)-one of my favorite piece of classical music. The first one is the piano version and the second one the guitar interpretation of Jesse L. The 3rd one is with violin and piano with flowers as the background. Which one is your favorite?

An Update: Diabetes, High Blood Pressure and High Cholesterol Maladies

Coconut lobster, Cucumber and Tomatoes are Good For You-Photo taken at Chateau Du Mer, Boac, Marinduque, Philippines

Diabetes, high blood pressure(HBP) and high cholesterol are the most common age-related diseases all over the world particularly in the US. A person who is now 70 years old and is not suffering from one of the above ailments should feel lucky. He or she must have lived a healthy lifestyle including good diet, exercise and a positive outlook in life.

In my case, I was diagnosed with HBP when I turned 40. My adult-on-set Diabetes and High Cholesterol were diagnosed when I turned 65. I feel lucky that under routine medications, the above three ailments are currently under control. I will turn 80 the end of this year and so far I feel great and lucky, the three ailments above are under control. Thank you Lord!

The lessons I want to impart to the younger generation as well as senior citizens like me is to watch out your diet and keep busy in both mind and body. Sometimes, we are so busy with earning a living, we neglect our bodies and spirit. Even after your retirement, you must have goals that are attainable. You must maintain family relationships and get involved with humanitarian projects if at all possible. In this way, it will keep you young in spirit if not in body.

For a list of diabetic, anti hypertensive and cholesterol lowering drugs, read my articles in my blog http://marinduqueawaitsyou.blogspot.com dated August 20, 2010.

2005: Trip to Vancouver, Victoria, and Whistler, Canada and Other Photos

Marinduque International, Inc Meeting in Vancouver, BC, Canada







On our way to Whistler, BC, Canada

Enjoying the sights and sounds of Whistler, BC

In Front of the Empress Hotel, Victoria, Canada

Macrine and I enjoying the Butchart Gardens-one of the premier botanical Gardens in the World


Toy and Lita Nepumuceno, Olga Luarca Quiazon. Macrine and I, Vancouver, 2005

At the UP Chemistry Alumni Golden Jubilee Reunion

David III and his beloved Helicopter

Dr D'Wanie Gregorio-Conlu visit to Marinduque, 2005

Pete and Boots Mayol Golden Wedding Anniversary, Turlock, California

Yesterday, Macrine, David III and I attended the Golden Wedding Anniversary of Dr and Mrs Pete Mayol of Turlock, California. The party was held at the Turlock Country Club and attended by more than 100 guests, relatives and friends. The highlight of the short program was a Slide Show of Pete and Boots life here in the US starting from their childhood years in the Philippines.

We have known the Mayols since the mid 70's when we will still residents of Modesto California. The Mayols, Zabalas and the Katagues were the original three couples that organized the Mabuhay Club of Stanislaus County in 1970. We left the Central Valley in 1974 and moved to the San Francisco Bay Area thus we have not seen the Mayols for quite sometime. However yesterdays affair triggered pleasant memories of our 5 year stay in Modesto from 1969 to 1974. We were able to have a short reunion with Dan Johnson and wife Nilda Valdez, Gill and Daisy Enconmio, Noemi Ledesma and her hubby, Johnny Quijano and wife Helen as well as Josie Zabala ( widow of Fred) now residing in the Los Angeles area.

Invitation and Programme

Again, Our congratulations to Pete and Boots on their Golden Wedding Anniversary.

2004: Carenna's Ist Birthday, MI.Inc Medical Mission and other Photos

Carenna's Ist Birthday Party with Lechon

Carenna on my shoulder

Visit to the late Minda Jambalos Williams( Macrine's first cousin) with the Mayols( Pete and Boots), Turlock, CA. The Mayols are celebrating their 50th Wedding Anniversary today.

Lunch at Congresswoman Gina Reyes of Marinduque( disputed because of her alleged US citizenship) House near Simi Valley in Southern California, USA

A Visit to Reagan Library after lunch at Gina Reyes Residence, Simi Valley, CA

Marinduque Medical Mission of Love, 2004

















MI Inc 25th Anniversary Dinner and Dance

Marinduque Association of Northern California(MANC) Dinner Dance

Do You Believe in Feng Shui? Is it Art or Science?

Our beach house with the Japanese bridge as the focal point in the landscaping design of the property. The bridge was my own design.

One week ago, I was viewing pictures in Facebook from a relative friend showing pictures of a hotel lobby and the living room of a house being redecorated by his well-known interior decorator spouse. I commented and asked him, if his wife incorporates the principles of feng shui in the rearrangement of furniture as well as coordination of colors scheme in her design and renovation projects. I have not received an answer, but those pictures in FB reminded me of my previous posting in my blogs. I titled it "Is Feng Shui a Science or Art". It was posted on the last week of December, 2012.

Please note that I am not a famous interior decorator or a landscape architect, but I have been practicing feng shui principles in my adult life in the decoration of our homes, beach house and gardens both here in US and in the Philippines.

In my younger days, I used to be an enthusiast of the practice of Feng shui. I have read several books on the subject. The practice is very interesting and to me it is all common sense. So what is Feng Shui?

Feng shui is an ancient art and science developed over 3,000 years ago in China. It is a complex body of knowledge that reveals how to balance the energies of any given space to assure health and good fortune for people inhabiting it.

Feng means wind and shui means water. In Chinese culture wind and water are associated with good health, thus good feng shui came to mean good fortune, while bad feng shui means bad luck, or misfortune.

Historically, feng shui was widely used to orient buildings—often spiritually significant structures such as tombs, but also dwellings and other structures—in an auspicious manner. Depending on the particular style of feng shui being used, an auspicious site could be determined by reference to local features such as bodies of water, stars, or a compass. Feng shui was suppressed in China during the cultural revolution in the 1960s, but since then has increased in popularity.

Modern reactions to feng shui are mixed. The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience states that some principles of feng shui are "quite rational", while noting that "folk remedies and superstitions, that have been incorporated into feng shui's eclectic mix" borders to a pseudo science.

I have applied the principle of Feng shui in the arrangement of furniture in our house, color scheme in the room decor of our retirement home, the location of the front door of buildings in the Philippines and also the landscaping and orientation of trees and plants in my garden. I have not become a very rich person due to my practice of feng shui, but I do enjoy practicing the art of feng shui in all facets of my life.

Try Feng shui and you will feel better, happy and who knows you might win in the lottery and become very rich in the near future. As New Year approaches, this is a good time to start new and fresh and have fun in your Feng shui practices.

Here's a short video on the rearranging furniture with the basics of Feng shui!