Doctors have prescribed painkillers to millions of people in the United States and other parts of the world, but those prescriptions often outlast the pain they're meant to subdue. Continuing to take painkillers after the pain has mostly subsided increases the risk of addiction. Right now, 2.5 million Americans are addicted to painkillers, and 500,000 of them have died due to an opioid overdose in the past 15 years. Perhaps you have half a bottle of painkillers left over from getting your wisdom teeth removed, or knee surgery. It sits in the cabinet gathering dust and expiring. So how do you legally get rid of all the extra pain pills in your medicine cabinet? The Food and Drug Administration has several guidelines based on the kind of pills you're taking. The good news for those of you with pain pills lying around: You can probably just flush them down the toilet (though you shouldn't throw them in the trash). Putting them i...
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