Extreme Heat Can Cause These Medications to Stop Working

Key Takeaways

As the term “heat dome” has appeared in more and more headlines, it’s no surprise that extreme temperatures are becoming a factor in our daily lives. While staying cool and comfortable may seem like the main summer challenge, you may have more to worry about if you take medication. Extreme heat can render some prescription medications useless, leaving patients without the safe and effective treatments they count on.

Does Heat Hurt Prescription Drugs?

The chemical structures of many medications are vulnerable to temperature, Jennifer Bourgeois, PharmD, a pharmacy and health expert at SingleCare, told Verywell. High temperatures, in particular, can cause the drugs’ molecular structures to degrade, which in turn leads to diminished potency and effectiveness.

Most tablet medications are most effective between 68 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit, Bourgeois said. However, they might be able to have brief exposures to temperatures as low as 59 degrees F and as high as 86 degrees. Ideally, you want to keep all medications at a stable temperature. What is best depends, though—each drug has a different “best-at” temperature.

Some drugs, such as insulin, antibiotics, pediatric suspensions, injected biological medications, glaucoma eye drops, and certain nasal sprays, should be kept in lower temperatures—around 35–46 degrees, saidMaria Pino, PhD,an associate professor of pharmacology at New York Institute of Technology.

Why Drugs Are Temperature-Sensitive

Which Medications Can’t Take the Heat?

In addition to individual medications, So warns that inhalers and aerosols can burst in high temperatures. Medication patches may also be affected if the adhesive melts.

These Common Medications May Cause More Side Effects When It’s Hot Out

How Can You Keep Your Meds Safe from Heat?

Many medications have a “Goldilocks temperament,” so how can you keep yours safe and effective—especially in extreme heat?

Experts agree that the first step is reading and following the storage directions on the product’s packaging. Make sure you understand what is required for safekeeping at home. If you have questions, ask your prescribing provider or local pharmacist for tips.

Next, think about where you’re storing them. For example, Pino said you don’t want to keep your medications in bathroom medicine cabinets because steam and warmth from the shower may negatively affect them.

You also want to think about what you’ll do if you need your meds when you’re not at home—and that includes making a trip to pick up prescriptions just across town on a summer day. For one, never leave medicines in a hot car—even for a quick trip. Proteins like insulin and GLP-1s can start to break down after only hours in the heat.

If you’re traveling far from home, planning ahead to beat the heat will go a long way toward protecting your medications so that they can keep you healthy.

“Use an insulated container with cool packs. Just do not allow your medications to contact the cool pack directly, as this may also damage the drug. Avoid leaving your drugs in the car, as the temperature can easily go above 100 degrees F (38 degrees C) in the car,” said So. “When flying, carry your drugs with you in your carry-on luggage. The baggage areas on planes are not temperature controlled.”

What This Means for YouYour medications may be vulnerable to the effects of heat, and even leaving them in a hot car on a quick trip could make them ineffective. Always read the labels on your medications and make sure you understand how to store them properly.

What This Means for You

Your medications may be vulnerable to the effects of heat, and even leaving them in a hot car on a quick trip could make them ineffective. Always read the labels on your medications and make sure you understand how to store them properly.

9 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.U.S. Pharmacist.Temperature excursion requirements for refrigerated medications.Benvenga S, Papi G, Antonelli A.Refractory hypothyroidism due to improper storage of levothyroxine tablets.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2017;8:155. doi:10.3389/fendo.2017.00155Rachid O, Simons FER, Rawas-Qalaji M, Lewis S, Simons KJ.Epinephrine doses delivered from auto-injectors stored at excessively high temperatures.Drug Dev Ind Pharm. 2016;42(1):131-135. doi:10.3109/03639045.2015.1035283Farrag SA, Rageh AH, Askal HF, Saleh GA.HPTLC/MS and HPTLC/UV for monitoring of degradation behavior of some β-lactam antibiotics mixtures under ambient storage conditions.Microchem J. 2023;185:108241. doi:10.1016/j.microc.2022.108241Nawarskas JJ, Koury J, Lauber DA, Felton LA.Open-label study of the stability of sublingual nitroglycerin tablets in simulated real-life conditions.Am J Cardiol. 2018;122(12):2151-2156. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2018.08.048Kaufmann B, Boulle P, Berthou F, et al.Heat-stability study of various insulin types in tropical temperature conditions: New insights towards improving diabetes care.PLoS ONE. 2021;16(2):e0245372. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0245372National Library of Medicine: DailyMed.Ozempic—semaglutide injection, solution[drug label].Funk OG, Yung R, Arrighi S, Lee S.Medication storage appropriateness in US households.Innov Pharm. 2021;12(2):10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822. doi:10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822Oladimeji FA, Bankole VO.Influence of storage conditions on the physical and release properties of piroxicam suppositories formulated with lipophilic bases.J Pharm Bioresour. 2017;14(1):8.doi:10.4314/jpb.v14i1.2

9 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.U.S. Pharmacist.Temperature excursion requirements for refrigerated medications.Benvenga S, Papi G, Antonelli A.Refractory hypothyroidism due to improper storage of levothyroxine tablets.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2017;8:155. doi:10.3389/fendo.2017.00155Rachid O, Simons FER, Rawas-Qalaji M, Lewis S, Simons KJ.Epinephrine doses delivered from auto-injectors stored at excessively high temperatures.Drug Dev Ind Pharm. 2016;42(1):131-135. doi:10.3109/03639045.2015.1035283Farrag SA, Rageh AH, Askal HF, Saleh GA.HPTLC/MS and HPTLC/UV for monitoring of degradation behavior of some β-lactam antibiotics mixtures under ambient storage conditions.Microchem J. 2023;185:108241. doi:10.1016/j.microc.2022.108241Nawarskas JJ, Koury J, Lauber DA, Felton LA.Open-label study of the stability of sublingual nitroglycerin tablets in simulated real-life conditions.Am J Cardiol. 2018;122(12):2151-2156. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2018.08.048Kaufmann B, Boulle P, Berthou F, et al.Heat-stability study of various insulin types in tropical temperature conditions: New insights towards improving diabetes care.PLoS ONE. 2021;16(2):e0245372. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0245372National Library of Medicine: DailyMed.Ozempic—semaglutide injection, solution[drug label].Funk OG, Yung R, Arrighi S, Lee S.Medication storage appropriateness in US households.Innov Pharm. 2021;12(2):10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822. doi:10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822Oladimeji FA, Bankole VO.Influence of storage conditions on the physical and release properties of piroxicam suppositories formulated with lipophilic bases.J Pharm Bioresour. 2017;14(1):8.doi:10.4314/jpb.v14i1.2

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

U.S. Pharmacist.Temperature excursion requirements for refrigerated medications.Benvenga S, Papi G, Antonelli A.Refractory hypothyroidism due to improper storage of levothyroxine tablets.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2017;8:155. doi:10.3389/fendo.2017.00155Rachid O, Simons FER, Rawas-Qalaji M, Lewis S, Simons KJ.Epinephrine doses delivered from auto-injectors stored at excessively high temperatures.Drug Dev Ind Pharm. 2016;42(1):131-135. doi:10.3109/03639045.2015.1035283Farrag SA, Rageh AH, Askal HF, Saleh GA.HPTLC/MS and HPTLC/UV for monitoring of degradation behavior of some β-lactam antibiotics mixtures under ambient storage conditions.Microchem J. 2023;185:108241. doi:10.1016/j.microc.2022.108241Nawarskas JJ, Koury J, Lauber DA, Felton LA.Open-label study of the stability of sublingual nitroglycerin tablets in simulated real-life conditions.Am J Cardiol. 2018;122(12):2151-2156. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2018.08.048Kaufmann B, Boulle P, Berthou F, et al.Heat-stability study of various insulin types in tropical temperature conditions: New insights towards improving diabetes care.PLoS ONE. 2021;16(2):e0245372. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0245372National Library of Medicine: DailyMed.Ozempic—semaglutide injection, solution[drug label].Funk OG, Yung R, Arrighi S, Lee S.Medication storage appropriateness in US households.Innov Pharm. 2021;12(2):10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822. doi:10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822Oladimeji FA, Bankole VO.Influence of storage conditions on the physical and release properties of piroxicam suppositories formulated with lipophilic bases.J Pharm Bioresour. 2017;14(1):8.doi:10.4314/jpb.v14i1.2

U.S. Pharmacist.Temperature excursion requirements for refrigerated medications.

Benvenga S, Papi G, Antonelli A.Refractory hypothyroidism due to improper storage of levothyroxine tablets.Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2017;8:155. doi:10.3389/fendo.2017.00155

Rachid O, Simons FER, Rawas-Qalaji M, Lewis S, Simons KJ.Epinephrine doses delivered from auto-injectors stored at excessively high temperatures.Drug Dev Ind Pharm. 2016;42(1):131-135. doi:10.3109/03639045.2015.1035283

Farrag SA, Rageh AH, Askal HF, Saleh GA.HPTLC/MS and HPTLC/UV for monitoring of degradation behavior of some β-lactam antibiotics mixtures under ambient storage conditions.Microchem J. 2023;185:108241. doi:10.1016/j.microc.2022.108241

Nawarskas JJ, Koury J, Lauber DA, Felton LA.Open-label study of the stability of sublingual nitroglycerin tablets in simulated real-life conditions.Am J Cardiol. 2018;122(12):2151-2156. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2018.08.048

Kaufmann B, Boulle P, Berthou F, et al.Heat-stability study of various insulin types in tropical temperature conditions: New insights towards improving diabetes care.PLoS ONE. 2021;16(2):e0245372. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0245372

National Library of Medicine: DailyMed.Ozempic—semaglutide injection, solution[drug label].

Funk OG, Yung R, Arrighi S, Lee S.Medication storage appropriateness in US households.Innov Pharm. 2021;12(2):10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822. doi:10.24926/iip.v12i2.3822

Oladimeji FA, Bankole VO.Influence of storage conditions on the physical and release properties of piroxicam suppositories formulated with lipophilic bases.J Pharm Bioresour. 2017;14(1):8.

doi:10.4314/jpb.v14i1.2

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