In general, it's relatively safe to take an expired vitamin supplement. It's unlikely to cause harm, since most expired medications and supplements don't usually become toxic. While vitamins don't expire or become unsafe, they will lose potency, meaning they don't do you any good. Manufacturers put dates on bottles to indicate when vitamins reach that point, so if you've already passed the expiration date of a bottle, throw them away, because, while they won't make you sick, they won't add any value.
While vitamins don't actually degrade, time, temperature, and humidity can affect their effectiveness. Depending on the vitamins and supplements and the way they are found, they lose potency at different rates. Even vitamins and supplements have an expiration date, although it may not appear on the package. To begin with, the FDA does not require manufacturers of dietary supplements to include an expiration date on the label, as long as the label “is supported by valid data that shows that it is not false or misleading.” Let's discuss how to keep your vitamins fresher for longer and how to get the boost in nutrients you're looking for.
The FDA doesn't require an expiration date, which means that most vitamins aren't on the package, but they do expire. Some municipalities and larger pharmacies have the capacity to accept unused and expired supplements that must be discarded. While vitamins don't generally become dangerous with age, if you notice an odd change in smell or appearance, throw that bottle away and buy a new one. Although not common, vitamins can get moldy or smell bad, especially if they aren't stored properly.
But do we know how they should be stored to prevent them from degrading or expiring? Here's some information so you can keep your vitamins powerful and safe. If, for example, you want to consume the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of a particular supplement and you take one that is past its expiration date, you really have no idea how much of the nutrient you're actually consuming. While there are a lot of opinions online, there is no quantifiable data to support taking expired supplements. Pay attention to the dates that manufacturers put on the bottles to know when their vitamins and supplements will stop working for you.
According to Shilpa Raut, principal investigator at Amway, the typical shelf life of vitamins is two years. The reason they have expiration dates is that, over time, vitamins, supplements (and most medications) lose their potency.
