narrowing down your home pharmacy to just ten medicines — will simplify your life and free up some room in those medicine cabinets that may be overflowing. use the kiss rule: keep it safe and simple. first take out all of those medicines and line them up on a table. look at the expiration dates and dispose of any old ones. if you have any leftover antibiotics from prescriptions you never finished throw all of those away too. medications for conditions that you no longer have or are unlike to have can be discarded as well. group your home pharmacy into categories: cold medicines ointments/creams pain/fever medications etc. this will help you find duplicates — medicines of different brand names that do the same thing. the categories of medicines that you should have in your home pharmacy: pain and fever medications: acetaminophen (tylenol) and ibuprofen (advil motrin) in both adult and child strengths (if you have children). if you have an infant you may need infant strengths as well. remember that ibuprofen also has anti-inflammatory properties. antiseptic solutions: cuts and wounds should be carefully cleansed so your pharmacy should have hydrogen peroxide betadine solution or the equivalent. topical antibiotics: your choice. they come in both ointments (greasy but protective) and creams (rubs in easily) and all are considered equally efficacious for the prevention and treatment of minor skin infections. some topical antibiotics are better for burns — you should have a burn ointment in your cabinet. hydrocortisone: this topical steroid is also available in creams and ointments. used for itching treating mosquito bites etc. antifungal medications: use for athlete’s feet or fungal diaper rashes. if the woman in the house is prone to occasional vaginal yeast infections some miconazole (monistat) is nice to have available. stomach and intestinal disorders: include a good stool softener such as colace (docusate sodium) or a mild laxative such as milk of magnesia. i do not routinely treat minor diarrhea but having kaopectate or even pepto-bismol at home would be helpful. over-the-counter tagamet (cimetidine) or prilosec (omeprazole) would be appropriate to include along with maalox or mylanta. salt: you can get this from the kitchen but making your own saline (1/4 tsp of salt to 8 oz of water) can be used for gargling or homemade nasal spray/drops. antihistamines: drying up a watery nose or controlling itchy allergies. benadryl (diphenhydramine) is the most common but it can be sedating. claritin (loratadine) or zyrtec (cetirizine) lasts longer (24 hours) and both are considered non-sedating. all are available in both adult and children formulations. decongestants: medications containing pseudoephedrine (sudafed) or phenylephrine are for stuffy/congested noses. they can be stimulating and may interfere with sleep. decongestants also drain mucous so taking them at night is going to cause a river of drainage. it is best to do this during the day when you can blow your nose. cough medicines: there are two types: expectorants (makes you cough by loosening mucous) and suppressants (controls or reduces coughing). it is important to know your goal when you select one. guaifenesen (mucinex) is a mucous-thinning expectorant. plain robitussin is a cough expectorant. medicines that contain dextromethorphan (dm) such as delsym can suppress a cough. combination medicines like robitussin dm have both an expectorant and a suppressant — sort of makes you cough and tries to stop it at the same time! coughing is a normal bodily response to clear the airway so it does not necessarily need to be controlled but having a quiet comfortable night is okay. miscellaneous: band-aids (all types including finger-tip ones) gauze dressings telfa (non-stick) pads paper tape and other dressings are always needed. each home pharmacy will need to be individualized and only you can do it. the home pharmacy of someone with children will be totally different than a family without kids. medicines need to be securely locked if you have kids or grandchildren visiting. always use discretion and avoid over-medication. follow dosage recommendations and avoid the home treatment of things that have not been properly diagnosed — even if you are the one diagnosing them. use your medical provider as a consultant if you have doubts.
what kinds of medicines do i need to stock at home?