Niamh Shackleton
A pharmacist has explained why crushing your tablets can be dangerous and may increase the chances of you experiencing side effects from the medication.
Taking tablets isn't for everyone and some may prefer to take medication in a liquid or dissolvable form.
Alternatively, you may crush your tablets or open up the swallowable capsules to access the medication inside, but British clinical pharmacist Anum has taken to TikTok (which has recently changed for Americans) to issue an important warning on the matter.
She started her video: "Did you know that crushing your tablets or opening capsules and just taking the powder can be dangerous?"
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"Not all tablets are suitable to be crushed, and not all capsules are suitable to be opened," Anum went on to explain to her followers.
"Some are modified release. So if you are crushing these tablets or opening the capsules, you could impact the release profile of the medication, meaning that it might not last as long, and you can increase the risk of side effects."
The pharmacist went on: "Some have an enteric coating. What this means is that it can help to protect your stomach from the medication, and it can protect the medication from the acid in your stomach.
"So you do not want to be tampering with this coating. And more concerningly, some tablets and capsules can be irritating and harmful to you if touched once they've been crushed."
With the dangers in mind, Anum went on to urge people to speak to their pharmacist or doctor if they struggle taking tablets instead of taking matters into their own hands.
Someone in the comments section of the video proceeded to ask Anum about cutting tablets in half and if there are any dangers associated with that.
She replied: "Good question! Some tablets are designed to be split and others aren’t, and it’s not always obvious which is which.
"Cutting the wrong one can change how the medicine works. Best bet is to check with your pharmacist before splitting any tablet!"
If you're someone who struggles taking pills, Healthline says there's a few ways to make it easier: one being to put the pill in applesauce, pudding, or some other kind of soft food to 'trick' your brain into taking the tablet.
Healthline also urges people to speak to healthcare professionals before thinking about crushing tablets, particularly for medications that need to be taken on an empty stomach.