New Zip Lock Bag Destroys Drugs

Author: Justin Mckibben

Prescription drug abuse is easily one of the biggest health concerns facing Americans today. Prescription painkillers and other narcotic medications have made a vast contribution to the overdose epidemic, and experts in the area of drug addiction have frequently done their best to try and inform the public about how leaving unused prescription drugs around the house is a very dangerous and unnecessary risk.

There have been a lot of programs put together by community leaders to have prescription drug drop boxes and throw away locations set up for individuals to safely and responsibly dispose of their dangerous medications. But now there is a new innovation that could make the entire process easier and keep our homes safer. These drugs have made the problem with opiates, especially heroin, even worse and now this simple solution could put a big dent in the heroin epidemic.

Zip It Up

Instead of taking unused narcotics to a prescription drug drop box at a police station or  pharmacy, there’s a new bag that destroy liquids, pills, or patches in seconds.

Deterra is a brand spanking new drug deactivation system that’s so exclusive you can’t even buy it yet. The new miracle product looks like a zip lock bag, but inside there is another little bag full of activated carbon.

When you have extra, unused or unidentified pills to dispose of, you just add the pills to the bag with some water. It only take 10 seconds in the bag, and it could mean the difference between life and death. Jared Opsal, public awareness specialist for the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse believes this is one of the big answers we have been looking for when it comes down to the opiate and heroin epidemic. Opsal stated:

“It’s very simple. This is like hitting the easy button for prescription drug disposal.”

This new and exciting invention may be the future of harm reduction, and the technology has only been out for almost a month.

For the Deterra bags there are two sizes, with the larger of the two being able to destroy as many as 90 pills effectively in one use. As if that weren’t enough, Deterra is more environmentally friendly than flushing drugs down the toilet, and it can create a stutter that puts a stop to a pill habit that quickly grows into a heroin addiction.

Too many addicts get hooked starting with opioid painkillers at a young age, and afterwards they become more and more desperate, usually with no idea that this typically leads to a serious heroin problem. Many teens actually start getting high on prescriptions they find at home, and once they build a tolerance to pills, it is only a matter of time between them and the needle.

Some have made even a direct statement that leaving unused prescription medications of any kind around the house is just like leaving a loaded gun out for your children to play with, and more suggest that when writing prescriptions it would make a huge difference for families if the companies or doctors included these bags with the pill bottle. The impact of having an immediate way to dispose of any hazardous substance would probably save many from ever even getting their first taste of opiates.

While you still can’t just go out and buy these at a CVS right now, there is still a way to get these drug disposal bags. For the time being you must contact the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse, or contact Deterra at www.deterrasystem.com and they will ship them out to you.  Either way there is a new opportunity to take some action that could change a serious outcome or even save a life.

We all have some level of involvement and opportunity to help influence the issue of drug abuse in our communities and in our country. Some people can do something as simple as safely and effectively destroying their medications. Others may have to take a little more action, but there is help out there. If you or someone you love is struggling with substance abuse or addiction, please call toll-free 1-800-951-6135