![]() ![]() ![]() Avoid farmers markets, flea markets, or other stores. To avoid many of these issues, make all in-person prescription purchases at a commercial pharmacy. "As long as it hasn't undergone some horrible torture like being left on the car dashboard for three weeks in the middle of July, it should look the same at least until its expiration date." "Reputable pharmaceutical companies make a really high-quality product that's going to stand up to travel and storage," Callanan says. If it's open, appears tampered with, or just doesn't look right, it’s worth checking with the pharmacist. Medication that comes in the original manufacturer packaging should be sealed. Moldy pills or jars containing excess powder or crystals should also be considered suspicious. If your tablets are cracked, have a bubbled-up coating, or are crumbly, take notice. Legitimate pills will always have a factory-made appearance. Call your doctor or pharmacy to confirm any changes. Your medication could change size and shape, and any sudden differences between refills should give you pause. Misspellings of the product name, manufacturer, or main ingredients on medicine bottle labels or other packaging are the biggest, and some of the most noticeable, mistakes. ![]() It's important to know the absence of these signs doesn't mean the medication is authentic - it just means those particular tells aren’t there."Īlthough these indicators won't be present with every counterfeit, Callanan advises patients to be on the lookout for: "But there are 'tells' customers can look for, which may or may not be present. "It really takes laboratory testing to confirm 100% if a medication is authentic or counterfeit," she says. In fact, according to Amy Callanan, a Global Intelligence Lead, Pfizer Global Security, there's only one way to be sure. In a side-by-side comparison, it can be difficult to tell the difference between a counterfeit and real medication. You can make the best-informed decisions about your health, by knowing what fake medicines are, how to identify fake medicines, and how to choose a reliable pharmacy. 1īy that comparison, the chances of your medication being fake are small, but there's still a risk. In the United States, less than 1% of medicines sold in retail pharmacies are counterfeit. Studies show approximately 10-40% of medicines sold in low- and middle-income countries are counterfeit. Worldwide, though, counterfeit medications are more common than some might think.
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