This Is Why You Should Never Cut Your Pills in Half Unless They're Scored
Pill splitting refers to breaking a pill down to obtain a smaller amount of the whole pill. Chopping tablets into halves or thirds can seriously mess with the effectiveness of the medication, at times giving the user too little or too much of the active ingredient than what was intended.
If a pill comes scored —with a defined line down the middle—then it is almost always safe to cut in half. The tablets that do not come scored are much riskier to split since the active ingredient could just be floating around on either side. For precise splitting of pills that are not scored, consumers should buy a pill splitter at the pharmacy. They work best for round pills that are scored, but may not work for oddly shaped pills. Some tablets that should never be cut include: coated pills, gel caps and extended release tablets - tablets come with ECR label. There are also some medications that should never be split; mostly those that involve more serious medications. Although there are risks involved with pill splitting it can be an appropriate cost saving technique for some people.
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