It’s highly unlikely that a drug can cause harm if consumed before its expiration date. We’ll go over this in detail below. The only exception is that tetracycline (an antibiotic) is recognized as hazardous after expiration. However, even if expired drugs aren’t harmful, you may consider rethinking using them. Many people believe that medicines continue to be effective beyond the expiration date. There may be some facts about this. However, the FDA explicitly states that you should not use expired medicines due to the potential dangers. Certain medications, such as blood thinners used to treat blood clots, lower effectiveness and can cause serious health problems. That is the case; solid medications, such as tablets, can be more solid than liquids once expired. However, this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t take any medication before expiration.