Over the Counter Medications and How They Work

In this experiment, I put the same two pills in 125 mL of lime juice. 

After 20 minutes. Excedrin on the left, Meijer Extra Strength on the right. 

-usually made of gelatin and contain dry, powdered ingredients or small pellets(hard shelled)

-potentially poor disintegration in the GI tract, unless properly controlled for disintegration

-scored tablets make it possible for splitting

-granulation technique can add heat/moisture to components

-preferred delivery for products with large amounts per serving due to compressibility 

-chewable tablets can be consumed by multiple demographics 

-controlled release agents used in tablets can aid specific nutrient uptake

-dissolution control for quick, delayed, or extended release

In the first experiment, I used two different pills. I used Excedrin Extra Strength and Meijer Headache Relief. Both were tablets. First I used 125 mL of water. The water temperature was 37.1 degrees Celsius.

After only 30 seconds, you can already see the Excedrin start to dissolve. 

Then, after 2 minutes, both are dissolving. 

Lastly, after 20 minutes. Overall, the Excedrin tablet dissolved faster than the Meijer tablet.

1.) Administration- We take in the medicine by the form and route as whichever medicine you are taking. 

2.) Delivery- Once the medicines are inside the body, they move into the blood stream, then into organs, and tissues. 

3.) Performance- Medicines will produce or induce effects.

4.) Elimination- The body will wash out medicines and waste products associated with them. 

Once medications reach the stomach, some will start to dissolve.

Some medicines will be absorbed into the stomach lining, some may move on to the small intestine. 

Some drugs have special coats that protect the medicine inside from being destroyed by stomach acid. 

It is important not to open capsules or coated tablets and swallow the medicine inside. 

After the small intestine, the medication will move on into the blood stream.

I also used the Excedrin Extra Strength tablet and Meijer Headache Relief tablet. However, I used 125 mL of orange juice. 

After 30 seconds, it is difficult to see the pills through the orange juice, but, the Excedrin probably started to dissolve a little. 

After 20 minutes, Excedrin on the left, Meijer on the right. 

Then, after 2 minutes, both probably are dissolving but is difficult to see. 

-There are two main organs associated with the elimination of medicines. Those are the liver and the kidney. 

-The liver breaks down toxic substances by a series of complex metabolic reactions.

-The toxins/waste products are stored in the liver until it is ready to send it to the kidneys. 

-In the kidneys, the prepared substances are further processed and then eliminated from the body through the urine. 

In this experiment, I used the same pills in 125 mL of vinegar.

-Unique mixes of ingredients are possible. 

-Bulky materials can result in large capsule size.

-Sealed hard gelatin capsules can be good oxygen barriers. 

-Ingredients can interact with capsule shell.

-Limited fill weight based on capsule volumes.

-Variation in fill volume is known to occur. 

-Capsules can be can be opened to obtain powdered ingredients. 

-Softgel contents restricted to a tight pH range. 

There are many differences between taking a capsule pill or a tablet pill. Which one to use is based on what illness or pain you are trying to subside or get rid of. 

-a small disk or cylinder of a compressed solid substance, typically a measured amount of a medicine or drug; a pill 

In conclusion, you can see that the pills definitely dissolved the best in water. After 10 minutes, you can see that both of the pills have fully dissolved. This would probably be why you are told to always take pills with water, however, this is only one experiment. In order to test this theory, you would have to complete the experiment multiple times. 

Also, you can see that the Excedrin Extra Strength dissolved much better than the Meijer Headache Relief in all of the experiments.  Maybe paying a little extra money for a name brand pill could be worth it. 

Over-the-Counter Medications and How They Work

How Medicines Are Processed In the Body..........................3

Eliminating Medicines From the Body.....................................4

Capsules vs. Tablets.........................................................................5

What is a Capsule?...........................................................................6

Capsules................................................................................................7

What is a Tablet?...............................................................................8

Tablets...................................................................................................9

The Experiment part 1 ...................................................................10

The Experiment part 2 ...................................................................11

The Experiment part 3....................................................................12

The Experiment part 4..........................................................................13

In Conclusion.......................................................................................14

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