Can glucosamine & chondroitin pills expire (go bad)?

Question

what happens if they are bad and you take them?

Answer 1

While Kelly is right that pills have expiration dates listed on the bottle, no, Glucosamine and Chondroitin won't "go bad". Once a supplement hits the expiration date, it means the company can no longer guarantee potency after that date. So after they expire, they may not be as good or potent as they once were, but they won't spoil like old milk and make you sick... it's perfectly safe to take those.

However, if you get a liquid supplement, toss it when it gets to the expiration date... liquids can spoil where dried powder in capsules and tablets won't.

Answer 2

Most vitamins have expiration dates on the bottle or container that informs you what the nutritional shelf life is for the pills or tablets.  As with time, many factors could affect the cellular structure of the pills, thus causing it to break down.  You have heat, moiture, and time affecting it.  Some may last long, some may not.  When it doubt just check for the date for freshness.