Things You Should Never Store In Your Medicine Cabinet

A medicine cabinet is a must-have in any bathroom. It's the most convenient space to hold all of your bathroom essentials, from tweezers to skincare and everything in between. It's easy to just throw everything into your medicine cabinet without giving it a second thought; however, certain items don't belong there. Now, this doesn't mean you need to start pulling everything out; things like sunscreen, bandages, and petroleum jelly should be inside your cabinet at all times, as it's perfectly safe to store them there, Insider explains.

Unfortunately, there may be items and products in there that just have to go (besides those that are expired). This is because certain products may be unsafe to keep in your cabinet, or the dark, warm space might negatively affect ingredients within the product, making it ineffective or harmful. To figure out if yours is properly stocked, let's take a look at three things you should never store in your medicine cabinet.

Surprising, right? Despite its name, a medicine cabinet is actually not a great place to store your medication. According to Henry Ford Health, keeping your pills inside this space will eventually reduce their potency over time. The moisture from your bathroom will end up damaging your pills, which can make them less effective or even harmful to ingest. This is especially true for drugs like Aspirin, which will make you feel worse and upset your stomach. When storing your medicines, you should never place them where they'll be exposed to light, heat, air, or moisture.

The same goes for vitamins, The New York Times states. Keeping any vitamins inside your medicine cabinet can lead to the same issues as misplacing medication. Instead of keeping your pills in this cabinet, find a cool, dark, dry place instead, such as a dresser drawer or even your closet. You can choose to put them in a kitchen cabinet, so long as it's not near a hot appliance or the sink (again, you want to steer clear of hot and humid areas).

While it's convenient to have your razor readily available for any last-minute stubble removal, keeping it in your medicine cabinet is less than ideal. Just as it does with medicine and vitamins, the moisture in your bathroom can negatively affect your razors, causing them to rust a lot sooner than expected, GQ explains. In fact, keeping your razor in your bathroom at all is a bad idea. Without giving this item the chance to dry off properly, the trapped moisture creates rust and bacteria, which then gets on your skin, creating all types of skin issues.

You should let your razor dry off on your dresser or another cool, dry space, like on top of your dresser. To really ensure the blades get nice and dry, get yourself a razor stand. Keeping this item in an upright position will cause the water to drip downwards and away from the blade, drying it completely.

Perfume and cologne have their place, and it's not in the medicine cabinet; the high humidity levels in the room will ruin your fragrance over time, says FragranceX. Moisture messes with the chemicals of the perfume and causes a negative reaction, so keep your fragrances away from the bathroom at all costs to make them last. Instead, store them in your closet or display them on your dresser — anywhere to keep them cool and dry (do you see a pattern here?). The best thing to do is keep your perfume in its original box, which is the best approach to preserving the scent.

If you don't have the original box, don't worry, your perfume isn't going to evaporate or explode; the box is just an extra precaution to extend the shelf life of the fragrance. If you choose to place your fragrances inside your closet or on your dresser, make sure to keep them at a low height in case of a fall.