Ordering medications and supplements by mail is convenient and usually cost effective. In fact, some insurance plans demand that you use a mail-order pharmacy for prescriptions. But is it reasonable to use the mail-order option in the summertime?
Summertime Heat Could Wreck Vitamins and Fish Oil:
Q. I just read your article about summertime delivery of mail order medications. For convenience, I get cod liver oil and some other supplements by mail.
Your information worries me because I know that delivery trucks can get very hot for long periods of time. I suspect that fish oil and vitamins could be destroyed in that kind of heat.
When I asked the company how they protect the supplements during transport, they said that the bottle is amber glass, shipped inside a carton for safety. I don’t see how that would protect them from heat.
Protecting Supplements from Heat:
A. You are right that such packaging would not protect medications or supplements from high heat. The prescription fish oil product Lovaza states that it should be stored at room temperature (77 degrees F) with “excursions permitted to 59 degrees to 86 degrees F.” As you point out, delivery vehicles may exceed that temperature in the summertime.
One reader ordered probiotics that cost $100. They are delivered in a Styrofoam box with two ice packs. He said:
“I live in Florida. When I got home the box that says ‘Refrigerate immediately upon arrival’ was sitting in the sun. Both ice packs had melted and the probiotics were hot. I emailed the company and they did not even respond.”
We suggest that if you are ordering supplements, especially heat-sensitive products such as vitamins or fish oil, that you arrange for delivery when you will be able to get them inside promptly. Otherwise, you may want to purchase your supplements locally during unseasonably warm weather.
