Here's why that huge cotton ball comes in pill bottles (original) (raw)

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We've all been there: reaching for the medicine cabinet with a splitting headache, opening the new pill bottle, and digging through a giant cotton ball to get to the capsules.

Why are those cotton balls even there?

According to The Wall Street Journal, Bayer started putting in the cotton in the early 1900s to keep those powdery pills in place so they wouldn't get knocked around in the bottle and break. That could lead to improper dosage as patients tried to piece broken bits together to form a full pill.

But pills today are coated, and Bayer stopped putting cotton in its bottles in 1999. Other companies continue the practice, however, mainly because consumers expect it.

The National Institute of Health actually recommends removing any cotton stuffed into your pill bottles, as the fluffy ball could draw moisture into the container.