Editing Medication (section)

===Environmental issues===
{{Main|Environmental impact of pharmaceuticals and personal care products}}

Pharmaceutical medications are commonly described as "ubiquitous" in nearly every type of environmental medium (i.e. [[Lake|lakes]], [[River|rivers]], [[Stream|streams]], [[Estuary|estuaries]], [[seawater]], and [[soil]]) worldwide.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Richmond |first1=Erinn K. |last2=Grace |first2=Michael R. |last3=Kelly |first3=John J. |last4=Reisinger |first4=Alexander J. |last5=Rosi |first5=Emma J. |last6=Walters |first6=David M. |date=2017-01-01 |title=Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) are ecological disrupting compounds (EcoDC) |url=https://doi.org/10.1525/elementa.252 |journal=Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene |volume=5 |page=66 |doi=10.1525/elementa.252 |bibcode=2017EleSA...5Q..66R |issn=2325-1026}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Ebele |first1=Anekwe Jennifer |last2=Abou-Elwafa Abdallah |first2=Mohamed |last3=Harrad |first3=Stuart |date=2017-03-01 |title=Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in the freshwater aquatic environment |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405665016300488 |journal=Emerging Contaminants |volume=3 |issue=1 |pages=1–16 |doi=10.1016/j.emcon.2016.12.004 |issn=2405-6650}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite journal |last1=Patel |first1=Manvendra |last2=Kumar |first2=Rahul |last3=Kishor |first3=Kamal |last4=Mlsna |first4=Todd |last5=Pittman |first5=Charles U. |last6=Mohan |first6=Dinesh |date=2019-03-27 |title=Pharmaceuticals of Emerging Concern in Aquatic Systems: Chemistry, Occurrence, Effects, and Removal Methods |journal=Chemical Reviews |language=en |volume=119 |issue=6 |pages=3510–3673 |doi=10.1021/acs.chemrev.8b00299 |pmid=30830758 |issn=0009-2665|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Environment |first=U. N. |date=2020-09-17 |title=Environmentally Persistent Pharmaceutical Pollutants (EPPPs) |url=http://www.unep.org/explore-topics/chemicals-waste/what-we-do/emerging-issues/environmentally-persistent-pharmaceutical |access-date=2024-01-07 |website=UNEP – UN Environment Programme |language=en}}</ref> Their chemical components are typically present at relatively low [[Concentration|concentrations]] in the ng/L to μg/L ranges.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last1=Liu |first1=Jin-Lin |last2=Wong |first2=Ming-Hung |date=2013-09-01 |title=Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs): A review on environmental contamination in China |journal=Environment International |volume=59 |pages=208–224 |doi=10.1016/j.envint.2013.06.012 |issn=0160-4120|doi-access=free |pmid=23838081 |bibcode=2013EnInt..59..208L }}</ref><ref name=":2" /> The primary avenue for medications reaching the environment are through the [[effluent]] of wastewater [[Water treatment|treatment plants]], both from [[Industrial water treatment|industrial plants]] during production, and from [[Sewage treatment|municipal plants]] after consumption.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Gadipelly |first1=Chandrakanth |last2=Pérez-González |first2=Antía |last3=Yadav |first3=Ganapati D. |last4=Ortiz |first4=Inmaculada |last5=Ibáñez |first5=Raquel |last6=Rathod |first6=Virendra K. |last7=Marathe |first7=Kumudini V. |date=2014-07-23 |title=Pharmaceutical Industry Wastewater: Review of the Technologies for Water Treatment and Reuse |url=https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/ie501210j |journal=Industrial & Engineering Chemistry Research |language=en |volume=53 |issue=29 |pages=11571–11592 |doi=10.1021/ie501210j |issn=0888-5885}}</ref> [[Agricultural pollution]] is another significant source derived from the prevalence of [[antibiotic use in livestock]].<ref name=":3" />

Scientists generally divide environmental impacts of a chemical into three primary categories: persistence, [[bioaccumulation]], and [[toxicity]].<ref name=":1" /> Since medications are inherently bio-active, most are naturally degradable in the environment, however they are classified as "pseudopersistent" because they are constantly being replenished from their sources.<ref name=":0" /> These [[Environmental persistent pharmaceutical pollutant|Environmentally Persistent Pharmaceutical Pollutants]] (EPPPs) rarely reach toxic concentrations in the environment, however they have been known to bioaccumulate in some species.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Anand |first1=Uttpal |last2=Adelodun |first2=Bashir |last3=Cabreros |first3=Carlo |last4=Kumar |first4=Pankaj |last5=Suresh |first5=S. |last6=Dey |first6=Abhijit |last7=Ballesteros |first7=Florencio |last8=Bontempi |first8=Elza |date=2022-12-01 |title=Occurrence, transformation, bioaccumulation, risk and analysis of pharmaceutical and personal care products from wastewater: a review |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-022-01498-7 |journal=Environmental Chemistry Letters |language=en |volume=20 |issue=6 |pages=3883–3904 |doi=10.1007/s10311-022-01498-7 |issn=1610-3661 |pmc=9385088 |pmid=35996725|bibcode=2022EnvCL..20.3883A }}</ref> Their effects have been observed to compound gradually across [[Food web|food webs]], rather than becoming acute, leading to their classification by the [[United States Geological Survey|US Geological Survey]] as "Ecological Disrupting Compounds."<ref name=":0" />