Why do common household items (shampoo, toothpaste, medicine, etc.) have expiration dates and what happens once the expiration date passes?

Question

Why do common household items (shampoo, toothpaste, medicine, etc.) have expiration dates and what happens once the expiration date passes?

In: Other

Answer 1

For medicine, the company making it tests it within a particular limit over it’s marketed shelf life. For oral solid dosage (tablets/capsules), the acceptable +/- limits on the strength is commonly 90-110 of the label claim. I’ve seen products range between 1 & 4 years total length depending on the active ingredient’s stability data.
Source: am Pharma QA