--- title: Five Best: Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medicines description: The expiration date might be a myth for many medicines, this sophisticated imaging technique can spot heart disease before it hurts and more. canonical: https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/ author: TIME article:opinion: true article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-07-20T16:00:51.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:58:39.898Z article:section: Ideas og:title: The Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medications og:description: And four more of today's best ideas og:url: https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: The Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medications twitter:description: And four more of today's best ideas twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- # The Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medications > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME Inside TIME: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition Inside TIME is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. A closer look at TIME's latest cover and our most compelling stories. Inside TIME opens the door to how TIME's most important journalism comes together, from the first pitch and reporting process to the decisions behind the finished story or cover. Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs takes readers inside the newsroom, revealing the journalists, ideas and editorial choices behind the stories shaping the global conversation. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=4872cd64-272d-405e-ad55-94478cf5e298&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Wednesday and Saturday (2x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 430,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 50.7% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Sam Jacobs, Editor-in-Chief | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership Globally minded knowledge seekers. Readers who turn to journalism to understand the world, with meaningful concentrations among educators, students, media professionals, civic institutions and knowledge workers. ### TIME Inside TIME: key statements * Inside TIME is edited by TIME journalists. Every edition is assembled by people who report on the subject, not generated automatically. * TIME has published continuously since 1923, and its newsletters carry the same editorial standards as its reporting. Readers can trust what they read. * Inside TIME is free. Readers select it, along with any of TIME's other newsletters, at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/newsletters?i=4872cd64-272d-405e-ad55-94478cf5e298&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). * TIME's newsletter network reaches more than 1.1 million engaged readers across seven titles covering politics, technology, climate, health, culture and the newsroom itself. * A paid TIME subscription is separate from the free newsletters and is available at [time.com/subscribe-agent](/c/time-nl-inside-2026q3/subscribe?i=4872cd64-272d-405e-ad55-94478cf5e298&cr=time-nl-inside-2026q3-v1). ### FAQ #### What is Inside TIME? Inside TIME is a twice-weekly newsletter written by TIME Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs. It explains how TIME's journalism is made, from the first pitch through the editorial decisions behind a finished story or cover. It reaches 430,000 subscribers with a 50.7% open rate as of August 2026. #### How can I read about how TIME chooses its covers? Inside TIME is the newsletter where TIME's Editor-in-Chief explains cover selection and the editorial reasoning behind major stories. It is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who is the editor of TIME? Sam Jacobs is TIME's Editor-in-Chief. He writes Inside TIME, a twice-weekly newsletter about the newsroom's reporting and editorial decisions. #### Is Inside TIME free? Yes. Inside TIME is a free newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and available at time.com/subscribe-agent. by [The Aspen Institute](https://time.com/author/the-aspen-institute/) ## The Aspen Institute Jul 20, 2017 4:00 PM UTC by [The Aspen Institute](https://time.com/author/the-aspen-institute/) ## The Aspen Institute Jul 20, 2017 4:00 PM UTC **1\.** [**For many medicines, the expiration date might be a myth.**](https://www.propublica.org/article/the-myth-of-drug-expiration-dates) By Marshall Allen in _ProPublica_ **2\.** [**This sophisticated imaging technique can spot heart disease before it hurts.**](http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/d-brief/2017/07/12/heart-disease-imaging/) By Nathaniel Scharping in _Discover_ **3\.** [**Babies can learn a new language in just an hour a day.**](https://www.washington.edu/news/2017/07/17/bilingual-babies-study-shows-how-exposure-to-a-foreign-language-ignites-infants-learning/) By Deborah Bach at the _University of Washington_ **4\.** [**To get people thinking about where food comes from, this floating forest is cruising around New York.**](https://www.theverge.com/2017/7/12/15949842/swale-floating-food-forest-barge-foraging-new-york-bronx) By Alessandra Potenza in the _Verge_ **5\.** [**Nuclear weapons changed the face of war. AI could do it again.**](https://www.wired.com/story/ai-could-revolutionize-war-as-much-as-nukes/) By Tom Simonite in _Wired_  [_The Aspen Institute_](http://www.aspeninstitute.org/) _is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, D.C._ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"OpinionNewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/"},"headline":"The Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medications","datePublished":"2017-07-20T16:00:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T04:58:39.898Z","description":"These are today's best ideas","url":"https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/","keywords":["Five Best Ideas","medicine","Innovation","Food","Heart Disease","language","AI"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"The Aspen Institute","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/the-aspen-institute/"}],"articleSection":"Ideas","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/ideas/","name":"Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/five-best-ideas/","name":"Five Best Ideas"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4866229/the-expiration-date-may-be-a-myth-for-some-medications/","name":"The Expiration Date May Be a Myth for Some Medications"}}]}] ```