Doctors urge caution as pill cutters and crushers gain attention
NBC Select highlighted low-cost pill tools, while physicians warned that some medications should not be split or crushed.
By Priya Raghavan · Science Reporter
3 min read
Pill cutters and crushers can make medication easier to take, but doctors told NBC Select that patients should check with a clinician before altering tablets. The warning matters because cutting or crushing some drugs can change how a dose is absorbed.
NBC Select said cutters can help divide tablets when a medicine is made to be split or when a health care provider recommends a partial dose. Dr. Alan Farrell, chief medical officer at Choose Health, told NBC Select that breaking larger tablets into smaller pieces can also make them easier to swallow.
Crushers serve a different purpose, Farrell told NBC Select: They mechanically turn solid tablets into powder for people who have trouble swallowing pills. He said they should be used only with medications a doctor says can be crushed.
Products highlighted
NBC Select named the Ezy Dose Pill Cutter its top overall cutter. The outlet listed it at $4.99 at Amazon and Walmart, with 56,005 Amazon reviews, and said it uses a V-shaped holder, stainless steel blade and built-in tray for storing split pieces.
For people cutting more than one tablet at a time, NBC Select highlighted the DEPAD Pill Cutter, listed at $9.99 on Amazon, down from $10.99, with 4,357 Amazon reviews. The outlet said it has adjustable bars to hold pills in place, a covered blade for safety and the ability to cut tablets as small as 2 millimeters wide without crumbling.
NBC Select also selected the Auvon Scissors-Shaped Pill Cutter, listed at $5.99 on Amazon, down from $6.99, with 7,353 Amazon reviews. The outlet said its scissor design lets users see the blade placement and can cut 5- to 15-millimeter pills into halves, quarters or eighths.
Among crushers, NBC Select named the CoaGu Bear Pill Crusher its top overall pick. The outlet listed it at $7.19 on Amazon, with 2,536 reviews, and said the brand describes it as easy to grip and able to produce powder fine enough for feeding tubes or sensitive swallowers.
NBC Select also listed the Ezy Dose Pill Crusher at $6.99 at Amazon and Walmart, with 33,826 Amazon reviews. The outlet said it uses a twist-and-press design, has a clear bottom so users can see progress and includes a compartment for holding powder before mixing it with food or liquid.
The Pill Mill Pill Crusher, listed by NBC Select at $19.99 on Amazon with 8,466 reviews, uses a hand crank and ceramic burrs, according to the outlet. NBC Select said its chamber can hold dozens of pills and that its stainless steel body comes apart for cleaning and travel.
Medical cautions
Dr. Nneoma Oparaji, a board-certified internal medicine physician in Houston, told NBC Select shoppers should look for tools that are easy to use, precise and easy to clean. She said cleaning matters because residue can build up, contaminate other medicines or affect dosage.
Dr. Jared Ross, a board-certified emergency physician and assistant professor at the University of Missouri, told NBC Select that patients should not cut or crush medicine without first speaking with a doctor. He said extended-release, controlled-release and sustained-release drugs can be unsafe to crush because doing so can destroy the time-release mechanism and cause the full dose to be absorbed at once.
Ross also told NBC Select that larger scored tablets can often be split by hand, while smaller or unscored tablets are better handled with a device than with knives or scissors, which he said can produce inaccurate cuts.
This story draws on original reporting from NBC News.