Sciencemadness Discussion Board

Taking Pepto Bismol into Australia

toothpick93 - 22-7-2014 at 04:08

Has anyone ever/known of someone who has brought Pepto Bismol overseas and took it back in their suitcase with out any issues? You can't buy it in Australia and I'd really like to make a video extracting the Bismuth from it.


prof_genius - 22-7-2014 at 04:45

If you put it into the plastic bag the TSA gives you or in your checked baggage or just Fed-Ex or UPS a case to your house. I don't think they would remove it at the quarantine part of the airport.

chemrox - 22-7-2014 at 10:13

Is Pepto Bismal restricted (along with water) in AU?

Tdep - 22-7-2014 at 23:45

It's not restricted. It's just not sold here, nothing to do with laws, all to do with marketing I guess.

I'll never forget the look on the chemist's face when I asked him if they stocked pepto-bismol. He seriously thought I made up that name. Only one person working there out of 7 had heard of it.

After a lot of searching on their databases, I got the response 'it hasn't been sold in Australia for over 30 years'.

toothpick93 - 23-7-2014 at 01:20

I see, I was thinking of buying one or 2 of the bigger bottles and just have it in my toiletry bag as people would usually take it places where the water is bad. Even when I asked my british cousin she looked at me as if I made the word up, I guess not everyone knows what it is

Oscilllator - 24-7-2014 at 01:24

I live in Aus, and I see no reason why you couldn't. Then again, customs laws often have very little to do with common sense.

toothpick93 - 24-7-2014 at 01:37

I get so paranoid when it comes to Australian customs but I've been through customs in so many other country's its such a breeze. Its not like I have anything to hide, its just Australia is so strict about bringing anything into the country

prof_genius - 24-7-2014 at 01:56

I have to agree, I got off a long flight and now I have to wait in line while being sniffed by dogs and giving up all my snacks. At least you can find merbromin in Australia, I plan to buy some and bring it back to the Netherlands.

toothpick93 - 24-7-2014 at 06:01

In Australia there isnt really a door for declaring and non declaring while in other country's if you have nothing to hid you can just simply walk right through

Magpie - 24-7-2014 at 07:39

Quote: Originally posted by Tdep  
It's not restricted. It's just not sold here, nothing to do with laws, all to do with marketing I guess.

I'll never forget the look on the chemist's face when I asked him if they stocked pepto-bismol. He seriously thought I made up that name....


I would get the same response if I asked for a can of "Start, You Bastard," at an auto parts store in the US. :D

Varmint - 24-7-2014 at 10:22

I worked with a VERY British fellow a few years back. He was in the lab and cut himself one way or another and came to me to see where we kept the "Elasto-plasts".

Huh?

A what?

Seriously, he had to show me his cut and make a wrapping motion before I got it, he wanted a "Band-Aid".

Then it dawned on me, "Band-Aid" was just as silly a name as "Elasto-plast", we both had a good laugh over the whole thing.

(Sorry for off topic, just thought it fit here)

DAS

toothpick93 - 27-7-2014 at 11:44

Does anyone know If you can just buy it OTC? or do you need a prescription?

cyanureeves - 27-7-2014 at 12:47

pepto-bismol OTC? no way because it can be turned into a bismuth bomb. yes it is sold over the counter in liquid,tabs,chewing gum and also sold in generic cheaper brands, about a thousand different brands.the oddest i have ever heard of was acetaminophen and codeine tablets over the counter in canada.

unionised - 27-7-2014 at 13:10

I'm probably going to regret this but what is a "bismuth bomb"?

And what's strange about cocodamol being available OTC?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Co-codamol




[Edited on 27-7-14 by unionised]

DrAldehyde - 27-7-2014 at 13:11

Thank you Magpie for the laugh, I had no idea there was such a thing as "Start ya Bastard"

http://www.nulon.com.au/products/Aerosols/Start_Ya_Bastard_I...

cyanureeves - 27-7-2014 at 15:05

i made up the bismuth bomb thing because pepto bismol is so benign yet on the hand codeine will surely be abused here in the u.s.

BromicAcid - 27-7-2014 at 17:50

Strange to think of life without Pepto Bismol, as a long time suffer of stomach issues it is the only thing that has worked reliably for me over the years. Speaking of chemicals controlled in one country but not another, note that diphenhydramine is a controlled substance in some countries whereas in the US hardly anyone would think of it that way. That is what I thought of when I just read that Tylenol 1 was over the counter in some countries, would be nice to have that here but no doubt would be abused. It's a shame that over the counter pain killers max out at the level where by the time they start working you wonder if the pain had disappeared on its own anyway.