Medications are rarely just made up of the drugs alone, but require excipients.

• A. False
• B. True
• C. Not sure
• D. Often

Answer: (B)

Excipients are essential components of most drug products. They aren’t the active ingredient, but they are included to enable manufacturing, stability, delivery, and patient acceptance of the medication. In practice, dosage forms like tablets require binders, fillers, disintegrants, and lubricants; capsules need shell material and disintegrants; liquids need solvents, preservatives, buffers, and flavorings; topical and injectable formulations also include stabilizers and other additives. While designed to be pharmacologically inert at the intended dose, excipients can influence dissolution, absorption, shelf-life, taste, and overall usability of the product. Because of these roles, medications are rarely composed of the active drug alone. This makes the statement true.