Drug Tests

Drug testing uses biological samples to help determine whether a person has been using a specific illegal substance. There are quite a few circumstances that could lead to you having to take a drug test, such as:

  • Pre-employment substances screening test
  • Random, work-related testing to identify on-the-job drug abuse
  • College or professional athletic substance testing
  • Post-accident drug testing, where someone seeks to determine if actions of a person resulted in injury in incidents such as an on-the-job accident or a vehicular accident
  • Safety-related testing

As stated above, testing is done by a lot of companies when you apply for employment. This is true especially in industries such as hospitals, airline industries, railways, federal transportation and other workplaces where public safety is important.

However, substance testing is becoming more and more common in general workplaces. If you currently work at a job that does drugging testing or you are looking to apply to such a job, the following are a few interesting facts you should know.

#1. Not every drug test has the same effectiveness. Several different factors play a role in how effective testing is. Some of these factors include the substance itself, how much of the drug a person has used, the type of test being utilized, how often the person uses the substance, and personal factors (the person’s height, weight, metabolism, and age).

#2.There are different samples they can take. When most people think of taking drug tests, they think of peeing in a cup. While collecting urine samples is the most common biological material collected for testing, it isn’t the only one. Urine testing is typically used for employment and tests for cocaine, marijuana, heroin, oxycodone, alcohol, nicotine, and amphetamines. Urine tests are also the easiest test for people to alter. Thanks to websites such as Tyrone’s blog, drug screenings using urine can be more easily passed. The site provides resources to help people pass their drug tests.Saliva testing, which is also known as a mouth swab test, is used to determine recent substance use. It’s not a method that’s ideal for determining someone’s long-term use of drugs. Saliva tests can detect usage of a substance within a few hours up to a few days. Saliva is harder to adulterate. It’s usually used to detect amphetamines, cocaine, marijuana, and alcohol.

Blood tests are another way to test for drugs. It can determine the amount in your system at that very moment. You can test for cocaine, marijuana, nicotine, alcohol, opiates, and methamphetamines. It’s an invasive procedure, but the results can’t be altered by outside elements.

Hair testing is used to determine drug use over a longer period of time, typically more than 90 days. Hair can be tested for methamphetamine, opiates, cocaine, alcohol, marijuana, and phencyclidine.

#3. Drinking water won’t help you pass the test. A common misconception people have is that drinking lots of water will help them pass a drug test. This assumption is a myth. Yes, it will dilute your urine, making it harder to detect specific drugs. However, drug tests that take urine samples are monitoring for certain amounts of creatinine. When creatinine levels are thrown off, it’s a huge red flag for those administering the test.

#4. Each drug stays into your system for different periods of time. Each drug has its own lifespan in your body, and your body affects how long a substance stays. The frequency at which certain drugs are ingested combined with various physical and biological factors impact how long they’re in your body. Plus, each screening method has their very own testing window.

The Bottom Line

Drug testing is becoming a common practice for many companies. While you may see it in use more often, there is no need to fret. Besides keeping it professional at work, you need to keep informed on how drug testing works to really feel comfortable with the process.