Drug Testing Fact and Fiction

1. True or False: Eating Poppy Seeds Can Lead To a Positive Drug Test for Opiates.

True: Drug testing is becoming more and more common in our society, and false positive results can have a devastating impact on an innocent person’s career. It’s true! Poppy seeds can be found in urine samples for as long as two days after eating poppy seed-containing foods, and for up to 60 hours if large quantities of the seeds are consumed. Although, sensitivity standards were raised in the year 2000 to eliminate the possibility of false positive results, an MRO (Medical Review Officer) will review a result based on lab testing for this substance and mark it negative for Opiates.

2. True or False: Smoking marijuana can stay in your body and show positive on a drug test for 3 months.

True: Many companies are starting to drug test employees using a lab-based hair test collection. Most hair testing will have a 3 month window if taken from your head. Every half inch of hair taken from the head is approximately I month check. If body hair is used the result can go back to almost a year.

3. True or False: Most employers screen for only THC or marijuana.

False: Most employers use a standard five-panel test of "street drugs" that includes marijuana (THC), cocaine, PCP, opiates (e.g., codeine, morphine) and amphetamines (e.g., methamphetamine).

4. True or False: If I go to Colorado for vacation and use marijuana, my employer can terminate me if I show positive for Marijuana on a drug test.

True: North Dakota does not recognize the use of marijuana medically and recreationally. Most employers have in their work policy that any positive result on a drug test will have consequences taken.

5. True or False: My name comes up on random drug tests all the time for work. My boss is doing this on purpose.

False: Random selection is automatically generated by computer and not hand-picked. DOT employees have to be in a random selection pool of 50% of the employees to be tested for drugs and 10% tested for Alcohol. For NONDOT employees the company you work for can make the selection process greater or less than the DOT regulations. As a rule of thumb most NONDOT companies follow DOT procedure.

6. True or False: Hair from my hairbrush can be used to test for drugs.

False: a hair sample must be collected using proper chain-of-custody protocol and collection techniques. The test subject must verify the authenticity of the sample at the time of collection.

7. True or False: Drug be detected in saliva within 10 minutes of ingetion?

True: Oral fluid testing can detect drugs in the saliva within 10 minutes of ingestion. This short time frame makes it an excellent test for post-accident and reasonable suspicion testing situations.

8. True or False: I can buy an instant drug test cup and test myself at home.

True: You can buy an Instant drug test cup from Drug and Alcohol Testing Network, LLC. This test is fast and accurate. Although, if a Presumptive Positive does show up, required testing and cost may be applied for a lab-based, doctor confirmed result.

9. True and False: Drug and Alcohol Testing Network is part of law enforcement.

False: We are not part of any law enforcement agency. Each test is treated in a confidential manner and to the full respect of the individual being tested.

10. True or False: The best way to pass a drug test is to take a cleansing agent to mask the urine result.

False: The best way is to not use. While urine testing is the most common drug testing method, specimen validity testing is used in the lab testing process and on the instant cups. Specimen validity testing checks for pH, creatinine and specific gravity and testing for adulterants that may be added to the urine specimen. The adulterants detected include household chemicals (e.g. bleach), glutaraldehyde, nitrites, chromates and other oxidizing agents such as halogens. Quest Diagnostics is one of the few laboratories to offer oxidant identification for some of the most common oxidizing adulterants. All “invalid results” are automatically tested twice to ensure accuracy.