Information
on Drug Testing
Most drug
testing is broken down into two categories, urine testing or
urinalysis and hair testing. The labs are not looking for
drugs in urine samples; they are looking for drug
metabolites. Once the body takes in a substance, the end
product looks much different, once it passes through.
Alcohol goes in as beer, gets oxidized by the liver, and
comes out as water. Drugs go in the body in the psychedelic
form and come out as a metabolite. The psychoactive
ingredient in marijuana is 11-nor-D-9-tetrahyrocanibinol
(THC). This is oxidized by the body and comes out as 31
different metabolites. The most prevalent form is
11-nor-D-9-tetrahyrocanibinolic acid (THCA). Marijuana is
passed from the lungs to the blood stream, and while the
drug is freely floating in the body in sufficient quantity a
high is felt. Marijuana is liposoluble, meaning it absorbs
into fat cells. The drug is stored in the fat cells
indefinitely untill the body burns the fat cells for energy.
When the cell is burned, the drug is metabolized and
released back into the blood stream. This is why marijuana
can be detected for 30 days after a substantial usage.
Urinalysis
is typically separated into two separate sections, the drug
screen and the drug test or confirmation. There is a huge
difference between a drug screen (EMIT) and a drug test.
Most drug testing procedures utilize a drug screen and test
(GC/MS). However, some employers or institutions in an
attempt to cut costs will only use drug screens. The screen
is always performed first and is usually followed by a test
or confirmation. Urinalysis is the most frequently used and
least expensive form of drug testing used by employers
today, making up approximately 90% of all drug testing. The
results are taken from your urine sample providing
information and indication of recent drug use. It is fast,
accurate, and easy to perform.
Drug
Testing is broken down in the following percentages:
Hair Testing -- 5% Screen with GC/MS -- 80%
Screen Only -- 5% FPIA (Screen) -- 5%
· GC/MS = Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry
· Screen = EMIT - Enzyme Multiplied Immunoassay Test (Trade
name for the most popular screen used in drug testing field
manufactured by Dade Behring )
· FPIA = Florescence Polarization Immunoassay - Abbott Labs
version of a screen
D.O.T - a DOT test is the abbreviation for a Department of
Transportation. This means the testing guidelines have been
regulated by the DOT, and if the guidelines are not followed
the results are considered invalid. Not all tests are DOT
regulated, but most are. To make the testing process easier
companies follow the DOT guidelines to minimize mistakes.
The first test for the DOT is a five panel EMIT. The cut off
for marijuana on the screen is 50 ng/ml, which is a
composite of all 31 metabolite concentrations. If the sample
is below this level the test is over as a passing status. If
the sample is over 50 ng/ml the sample is sent on to a GC/MS
for confirmation. The cutoff for the confirmation is lower
at 15 ng/ml because the machine only identifies one of the
31 metabolites which is the 11-nor-D-9-tetrahyrocanibinolic
acid. To pass, the one metabolite must be below the 15-ng/ml
cutoff. Urine LuckTM works best on DOT tests which utilize a
GC/. The chart below summarizes five drugs of abuse found on
the screen.
Drug # of Metabolites EMIT cut off GC/MS cut off
Marijuana 31 50 ng/ml 15 ng/ml
Cocaine 4 300 ng/ml 150 ng/ml
Opiates 3 2000 ng/ml 2000 ng/ml
Phencyclidine 1 25 ng/ml 25ng/ml
Amphetamines 5 1000 ng/ml 500 ng/ml
DOT tests are the hardest test to pass if the donor does not
use a detoxifying product. However, if a detoxifying product
is used, the DOT is the easiest test pass. Each type of
detoxifying product works via a unique mechanism on drug
tests. Refer to the product sections of this report for the
mechanism information and explanation. Guidelines for the
DOT test procedures, reporting, and adulteration, can be
found on the Department of Health and Human Services or the
Department of Transportation web page at www.dot.gov/ost/dapc/guidelines/Urine.htm.
Blood Test - Often people will be given a blood test
and a urinalysis. These are for two totally different types
of tests being performed. Blood is normally drawn for
detection of diseases such as AIDS. Drug toxins can only be
detected for 48 hours in the blood after consumption. For
this reason the urine is tested for toxins instead of the
blood. Blood will cleanse itself
in about 48 hours if toxins are avoided. Blood is rarely
tested for drugs, except for insurance/workers comp
investigations or work related or automobile accidents.
Hair Tests - Toxins are circulated throughout the
body via the blood stream. The blood feeds the hair while it
is in the growth stage at the scalp. As the hair is formed
the toxins are trapped inside the hair folic. The toxins
then grow away from the scalp as time passes. If the use of
toxins is stopped, the hair by the scalp is clean, but the
middle of the hair or ends of hair will retain the toxins
until cut off. The level of toxins is greatest near the
scalp. Sunlight and chemicals added to the hair in dyes or
shampoos will oxidize the drug metabolites over years, and
can reduce the level of metabolites by 75%.
For this reason, the hair sample is clipped from the back
neck (nape) near the scalp by the examiner. Once sent to a
laboratory the hair is dissolved with organic solvents. Once
in a liquid solution, the toxins are freed from within the
hair follicle. Extraction is performed on the liquid and
drug toxins are removed. Once the drug metabolites are
isolated a GC/MS is performed with urinalysis testing and
quantitative level is provided.
Our company
is against drug testing, especially drug testing without
cause. One of the issues of drug testing is that it does NOT
test for the use of drugs on the job. Drug testing doesn't
test for impairment or intoxication, it tests for drug
metabolites which can stay in the body for weeks - long
after the effects of any drug. We feel that an employee
should be judged by his/her performance and productivity.
What a person does on their own time in the privacy of their
home is their business. If an employee has been coming into
work on time and finishing all of their assignments, why
should they be tested for drugs? If a person has been
employed with a company for years and their evaluations have
been exemplary, why would they need to be drug tested? We
believe that drug testing goes against our 4th and 5th
Amendment rights.
The 4th
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution: "The right of the
people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and
effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall
not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon
probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmations, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the
persons or things to be seized."
The 5th
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution: "No person shall be
held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime,
unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury,
except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in
the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public
danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense
to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb, nor shall be
compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against
himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property,
without due process of law; nor shall private property be
taken for public use without just compensation."
Drug tests
also violate the constitutional guarantee of presumption of
innocence, placing the burden of proof on the accused. By
being required to give a sample, the worker is forced to
defend himself or herself against a charge without any
evidence or suspicion. American workers are now treated as
guilty until proven innocent!
Saliva
Swab Tests
- The main thing to keep in mind with saliva testing is that
it is very effective for detecting recent use only.
Saliva screens will not show a history of use but will
indicate drug use in the past 1-4 days. Saliva screens
cannot detect anything beyond that because the saliva does
not hold toxins and is constantly produced by the body due
to absorption through swallowing and evaporation due to
breathing. Use of Quick
Fizz prior to saliva testing will guarantee a negative
test in the event a test subject has reason to believe they
are contaminated.
