Drug Testing - The Definitive Guide

COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS

There are commercial products that claim they can help you pass the test. Some people object to using commercial products because they "are just trying to cash in on the War on Drugs." They charge extremely high prices for their products. Water or better yet, a sports drink tends to work as well as or better than any commercial detox product for most. Also, be aware that most States have outlawed products with the sole purpose of creating negative results on urine tests.

Ignore money-back guarantees. Companies that suck in thousands of hopeful, desperate people make so much money, that a few returns from motivated users are insignificant. People could even get away with offering a money-back guarantee for a detox drink or pill because all the water that people are instructed to drink with the product is what most likely has enabled them to pass the drug test. Some companies don't keep their word. A person who tested positive sent the lab results back, only to be told that marijuana is illegal. He was not even compensated for buying a failing product.

URINE CONTENT

Color

If a urine sample looks clear, the lab may suspect that it's watered down. It really doesn’t matter. Laboratories will run Creatinine levels, pH levels, and Specific Gravity tests to determine if your specimen contains too much water. That is, if you drank excessive amounts of water or other fluids to attempt to dilute or mask the level of THC in your urine. In the end, color, or lack of it may be cause for suspicion, but labs don’t act on suspicion. They actually run tests to see if your specimen is within normal range.

Temperature

Urine should be between 90 and 100 degrees. Certified Collectors will verify the temperature. If it is too high or too low, they will report this on your Custody and Control Form. Any specimen that is not up to temperature is either disposed of and the donor is required to submit another specimen while being observed or is reported as a failed drug test. Disposable pocket hand warmers (sold in department stores) will keep a urine sample warm, provided that the urine is kept in an appropriate container and well hidden.

Creatinine

Creatinine is a substance produced by your body, and it shows up in urine. If someone substitutes with something other than urine, like Mountain Dew, they will test negative for drugs. The donor will not get away with it because Mountain Dew contains zero creatinine and that will definitely trigger a “not human urine” result. Creatinine levels drop below normal when people dilute their urine. This test is to ensure that the subject didn't drink unusually high quantities of water. Eating foods rich in protein like red meat will slightly increase creatinine levels. You do need to allow your body enough time (3-4 days) to covert this protein into creatinine. There are creatine supplements available at most health food stores; bodybuilders use it to help with muscle performance.

pH

pH is often changed when people spike their sample with household products. Use caution when doping your urine, pH is will be tested. Any cleaning product added to the urine will alter the pH level and is a significant indicator that the specimen has been adulterated.

Specific gravity

An unusually low specific gravity indicates that a sample has been tampered with. Specific gravity is the indicator that there is way too much water in the urine to obtain an accurate measurement of what is actually contained in the urine. Labs want to test urine, not water. That is why these tests are done on the specimens. If the levels are too far outside of the normal range, the specimen is reported as Diluted. If the specimen is so far outside the normal range for human urine or it contains a foreign substance that cannot possibly be human, it is reported as Adulterated. An adulterated result is the same as a positive result.

Age

Age can not be determined during a urine drug test. There is a rumor that approximate age can be detected in urine, and is tested in medical insurance exams. It's a myth.

Gender

Gender cannot be tested either. As with age, there is a rumor that gender can be detected in urine, and is tested in medical insurance exams. It's another myth. There also is no pregnancy test done during a drug test.

Producing Clean Urine

THC is fat soluble, and it gets stored in your fat cells. Cleaning it out of your lipid tissue is very difficult. Many herbal products claim to clean out your system, yet they do nothing to remove THC byproducts from fat cells. A study was done in Germany in 1993 on 50 of the most common herbs used by people trying to pass the test. All 50 herbs failed to cause a negative. Unfortunately, this rumor will not die. Goldenseal (plant) is useless; yet it's the most common thing for people to use. The only way to extract THC from fat cells is to exercise. Your body uses the fat cells with THC metabolites at a constant rate, regardless of what herbs you consume. You may be able to temporarily clean THC metabolites from your bloodstream, or dilute your fluids to yield a larger urine/THC ratio, but your bloodstream will continue collecting THC metabolites from fat. Your urine will continue collecting THC metabolites from your bloodstream.

Keep in mind that THC is only detectable in blood tests for 3-5 days after stopping marijuana use and not detected after the fat cells holding it have been used by the body for fuel. This is because the concentration of THC going into the fat cells is much higher than it is when it is going from the fat cells to the kidneys. There, in the kidneys, it is again concentrated in the urine to much more detectable levels.

Dilution

Hyper saturating your body with fluids will dilute metabolites possibly below the 50 ng/mL threshold, depending on your metabolism. Be aware that creatinine levels are tested, and will show that the sample has been diluted if they are too low. It is only necessary to start drinking just before the test. Those who drown themselves in fluid days before a test are only causing unnecessary discomfort. Those who stay up all night drinking don't have any better chance than one who drinks heavily first thing in the morning. Get up early if the test is early, but don't lose sleep over a test that's given in the daytime.

Water

Many people start drinking water several days before the test; which is useless. Water, (green tea, cranberry juice, etc.) does *not* clean any THC metabolites out of your system because THC is not water soluble. Water only dilutes urine temporarily. Do not over do it; you can get water intoxication. People can actually overdose and even die from water intoxication. It's very hard to do, and you'll vomit before anything gets serious.

Vitamin B

Color your sample yellow by taking 50 to 100 milligrams of vitamin B. Many vitamins will work, but B-2 or B-12 (found in B-complex vitamins) are the most effective. This does not guarantee that dilution will work. Diluted samples have been red-flagged when specific gravity and creatinine levels are tested and below normal. If you're taking vitamins at the last minute, check to see if they're time release. If so, crush it up and consume the powder. Coloring your urine isn't all that important because as mentioned before, the labs test the urine for content, not color.

Diuretics

Diuretics make people urinate frequently. Coffee, cranberry juice, beer, iced tea, herbal tea, and other fluids containing caffeine are all good diuretics. Grapes are known to be very good diuretics. Diuretics without caffeine or alcohol are recommended because caffeine and alcohol have negative side effects. Sports drinks are most recommended because they replace electrolytes and contain ingredients the body can use to quickly absorb the fluid into the cells resulting in enough excess fluid available for diluting the THC in the urine to undetectable levels.

Detox drinks, pills and potions

None of these work reliably enough to be recommended. The only reason that some have tested clean after using any of these products is because the water or juice you are instructed to take has diluted your urine. You can accomplish the same thing on your own with less than $10 worth of products readily found at any shopping mall. Using a detox product is risky because you cannot control the manufacturer’s ingredients. You never know what has gone into the detox product so you cannot possibly know if a laboratory will detect the use of the product.

Fiber

A high fiber diet will help by redirecting fat soluble metabolites to the colon rather than bladder. It has been said that THC is eliminated primarily in the stool via bile acids. tests detect a secondary metabolite which is reabsorbed from the intestines. Thus a person with a high fiber diet will excrete some THC [metabolites] in the stool". A fiber-based laxative will also help by binding bile-acids. Use caution. Fiber laxatives can alter one's bowel schedule and lead to dependency. In other words: You can get the shits or constipated. The quantity of THC excreted through the stool is minimal at best and is probably not worth the effort or attempt.

How to give a clean sample

Don't give urine from your first urination of the day. It's the dirtiest. Urinate a couple of times before giving a test sample. Also, don't give the beginning or end of the stream. Piss in the toilet, then quickly stop and go in the cup. Stop, and shift back to the toilet for the last portion. Only give a midstream sample. Just be sure to give 60 milliliters.

Exercise

Athletes have a big advantage over inactive people. When fat is burned, THC byproducts are released into the blood, filtered in the kidneys and expelled from the body in the urine. This is the main way to get THC metabolites out of your body. "Normal living will burn them slowly, as your fat reserves are burned then replaced with new fat stores. Due to an athletes high metabolic rate, THC moves through an athletes system significantly faster. Exercising between drug tests will clean THC metabolites from the system at a faster rate, thus lowering the detection period. It is important to stop burning fat cells near test time. On test day, it doesn't matter what's in your lipid tissue. What's in your blood and urine does matter. Exercise increases the amount of THC metabolites in the urine; so quit exercising 4-5 dayys before the test. Be lazy, and eat big. This will put the body into a fat-storing stage. At this point, the "buried" THC metabolites won't be released from your fat reserves at such a high rate. There are drugs that will increase metabolism the way exercise does, but these are the same drugs that they are usually testing for. Exercise should only be considered when the subject knows that he or she will not be given a random test in the near future.

As a word of caution, if you have led a rather sedentary lifestyle, consult a doctor before taking on any rigorous exercise program. We don’t want any of you having heart attacks, tearing muscles or suffering from any other sports related injuries.