Can Hair Test Detect Occasional Use

So, your boss asked you to go a hair test. Or maybe your ex. Or your parent. Or your time to come employer. You lot have heard all kinds of rumors virtually what this test can detect and how far back it can go in those detections.

Only what is true? And what is imitation? Let'due south take a few moments to dispel the rumors, the myths, and clear up whatsoever confusion surrounding drug pilus follicle testing, and while we're at information technology, we'll explain the truths too.

How long do drugs stay in your hair?
How far dorsum can the hair follicle examination go to detect drug employ?
How long does the hair need to exist for a hair follicle drug test?
What drugs tin be detected in a hair drug test?
Tin you test for different drugs at in one case?
Can body hair exist used for the hair follicle exam?
Does torso hair concur drug residuum longer than head hair?
What if I accept no head or trunk hair?
Does the hair follicle drug examination work if I'm an infrequent user?
Can I "cleanse" my hair of drugs so I will laissez passer the hair follicle drug examination?
Can secondhand fume brand me neglect a hair follicle drug test?
Is hair follicle testing accurate?

How long do drugs stay in your pilus?

Hair follicles grow at a rate of approximately one-half an inch per month. In theory, if your pilus was 18 inches long, and you tested the far ends of the strands, and so you lot could find drugs consumed more than three years ago.

Hair drug testing goes back much, much longer than urine drug testing. When you ingest drugs, it goes into the pilus follicle, and so into the strands themselves, where they stay, pretty much forever.

How far back can the hair follicle exam go to detect drug use?

The pilus follicle drug test, when using the standard one.5 inches of hair, tin find previous drug use up to 3 months. If a longer piece of hair is selected, the drug exam results tin become back much further (in fact, years farther) to detect drug utilize.

How long does the hair need to be for a hair follicle drug test?

There is only 1 standard for this test, which is 1.v inches of hair, cut from the root. The non-root cease is discarded. Nosotros recommend that yous watch the technician perform the test and ask them to cut off and discard the length across the beginning 1.v inches. This request ensures that the one.5 inches equate to approximately iii months of history.

What drugs can be detected in a hair drug test?

A hair drug test can detect the presence of virtually whatsoever drug or alcohol substance. Until recently, in that location were just a few drugs that could be tested through the hair, but the list is growing. Below is the expanding listing of drugs that can exist tested via pilus follicle:

Cocaine
Marijuana (THC, cannabinoids)
Amphetamines (including methamphetamines)
Bones Opiates (heroin, morphine, codeine)
Expanded Opiates (hydrocodone, oxycodone)
PCP (Angel Dust)
Benzodiazepines (Xanax)
Methadone
Barbiturates
Propoxyphene
Demerol
Tramadol
Fentanyl
Sufentanil
Constructed Marijuana
Ketamine
Buprenorphine (Suboxone)
Zolpidem (Ambien)
Alcohol

Can yous exam for different drugs at one time?

Yes. There are more than than 1 dozen different Hair Testing Panels. A panel is the medical term for the type of drug screening. Think of the word panel every bit a package or a combination. Drug panels give y'all (or the person requesting the drug exam) the option to include alcohol in the test, expanded opiates, synthetic drugs, Benzodiazepines, and more than.

A few of the nearly commonly requested pilus follicle drug testing panels include:

v Panel Hair Follicle Drug Test
14 Panel Hair Follicle Drug Exam
Hair Follicle Examination for Booze

Tin can body pilus be used for the hair follicle test?

We can test underarm, leg, or chest hair. Occasionally, bristles hair tin be used besides. And, no, we cannot get the hair from any other place on your body other than those previously mentioned!

Does body hair hold drug residue longer than caput hair?

There is much debate most the pace at which body pilus grows. Many people are concerned that an inch and a half of body hair will retain drug residue for a much longer period if the trunk hair grows much slower than the head hair.

The reality is that body hair and head hair abound at the aforementioned rate. The difference is that body hair tends to stop growing at a shorter maximum length. In both caput and body, new hair replaces dormant strands and pushes them out.

Call back about how you naturally shed hair. Shedding happens because a new hair pushed out the old one, which stopped growing and became dormant. When a hair is dormant (i.e., not growing), no new drug deposits can get into it. It tin can stay there 1 to four months, then in theory, caput OR body hair can reveal drugs that go back further than 90 days, depending on the person. However, just 10 to fifteen percentage of your strands are in this dormant stage, and then the run a risk is minimal.

On the other hand, in that location are many anecdotes (and a few labs) that report that body hair can choice up drugs for up to 12 months. Although there are no scientific studies that have shown this conclusively, you'd be wise to consider information technology when thinking about how to translate the results.

The bottom line is: the 90-day mark is an educated judge, just there is no agenda in your hair. Accordingly, a positive result doesn't bespeak the dates that the drugs were used. In decision, your hair retains your drug use history, but non in the same fashion that, say, an internet browser retains your search history.

What if I accept no head or trunk pilus?

Sometimes Health Street gets calls from people who want a pilus drug examination, but they have no head or body hair. A guy recently told us, "I shave from head to toe." Well, how did he call back we were going to perform the test? We are all the same trying to effigy that one out! The bottom line: no hair ways you can't get a hair drug test.

Does the hair follicle drug test piece of work if I'thou an infrequent user?

Yes, the pilus follicle drug test works regardless of how often 1 uses drugs. The frequency of drug apply does not bear on exam results. It is the menstruation in which the user used drugs that determines the effect of the pilus follicle drug test. Whether a person used once or 50 times in a three month period, the hair follicle drug exam volition point that drug use.

Can I "cleanse" my hair of drugs so I volition pass the hair follicle drug exam?

Contrary to popular conventionalities, there is no fashion to cleanse your hair of any drug substance. Drugs enter your bloodstream and thus, get embedded in your hair, and information technology stays there until that pilus is removed from your body.

Can secondhand smoke make me fail a hair follicle drug examination?

No. While secondhand smoke is inhaled, there is not enough of the substance that causes the "high" (THC) in secondhand smoke to cause you lot to fail a drug test. This "passive exposure" volition non impact your pilus follicle drug test results.