How Long Does A Drug Stay In The System?

A drug test is a routine for recruitment in organizations. However, an individual could be tested for other reasons too. If you or someone is known to use drugs, they may be detected during a blood, urine, or hair test. Let’s see how long does a drug stay in the system.

While the only surefire way to pass a drug test is to quit, some people look for options to test negative despite being under the influence of drugs. If you want an alternative, visit Too Slick to learn more about different products that may help evade positive drug test results. 

Factors that Influence Drug Detection Test

Drug tests detect certain substances present in the body depending on various factors. Times of drug detection may vary from one person to another, depending on how the body metabolizes each substance and the type of test for drug detection used. Urine, blood, saliva, and hair follicle sample tests are the most common methods to test for drugs. 

The rate of metabolizing drugs depends on the following factors:

  • Age
  • Bodyweight
  • Body mass
  • Hydration level
  • Physical activity
  • Frequency of using drugs
  • Drug tolerance
  • Drug quantity/amount

However, despite considering these factors, medical experts may not be able to provide the exact time of drug detection, as many variables are present. They can provide an accurate estimation of the amount of time any drug can be detected in the samples.

Methods of Drug Test

There are different drug testing methods. Each of these methods works in a certain way and has several pros and cons.

  • Blood Test: It detects recent substance use. It is an established method that provides a short window for detection. It can detect substances only for a certain timeframe. It is invasive and expensive. 
  • Breath Test: It is also a common technique to test a person, but only for alcohol use. In addition, it does not ensure the accuracy of the sample if an individual is extremely uncooperative or intoxicated. 
  • Sweat Test: It has many advantages. As a sweat test is easily administered, it detects recent use of drugs (by 24 hours). It is hard to fake. However, it only allows one test with a sweat patch or swipe. 
  • Saliva Test: The saliva test provides the same-day result. It is a non-invasive method and sample collection is relatively easier. However, as the window for drug detection is short, an individual has to be supervised for at least 10 to 30 minutes to submit to this test. 
  • Urine Test: It is one of the well-researched methods that provide a good quantity of specimen samples compared to the aforementioned methods. However, the only downside is that it is easy to fake or even alter urine tests. 
  • Hair Follicle Test: It offers the longest drug detection time. The process is non-invasive, quicker, and easier, which also allows convenient storage as well as transportation of samples. But, interpreting results can be difficult and low-level substances may not be detected. 

Drugs In The System – Evaluating Presence

While some drugs are excreted easily, others may take 12 to 24 hours to leave the system. For example, alcohol stays in a blood sample for 12 to 24 hours; in urine for 10-48 hours; in hair for up to 90 days.

Likewise, drugs like Methamphetamine can be found in the blood for 1 to 48 hours; in urine for 2 to 5 days; in hair for up to 90 days. 

Cannabis, or marijuana, which is a very commonly used substance, is present in the blood for up to 24 hours, in urine for as many as 30 days, and in hair follicles for up to 90 days. 

How long can Drugs be detected in Urine?

The drug can be detected in urine for a very long time depending on multiple:

  • Drug type
  • pH of urine
  • hydration
  • body mass
  • when was the drug used
  • how long was the drug used and what was the frequency

Different types of tests conducted with urine samples yield different results. For instance, IA (immunoassay) urine test is common because it is quick and less expensive. 

The GC-MS (Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry) is used infrequently because results take longer and it is expensive. Nevertheless, it is reliable. 

Beating the Drug Test

Although nobody recommends cheating the drug test, sometimes, you may have to. Noted below are the ways to do so:

  • flush drugs from the body with water, detox products, and cranberry juice available online to detox urine
  • add chemicals to urine samples and mask traces of drugs
  • substitute your urine with someone else’s

People who take drugs try to escape the drug test but fail. While there are several home remedies to beat the drug test and yield negative test results, most of these may not be effective. Choose a reliable detox kit that’s promising enough to give a good result. 

Tips to Detox the Body

Detox is the way to flush out toxins from the system by either drinking, or fasting, or simply eating healthy. However, detox also refers to the process of realigning and readjusting the body to sobriety post-drug dependence or tolerance. 

If you are serious about quitting drugs but the body has already adapted to the presence of drugs, you may develop serious side effects called withdrawal. Withdrawal symptoms vary in intensity, type, and duration based on the type of drug you were taking, the length of drug consumption, any preexisting physical or mental health conditions, and the method used to quit. 

Physicians who choose to quit drugs abruptly have a higher risk of severe withdrawal symptoms, typically if they were extremely addicted to one or many drugs simultaneously. 

Some drugs like benzodiazepines may produce more severe physical or psychological symptoms that require clinical and medical treatment. 

Withdrawal symptoms include seizures, hallucinations, psychosis, aggressive behavior, severe depression, suicidal behavior, and even death. 

It is not easy to detox from drugs. It may take many days or even weeks. Hence, it is difficult to quit using drugs all by yourself, without any medical aid. If you want to be sober and you seek help to quit drugs, enroll in a medically developed detox program. Such methods are usually safe and effective ways to quit substance abuse.