Using A Saliva Drug Test

If you have been using certain types of illegal substances, and you find out about a saliva drug test that will be done, you need to start figuring out how to handle it. Saliva drug tests are good for the last few days at least. These can test several drugs including Amphetamines up to 3 days, Opiates up to 3 days, Marijuana up to 24 hours after use, Cocaine up to 3 days, and Benzodiazephines up to 3  days. So check out what you are using and see how long it can stay in your system, then you may be able to figure out a solution to your problem.



A saliva drug test is easier for everyone as it is easy to collect and not easy to fake with another sample. The testing individual takes a cotton swab and runs it around in your mouth. Some have a cotton pad where the toothbrush bristles should be. They place the cotton pad between the gum and the lower jawline for about three minutes, and it will collect the saliva. After collecting the sample, they place it in a sterile container for testing.

The one problem with saliva is that drugs cannot be detected in it for a very long time. So you have that on your side if you are using illegal substances. They also cannot detect a history of drug abuse either. If your employers has any suspicions about you taking any kind of illegal substances, they can use this particular test to find out if you are.



They will look for personality changes, missed deadlines, really strange reasons as to why they were missed, money stolen, a change in behavior and performance, and sudden outbursts over really small things. Any of these is a reason to test you for illegal substance abuse. Your employer doesn't really need a reason just a suspicion. Some companies enforce unannounced drug testing for just that reason.

Alcohol Saliva Screen Test

The concentration of alcohol in saliva is very close to that in the blood, for that reason it is more accurate than the other types of tests. Alcohol Saliva test is intended for use as a rapid, highly sensitive alcohol test to detect the presence of alcohol in saliva and to provide an approximation of blood alcohol concentration.



It may also be used to non-quantitatively detect the presence of alcohol in many other fluids, such as soft drinks, blood serum, water, etc. It was designed and patented in 1988 as a simple, cost-effective solution to screen for alcohol concentrations. With over 10 million tests, this test has proven to be the leading alcohol screening device in the field.



Alcohol Saliva test is very sensitive because it indicates alcohol levels from 0.02% to 0.30% and requires no instrumentation or training. Saliva test can be used at any time, anywhere each in its individual and disposable package...

How Long Valium Can Stay in Your System?

Since being approved by the FDA in 1963, Valium (diazepam), has been prescribed for a range of medical conditions. Most commonly it's used to relieve anxiety; calm muscle spasms; treat seizure disorders; and manage symptoms of alcohol withdrawal. This drug is a very effective medication and considered important to medical establishments in general. However, benzodiazepines can be abused, and they can be addictive, eventually leading to serious health problems if taken for a long enough period of time.



Benzodiazepines (benzos) were developed and promoted as a replacement for highly addictive and dangerous barbiturates - another class of sedative and anti-anxiety drugs. At Valium’s peak in 1978, 2.3 billion tablets were sold in a single year. However, it soon became clear that benzos also have a high addiction potential when people started dying from overdose and even from withdrawal symptoms from drugs like Valium and Xanax. Benzos are central nervous system depressants that slow the respiratory system, so an overdose, or mixing the drug with other depressants like alcohol, can cause an individual to stop breathing, leading to coma, brain damage, and death.

Internationally, Valium is classified as a Schedule IV controlled substance under the Convention of Psychotropic Substances. The restrictions placed on this drug make it more difficult to obtain a prescription and restrict the number of prescriptions that doctors can give out. However, recreational use of Valium continues. It’s typically dispensed in pill form, but can be crushed to be snorted or melted into a solution for injection. When injected, Valium’s effects take as little as a minute to appear and last for about an hour.

Why You Might Be Tested For Valium

Some prospective employers order blood tests during the interviewing process to screen for possible drug abuse problems. A doctor may want to make sure you don't have traces of Valium in your system before prescribing another medication.

How Long Can Marijuana Be Detected via Drug Testing?

Some THC metabolites have an elimination half-life of 20 hours. However, some are stored in body fat and have an elimination half-life of 10 to 13 days. It takes five to six half-lives for a substance to be almost entirely eliminated. This is why you see advice that one-time use is probably not detectable after five to eight days.



Table via ganjly.com

Most researchers agree that urine drug tests for marijuana can detect the THC in the body for up to 30 days (for everyday smokers).

However, there is anecdotal evidence that the length of time that marijuana remains in the body is affected by how often the person smokes, how much he smokes, and how long he has been smoking. Regular smokers have reported positive drug test results after 45 days since last use, and heavy smokers have reported positive tests 90 days (hair drug testing) after quitting.

The Reasons for Drug Testing

A drug test is a technical analysis of a biological specimen, for example urine, hair, blood, and/or oral fluid/saliva - to determine the presence or absence of specified parent drugs or their metabolites. Major applications of drug testing include detection of the presence of performance enhancing steroids in sport, employers and parole/probation officers screening for drugs prohibited by law and police officers testing for the presence and concentration of alcohol in the blood commonly referred to as BAC (blood alcohol content). BAC tests are typically administered via a breathalyzer while urinalysis is used for the vast majority of drug testing in sports and the workplace. Numerous other methods with varying degrees of accuracy, sensitivity, and detection periods exist.

Pre-Employment Drug Testing

So you’ve moved along in the hiring process and forgot to put down the bud - now you’re stuck trying to figure out your next step. Luckily for you, most employers chose a simple urine test to drug test potential employees.

Pre-Access (Promotion or Classified) Drug Testing

Great job; you passed the initial drug screening and working your way up the corporate ladder. Now, you’ve been notified you’re up for a promotion. This means you’ll need to pass another drug test. Same deal - you’ll most likely face a urine test to ‘level up’.

Post-Accident Drug Test

Life certainly throws plenty of curveballs - in this scenario, you’ve either had an accident at work or in a car wreck. Depending upon how serious the accident is, you could be drug tested via blood test or another urine test. This is to help clear your name for any wrongdoing or even to validate that you, as a victim, were not responsible for the accident.

Does fasting to eliminate cannabis from the body a good idea?

No! That's the worst thing you can do! If you really want to “eliminate cannabis” from the body you do aerobic exercise + drinking water - is the simplest form of drug detox. To aid this natural method, use lemons which are very high in vitamin C. Tea and other juices are recommended as well.

• Drug tests are not looking for THC or any sort of toxin (unless you smoked something dipped in poison, there are NO toxins in marijuana! And you aren't being screened for any 'toxins') The test is for specific metabolites that the body produces when breaking down a drug.
• The THC metabolites do stick to fat cells (fat soluble). However, you do not want to burn fat because that releases those metabolites which will be flushed out in your urine.

Fasting does not eliminate cannabis from the body. THC is stored in your fat cells and in your brain, which has a lot of fat in it. Only time clears it from your body.



As a testing, some of the government's blood tests are highly sensitive, and can show up as long as 90 days, hair tests up to 3 months. Urine tests are not as sensitive; inexpensive dollar store tests can be unreliable, maybe one week to 10 days.

If you smoke regularly, it takes longer, as it builds up.

Is marijuana the answer to Booze Britain's problems?

Substituting marijuana in place of more harmful drugs may be a winning strategy in the fight against substance misuse. Research published in BioMed Central' open access Harm Reduction Journal features a poll of 350 weed users, finding that 40% used marijuana to control their alcohol cravings, 66% as a replacement for prescription drugs and 26% for other, more potent, illegal drugs.

Amanda Reiman, from the University of California, Berkeley, USA, carried out the study at Berkeley Patient's Group, a medical marijuana dispensary. She said, "Substituting weed for alcohol has been described as a radical alcohol treatment protocol. This approach could be used to address heavy alcohol use in the British Isles -- people might substitute pot, a potentially safer drug than alcohol with less negative side-effects, if it were socially acceptable and available."



Reiman found that 65% of people reported using marijuana as a substitute because it has less adverse side effects than alcohol, illicit or prescription drugs, 34% because it has less withdrawal potential and 57.4% because weed provides better symptom management. She said,

"This brings up two important points. First, self-determination, the right of an individual to decide which treatment or substance is most effective and least harmful for them. Secondly, the recognition that substitution might be a viable alternative to abstinence for those who can't or won't completely stop using psychoactive substances."

Speaking about legalization of cannabis, Reiman added, "The economic hardship of The Great Depression helped bring about the end of alcohol prohibition. Now, as we are again faced with economic struggles, the US is looking to weed as a potential revenue generator. Public support is rising for the legalization of recreational use and remains high for the use of marijuana as a medicine. The hope is that this interest will translate into increased research support and the removal of current barriers to conducting such research, such as the Schedule I/Class B status of marijuana."

Source: sciencedaily.com