Hair tests for drugs
Ten years ago it would have been hard to believe that we would now have a saliva test for drugs routinely used in roadside tests to deter illicit drug users from getting behind the wheel of a car.
A friend recently asked me what I thought was next in terms of law enforcement strategies and when I mentioned hair testing he was surprised -” he had never heard of that method of drug detection.
Blood tests are difficult to administer and highly invasive and urine testing is particularly burdensome, so authorities have tried to come up with new methods to test for the presence of illegal substances. These usually come from the prison system where they routinely check for drugs.
Saliva tests have been around for some time and although now much more widely used, there are still some problems with the technology and there are certain drugs (particularly cannabis) that create a number of problems in terms of detection.
The standard hair drug test is a proven procedure which not only detects drugs that have been used, but also can provide information on the quantity of drugs consumed and the historic pattern of drug use -” details that no other drug test is able to provide. A drug history can be obtained from the hair of any individual. Drug use can be detected for three to six months depending on the length of the hair sample. It takes approximately five days for drugs to show up in a person’s hair.
It would appear that hair analysis is rapidly becoming the test of choice for many employers in the United States due to the detail of information it provides and testing companies are strongly promoting the detection method. It is extremely costly and most experts believe it will be some time before we see it widely used in Australian industry. However, with the introduction of so many new law enforcement strategies in recent times it most probably will happen.
Remember: If you do not want any negative consequences, do not use the drug and no matter how many times you have used a substance – never be blase!
