Drug testing has become very common both in the workplace and in schools in the last twenty years. Generally, the urine test is the most common form of drug screening. Many people are creative in their efforts to pass drug tests and have formulated many products to mask the appearance of drugs in the system. Products like maskers and even synthetic urine are widely available, and even the most serious cases of drug abuse can go unnoticed. Due to the ever-expanding market for products designed to help a drug user pass a test, many employers are turning to hair follicle drug testing.
Although hair drug tests are significantly more expensive than urine, sweat, or saliva tests, many employers find the benefits outweigh the costs. Employers are often satisfied with the fact that hair follicle drug testing is less intrusive, generally more sensitive to drug detection and can detect drugs for up to twice as long as other methods, and can show whether the employee have stopped using drugs or not. recently in an attempt to cover up the usage. It is also more difficult to mask drugs in the system when using this type of test.
The hair follicle drug test requires taking a sample of the employee’s hair; usually only a small piece of hair is taken and is considered less embarrassing than urine collection. A human resources employee or other official within the company can often perform hair collection on site. The sample is then sent to the laboratory for washing and analysis. Laboratories generally wash hair prior to testing to reduce the risk of picking up chemicals that may come from external sources, rather than ingesting the substance.
Although most employers still rely on urinalysis for drug testing of employees or prospective employees, others are recognizing the benefits of hair follicle drug testing. Most of the people know several methods to pass the urine test; in some cases even resorting to buying urine from a “clean” friend. Hair drug testing is virtually unbeatable with current masking products. Although some products claim to mask the appearance of drugs in hair samples, most are based on false or inaccurate claims. Hair follicle drug testing has been shown to be more effective and less invasive than other alternatives.
