Testing Positive for Metabolites
When an employer requires their employees to take a drug test, they are mainly hoping to ensure that the results don’t turn up positive for parent drugs, such as cocaine and marijuana. Fortunately enough, our standard six-panel drug tests that are used test for more than just a parent. They also test for drug metabolites. By testing for metabolites, employees cannot simply cheat the system by just waiting for the parent drug to leave their system. Metabolites hang around inside a person’s body after the parent drug has left which allows for employers to catch anyone trying to slip through the cracks.
It may seem like employers are going on a witch hunt when they drug test their employees. This is entirely false. Employers are looking out for their business and in fact, the employees that fill their workplace. So, when an employer gives a drug screening before hiring a candidate and administers random drug tests, it is just to ensure that everyone is following guidelines and staying safe. When an employee chooses to abuse drugs and hide it from employers, they are putting everyone around in danger. This is why our six-panel drug tests include testing for metabolites. Many parent drugs have a short lifespan within the body and can easily pass through undetected if an employee times their use correctly. On the other hand, metabolites can last quite a bit longer in the body’s system.
Let’s use an example of marijuana. Although in recent years, this drug has been legalized in some states, businesses still test for it in their employees. The problem with marijuana is that the parent drug can pass through the body quite quickly. When marijuana metabolizes, it breaks down into multiple different chemicals that stick around after the parent drug has left the body. When using our drug tests, employers don’t have to worry if their employees are just sliding by when administered a drug, they can be 100% sure. If results come back that turn of positive for a metabolite, this allows for employers to sit down with that employee and further investigate the situation. A company wants to ensure that all employees are maintaining healthy lifestyles and that includes what they do outside of the workplace. As an employer, you want your employees to choose to avoid abusing drugs in and outside of the workplace.
Our body metabolizes most everything that we put into our body, and drugs are no exception. When an employee plays the game of cheating an employer’s drug test, those are not the types of people you want to be operating in your company. Drug metabolites can ensure a business that they are keeping the employees that choose drugs over a healthy and productive lifestyle out of the workplace. Think of metabolites as a firewall that doesn’t let a virus slip through the cracks.
Tags: drug test, metabolites, marijuana, 6 panel drug test
