OK, I have never been dishonest about my prior marijuana use. I had to take a test for a possible job. My test came back positive for THC. I have not smoked or consumed mj since finding out I was going to be a father over 4 years ago.
My question is has anyone here ever came back with a false positive? What can be done to contest this? I plan on paying for, and retaking the test again.
I am not a drug user. I don't drink. I work out, and live as healthy as my wallet will allow. I am absolutely beside myself because of this. I need real advice. There are many OTC drugs that can make this happen.
Anyone with experience please respond. I feel that I am being slighted, and it bothers me enough to take any steps to clear my name.
I have heard of this happening all the time. I have never heard of a particular anything that would "cause" it, just the testing methods. I have also heard of people passing that should not have.
Retaking is your only option and better hope it doesn't happen again.
Originally posted by J-Holland: At one time, it was said that certain things like poppy seeds(Think rolls or the like with seeds on them) would cause false positives.
------------------ Dr. Ian Malcolm: Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should. (Jurassic Park)
Are you around people that still smoke pot? Is it possible to come up positive if you are in the same room for some time with pot smokers?
I have relatives that smoke pot. When they start self medicating, I leave the area to be sure my system stays clean. I don't know if it is neccesary but I would rather be safe than sorry.
A good friend is a medical marijuana user. I have been in the vicinity. Ibuprofen and B2 can read false positive. I take Ibuprofen like candy due to my teeth. I have always taken vitamins, and they have 150% of the RDA of Riboflavin.
I am headed to pay for a self test. $45. As poor as I am at this moment it will hurt, but I have to know.
I am not nor will not stop being a good person. I also forbid myself from being as depressed. You all know my "moods". I have found a way to stay positive. (Thanks TDA).
Tony, I was a Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program Coordinator (Drug Tester) for 12 years in the Army. False Positives from YOUR urine and the info you provided.... Not likely at all. Coming up hot from being near it. Not likely. Most tests consider it as a "PASS" as long as the THC is below a threshold. (Thus secondhand smoke wouldn't raise it to that threshold.) If you are being honest about it all, I would say that there was a specimen mess-up.
Tony, I was a Alcohol and Drug Abuse Program Coordinator (Drug Tester) for 12 years in the Army. False Positives from YOUR urine and the info you provided.... Not likely at all. Coming up hot from being near it. Not likely. Most tests consider it as a "PASS" as long as the THC is below a threshold. (Thus secondhand smoke wouldn't raise it to that threshold.) If you are being honest about it all, I would say that there was a specimen mess-up.
Yep.
I researched fairly heavily before my most recent drug test, as they took hair as well and I was... concerned... about a few things. As far as MJ goes, the above is correct.
Yes, poppy seeds can cause a false positive for opiates.. In a study done for the Army, to push the opiate level above the threshold to be considered positive for opiates, one would have to injest 4 poppy seed bagels a day for 2-3 weeks straight, or eat 1/4 cup of poppy seeds a couple of days before a test.
A good friend is a medical marijuana user. I have been in the vicinity. Ibuprofen and B2 can read false positive. I take Ibuprofen like candy due to my teeth. I have always taken vitamins, and they have 150% of the RDA of Riboflavin.
I am headed to pay for a self test. $45. As poor as I am at this moment it will hurt, but I have to know.
I am not nor will not stop being a good person. I also forbid myself from being as depressed. You all know my "moods". I have found a way to stay positive. (Thanks TDA).
Woa...Namedrop Detected!
Glad I have helped in some small way in someone else's happiness
Make sure you wait a few days before re-testing... maybe look online for stuff you can use to help "clean" out your system of trace amounts... I think detectable amounts can linger in the body for around 30 days...(pee) - far longer in the hair.
They have drinks that (might) work... you need to check to see if its true.
Yes, poppy seeds can cause a false positive for opiates.. In a study done for the Army, to push the opiate level above the threshold to be considered positive for opiates, one would have to injest 4 poppy seed bagels a day for 2-3 weeks straight, or eat 1/4 cup of poppy seeds a couple of days before a test.
Though marijuana isnt an opiate, would poppy seeds trigger that test?
Tell them you are willing to have a hair sample test taken at your expense. It's more expensive but if you know you're clean it's worth it.
Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't marijuana stay in your hair forever? As in, until you cut it off? If this is true and a friend of his is a medical user, this could be a bad idea.
Glad I have helped in some small way in someone else's happiness
Make sure you wait a few days before re-testing... maybe look online for stuff you can use to help "clean" out your system of trace amounts... I think detectable amounts can linger in the body for around 30 days...(pee) - far longer in the hair.
They have drinks that (might) work... you need to check to see if its true.
Sorry man.
Ayup, stay away from the hair test especially if it is a pubic hair test, that will show up everything you have ever done in your lifetime, if you keep your head hair short it may not be as bad a problem. there are things out there that can clean your urine if you actually have something in in it, gold seal I think its called. there are others as well. http://www.passyourdrugtest.../kits/urine-test.htm any head shop will carry those and more. you can also flush you system drink lots of water, but I have heard that can cause a red flag as well.
If you are telling the truth about not smoking and I believe you just take the test again, its not a big deal and is possible that your test got contaminated, mixed up or any number of things and you just got a positive because someone screwed up at the lab and didn't clean a test tube.
I think Ace is right about being around someone who smokes pot will not cause a false positive but I can't say for sure, tests have gotten better in the last 10 years since I had to take one. but if you are in a state that allows for medical MJ you may be able to dispute that with a medical MJ card, not sure about that ether as it depends on the job, federal job, there is no room or acceptance for that.
hey its late and I need my nap, PM me if you want more I have to go lay down my back is killing me and I have to go lay down.
Steve
------------------ Technology is great when it works, and one big pain in the ass when it doesn't
Detroit iron rules all the rest are just toys.
[This message has been edited by 84fiero123 (edited 06-11-2014).]
I just left from a meeting with the safety director and owner of the company that hired me. My test results showed a 25 ng/ml on the chart. Unfortunately legally they cannot hire me. I understand, and I am not upset with myself or the company. This is a rather large company for this area, and my hopes and dreams have been momentarily crushed. The owner advised me to reapply after the six month waiting period. I will do such, but in the mean time I am out beating the streets again. I am down, but not out.
Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't marijuana stay in your hair forever? As in, until you cut it off? If this is true and a friend of his is a medical user, this could be a bad idea.
Your hair grows out, so how could it stay there forever?
I do not do any drugs, at all. Not even otc. I do not keep company with folks that do. Don't mistake me, I am for legalization across the board. It's just not my thing and I don't really have any friends. So no contact what so ever.
6 years ago I went to do a drug screen for a prospective job. The test in question was a urine screen of the type where the results appear directly. Right in front of you. So there was no chance of a mixed up specimen. The test read positive for THC.
If I had not seen it with my own eyes, I never would have believed it. Up until that point I always thought when someone said it was a false positive, they were lying. But it can happen, it happened to me and I know I was clean.
I tried to plead my case and demand a second test. They treated me courteously but like I was a liar. I was devastated.
In the end it mattered very little. 2 days later I got a better job. I passed their drug screen no problem.
I have been clean since I found out about Amy being pregnant. I will reapply in 6 months. This is what it is, and I only blame PAML for the test results.
Ayup, stay away from the hair test especially if it is a pubic hair test, that will show up everything you have ever done in your lifetime, if you keep your head hair short it may not be as bad a problem.
Yes, poppy seeds can cause a false positive for opiates.. In a study done for the Army, to push the opiate level above the threshold to be considered positive for opiates, one would have to injest 4 poppy seed bagels a day for 2-3 weeks straight, or eat 1/4 cup of poppy seeds a couple of days before a test.
Or, the time my wife decided to make a lemon poppyseed cake, and added almost an entire bag of the little seeds. It tasted so good I ate most of it lol, failed a drug test due to opiates because of it. The lady giving the test just looked at me and said. "Your not on opiates" lol. Then the dragons flew into the room, and we did battle...
Sorry to hear this, Tony. I know it is really tough to stay positive, but sooner or later good things are going to catch up to you! We're all behind you!
Tony, you have my condolences. My doctor told me to always refuse a drug test because the medicines that I use for asthma and allergies would show positive for an array of drugs and I would risk getting kicked out of the school district. It was the 70s and 0 tolerance for drugs was popular and stupid and getting stupider.
Or, the time my wife decided to make a lemon poppyseed cake, and added almost an entire bag of the little seeds. It tasted so good I ate most of it lol, failed a drug test due to opiates because of it. The lady giving the test just looked at me and said. "Your not on opiates" lol. Then the dragons flew into the room, and we did battle...
The problem I have with most civilian places of employment is they use cheap tests and don't automatically retest a sample that comes up positive.
Come up hot in the Army? The Army will retest the same specimen two more times. 2nd "Re-test" if it comes up negative, the Army moves on. Comes up positive and they test it again. Comes up positive again and it comes back to the unit as a positive. If the specimen is sent to the lab and even looks tampered with or not filled out correctly and it is not tested and dumped. I have seen ONE true false positives where the Army admitted there must be a false positive. I've toured the labs. Those guys have no sense of humor at all.
I've heard every story about how they came up positive and I honestly laughed in the face of every Soldier's story. I had one guy come up hot for cocaine and tell me that it was the Codene he was taking after his surgery. Ummm, then you'd be hot for opiates, buddy. Cocaine will one come up hot for cocaine or a slight change in it structure. That modified cocaine is used in like three surgical procedures and those procedures are rare.
In my time as a drug tester I had to submit a random sample weekly. That was fun coming up hot every test for 6 months straight as I was on percocet off and on for six months straight after oral surgery and another surgery.
One of my responsibilities as a safety director is to manage the drug screen program for my employer. DOT regulated drug testing is done following very specific guidelines and might be different from the testing program where Mr. Kania applied. In that regard, my experience is similar to that of aceman.
Over the last ten years, I have read volumes of studies and regulations, talked to countless lab employees, medical review officers (MRO) and substance abuse professionals (SAP), and applicants who tested positive.
USDOT requires a “split specimen” procedure were the specimen is divided into two separately sealed, tamper-proof containers, in the presence of the donor. One sample is tested and the other is reserved for testing in case the first comes up positive. There is a "chain of custody" form that uniquely identifies and follows the specimen, a copy of which is signed by and given to the donor. None of the professionals has ever been able to tell me of a positive that was successfully refuted.
Anytime an applicant is adamant that the results are in error, I advise him that, “If it were me, I would fight this with every fiber of my being, rather than accept the slander”. None has ever tried.
I hate to be the fly in the ointment and you might have a tough row to hoe; but I would not take this lying down.
[This message has been edited by williegoat (edited 06-11-2014).]
I know from what I've been told Ibuprofen can cause a false positive. Did you include that you were taking Ibuprofen and how much of it on the paperwork you filled out when you took the test? I've always given them a list of all medications I have taken within the last 30 days including anything OTC when I've taken drug tests in the past. I also take in any prescription bottles for non OTC medication so I can prove that prescription was written to me. In the past I've taken the bottles for the NSAIDs I've been prescribed (since most NSAIDs are related to Ibuprofen), muscle relaxers and narcotics (vicoden mostly) and never failed a drug test. I had friends who smoked pot but I wasn't ever around them when they were smoking it more than a couple of times a month. I wish I knew what you could do, but I've never been down that road. Of course I haven't had a drug test now in over 10 years so maybe the test have gotten better and Ibuprofen no longer trips a false positive?
I can understand the company's decision not to proceed with the hire.
There is nothing 100% sure or 100% accurate in lab testing. I'm sure false positives do happen by human error or consuming drugs or foods that have been documented to be known to hcause a false positive.
The accuracy of urine tests have been documented to be very high, while human beings propensity to lie is high too. If I don't know the person and therefore do not have any experience in referencing any behavior that would cause me to make a decision on whether the person is telling the truth about their lifestyle consumption habits or a urine drug screen that may suggest otherwise, you have to side with the drug test regardless, because it is going to give better odds about the outcome.
I don't know much about the lab testing industry, but from what I do know is that you do need to list every drug you have taken prescription and OTC and list medical history before taking a drug screen and basically most all labs understand residuals could happen and therefore discount levels under a certain amount.
But from my quick read on the level of THC present and how they test for THC, a 25 ng/ml is an indication of recent use. You mention it is an error.
I would be interested in knowing if your self test that you paid $45 for came up with anything different?
Ibuprofen and B2 can read false positive. I take Ibuprofen like candy due to my teeth. I have always taken vitamins, and they have 150% of the RDA of Riboflavin. 
It tasted so good I ate most of it lol, failed a drug test due to opiates because of it. The lady giving the test just looked at me and said. "Your not on opiates" lol. Then the dragons flew into the room, and we did battle... 
