CBD has been found by many to be a soothing compound, one which can provide a great deal of relief for pain, inflammation and a variety of other aches and pains. More research is currently in progress for CBDs various benefits, but it does seem apparent that the drug has the potential to greatly help people who are in pain. Side effects are possible (particularly for people who suffer from certain liver conditions, Parkinson’s Disease or women who are pregnant or nursing), but by and large, CBD has been found by users to cause relatively few problems.
However, since CBD was only recently legalized for sale, there is a great deal of confusion about what it is and isn’t. Consumers have to use caution when using this product, particularly given the relative lack of governmental regulations around it
CBD isn’t marijuana – but it may contain THC.
Can you fail a drug test due to CBD? Yes, but here is how to prevent that from happening.
First, What is CBD, and What Isn’t CBD?
CBD is short for cannabidiol oil. It is one of the roughly 104 chemical compounds which is extracted from the cannabis plant. It is purported to have a variety of positive benefits in terms of pain relief, depression, skin care and more.
It is also vitally important that you understand what CBD ISN’T: Marijuana. While both CBD and marijuana come from the same plant, they are not the same thing. Marijuana contains ample amounts of THC, or tetrahydracannabinol, which is the chemical compound that gets you high. CBD contains no or trace amounts of THC – as such, it is very difficult to experience any of marijuana’s intoxicating effects with CBD.
Different Types of CBD Contain Different Ingredients
There are three types of CBD strains:
Full Spectrum: Entourage Effect
1. Full Spectrum CBD is the most “naturally” occurring form of CBD. It contains every compound and chemical which is found in CBD when it is grown. This includes trace amounts of THC. It is theorized (with some research to back it up) that Full Spectrum CBD is the most effective type of CBD thanks to the “Entourage Effect,” which hypothesizes that CBD works best when all of its various compounds, including THC, interact with each other.
Broad Spectrum:
2. Broad Spectrum CBD is identical to Full Spectrum, save for one key difference: The THC is filtered out. While this may provide you with a different experience when using, use of accurately labelled Broad Spectrum CBD does ensure that you will pass a drug test.
Isolate:
3. CBD isolate is pure CBD, with everything else filtered out. It is usually sold in a powder or crystal form, and best for mixing into food or dabbing.
As a result, if the Full Spectrum CBD you ingest has enough THC, or if the drug test you take is sensitive enough, it is possible to fail a drug test.
Also important to note is that it doesn’t matter the method of CBD ingestion you use: Tincture, edibles, creams, salves, etc. All of these, including CBD vape oil show up on drug test if you ingest a large enough quantity of them and they contain THC.
Under What Circumstances Can You Fail a Drug Test?
Different drug tests can produce different results with the same person. This is because of the way drug tests work, which is done by screening for THC-COOH, a metabolite found in the human body with the use of THC.
All drug tests have federally mandated cut-off values. This means that drug tests don’t check to see if someone is “high” at a given moment: Rather, they seek to determine if someone has THC in their system. A positive test comes from having values above the cut-off.
Testing positive using CBD comes as a result of you using products which had a high enough concentration of THC in your system. This is possible.
Below are the four most common types of drug testing, and the circumstances under which you can fail a drug test as a result of CBD use:
Hair:
1. Hair: Does CBD show up on a hair follicle test? Yes, it can. While hair follicle testing is uncommon, it is possible for THC-COOH to stay in your hair for up to 90 days. A positive result will occur if you hair follicles have 1 picogram per milligram of THC-COOH.
Urine:
2. Urine: Urine testing is unquestionably the most common form of drug testing in schools and the workplace. Generally speaking, urine THC testing will have a positive result if there are 50 nanograms per milliliter of THC-COOH. THC-COOH is detectable for anywhere from 3-15 days.
Blood:
3. Blood: Thankfully, blood testing is rarely used in the workplace, but more common in governmental testing. This is because it is both expensive and difficult to conduct. THC-COOH is typically detectable in someone’s blood for up to seven days after use.
Saliva:
4. Saliva: Saliva is not commonly used in workplace testing. This is for many reasons, including a lack of research on specifically how long THC-COOH is detectable in someone’s saliva. Current estimates are 72 hours, but repeated use may make THC-COOH available for longer periods of time.
The Importance of Independent Testing to Keep THC Out of Your System
Since CBD is so new, there are certain regulatory issues with it, and unscrupulous businesses can mislead customers. For example, a Penn State study recently tested 81 CBD products and found that some were indeed mislabeled. Among the mislabeling is that some products contained a “significant amount” of THC – which can get you high and cause you to fail a drug test!
As such, it is vitally important that you purchase CBD products which have been independently tested. This means that a neutral, third party has analyzed the products and found the ingredients listed on the label to be accurate. If a product is independently testing and claims to have no THC, you can rest assured that the claim is accurate.
Independent testing ensures that the CBD product you purchase and consume actually contains the products which it claims to, and helps ensure that you keep THC out of your system if that’s what you want and need to do.
CBD has the potential to help your body heal. However, like any new product, it must be used with caution, as it does have the potential to make you fail a drug test. That being said, as long as you are an informed consumer who knows what products to buy and which ones you avoid, you can avoid any issues with a drug test.