Does CBD Show Up On A Drug Test: Learn How To Beat It

CBD oil has been known to work for pain, anxiety, insomnia, and a host of other problems. However, users who need to use it can accidentally fail drug tests for cannabis in certain cases.

CBD oil has been known to work for pain, anxiety, insomnia, and a host of other problems. However, users who need to use it can accidentally fail drug tests for cannabis in certain cases. The quickest answer on " does CBD show up on a drug test?" is this: You won't fail a drug test for CBD, but you could potentially fail a drug test for any residual THC which may be found in that CBD product.

Does CBD Show Up On A Drug Test?

The most common workplace drug screen is a urine test in which employers aren't looking for CBD. This is because CBD has never been found to impair judgment or motor skills.

Employees fail workplace drug tests for CBD (unfailingly) due to the following reasons:

• Marijuana's main active ingredient, THC, is found in low amounts in some CBD products. It persists in the human body for weeks.

• A CBD product's label might misstate the amount of THC, depending on the market in which you're shopping. State-licensed adult-use and medical cannabis stores are regulated for product testing, but outside of those systems, CBD product quality can vary in a largely unregulated market. Tests of CBD products from unlicensed stores have come back positive for THC - so this is a huge risk.

• If CBD intake is high—on the order of 1,000 milligrams a day of CBD—just the residual THC could put your test results in the danger zone.

• A false positive on a drug test occurs depending on the source of your CBD, how much you took, over how long, your metabolism, and other factors like hydration levels.

• Can CBD show up on a drug test if you don't consider your CBD oil's source? Yes, pure CBD molecules, which are commercially available, should not contain any THC. However, these molecules are extracted from hemp oil, and are of varying quality. By law, federally legal hemp oil can have up to 0.3% THC in it. Sometimes that number is higher, because of variations in test results.

• You could theoretically take CBD hemp oil for months, at low amounts (50 mg/day), and never fail a urine screen for THC-COOH. It's not clear how much CBD hemp oil is needed—or for how long—to end up with more than 50 ng/ml of THC-COOH in your urine. But certainly, if you're taking large amounts of CBD, depending on the source, you could test positive for THC where THC has the possibility to be stored in your fat cells and released slowly.

How long does CBD stay in your system?

If you're worried about CBD showing up on a drug test, know that your body will turn CBD into the byproduct CBD-COOH in a matter of hours, and then it sticks around for at least several days. All in all, even if it stays in your system, your employer is most likely testing you for THC, rather than CBD-COOH.

For other users please note that CBD's effects can last between 90 mins to several hours.

How to pass a drug test for CBD:

As we have stated above, there is no drug test for CBD, only THC and if you're worried about it still, there are two ways that can help:

• get detoxified before a drug test: Get a majority of the trace of THC out of your system by discontinuing use for some time, eating a better diet, flushing toxins out by drinking more water and sweating it out during a workout.
• buy better untraceable CBD products that don't contain THC: If you're considering using CBD, it's important to take time to evaluate the products available.

Read the product information

Notice if the product comes from hemp or marijuana (marijuana is more likely to contain THC) or whether the CBD is full-spectrum, broad-spectrum, or pure CBD isolate (full-spectrum CBD is more likely to contain THC).

This information should be there and if it's missing from the product description on the back, it might be a sign of a not-so-reliable manufacturer.

Choose products that list the amount of CBD

Find out the concentration of CBD per dose if you have a drug test coming up. In many cases, more concentrated CBD products are more expensive, even though they may appear to be the same size or smaller than other products. If possible, start with a low-dose product.

Doses vary according to whether the product is an oil, tincture, edible, and so on.

Find out where hemp-derived CBD products come from

Hemp quality varies by state in America. More reputable states, such as Colorado and Oregon have long standing hemp industries and rigorous testing guidelines. If information about the hemp isn't available on the product description, contact the seller.

Do your research

When evaluating the product, you should look for certain terms, such as:

• USDA-certified organic
• CO2-extracted
• solvent-free
• decarboxylated
• pesticide- or herbicide-free
• no additives
• no preservatives
• solvent-free
• lab-tested

Although it is difficult to prove these claims, look for any available lab test results associated with a given manufacturer.

Avoid products that make health-related claims

Epidiolex is an epilepsy medication, and is the only CBD-based product with FDA approval. Epidiolex is only available by prescription. Other CBD products haven't undergone FDA testing to assess their safety. Therefore, sellers aren't allowed to make health-related claims about CBD. Those that do are breaking the law.

Does CBD show up in a hair follicle test?

Workplace hair follicle tests are generally not checking for CBD— but for THC-COOH. Therefore, CBD will not show up in a workplace hair follicle drug test.

However, any CBD you took that had trace levels of THC or THC byproducts in a hair follicle can be concerning as your hair's DNA is said to hold onto your drug history.

Does CBD show up on a mouth swab test?

No, CBD won't show up on a standard workplace drug test mouth swab unless CBD contained trace levels of THC. And by "trace," just 50 billionths of a gram per milliliter of urine (50 ng/ml) is enough. THC is the most common reason a worker fails a drug test. Some 2.3% of all drug tests held in America came back positive for cannabis use in 2018.

Why is there THC in my CBD oil?

The cannabis plant produces both THC and CBD. Medical cannabis and industrial hemp are cousins—both create dozens of similar compounds called cannabinoids. So CBD from "federally legal" hemp can still consist of up to 0.3% THC.

A high intake of CBD—in the thousands of milligrams per day—from federally legal hemp oil, will mean you may also be ingesting at least 1 mg of THC as well.

Final Verdict:

In conclusion, a failed drug test can result in the denial or loss of your job and income, and can also lead individuals to lose access to education and welfare benefits, child custody, and prescriptions for pain medication.

Avoid accidental THC exposure by using state-licensed and tested CBD products. Certain CBD products labeled as 'THC-free' aren't what the label says. If a CBD user tests positive for THC, either the test is inaccurate or, more likely, the no-THC product contains some THC. But the good news is that depending on the state, CBD products can be thoroughly tested and the labels are accurate.

The easiest solution is to refrain for a while. Lastly, being upfront about your CBD use -- or any supplement use, for that matter with your boss will help the test results be interpreted in that light.