Drug addiction has been a global problem for a long time now. It is the compulsive use of drugs, which has detrimental effects on an individual and society. It takes away the ability of an individual to perform day to day tasks, gradually weighing down their quality of life. Drug tests are usually done at the workplace to point out drug use on the job after road accidents to identify liability, before being enrolled in schools, and employees in hospitals to ensure public safety. Drug testing and the laws around it differ from state to state, which is why it’s important to research into Illinois Drug testing laws for example, or laws wherever you are based, before you consider a position. 

Drug tests have been there for a while, and have done a great job in controlling drug use among students and employed persons. The tests are widely being used at home, schools, and workplaces, and this has consequently led to an increase in their production. You can find tests that are not regulated by the FDA at very low prices. 

The question, however, is how accurate these drug tests are. Before you get the answer to that question, it is vital to understand that there are different types of drug tests. The main five types include urine tests, blood tests, saliva tests, hair tests, and sweat tests. Hair tests and blood tests are the most accurate of them. However, they are pretty expensive, and most people do not use them.

The most common tests, which are affordable, are the urine tests and saliva tests.

How accurate are urine drug tests?

Most urine tests show an accuracy of 97%. What this means is that you cannot always trust negative results from the test. There are several reasons why these tests can show negative results for a person who is abusing. Collecting the urine too late or too soon can affect the results. The drugs take some time before they are detectable in the urine, and also fade away after some time. Alternatively, the persons being tested can easily cheat the drug test. The expiration of chemicals in the drug test can also be a reason for the test showing a false negative. 

Understanding a drug’s clearance rate will go a long way in increasing the accuracy of a cheap urine drug test. For instance, it takes about 1 to 3 hours of marijuana use to show in urine. Also, the test may continue showing positive 1 to 7 days after the use of marijuana. To ensure that the drug test is accurate, ensure that you follow the manufacturer’s instructions while testing. Also, understand the window of the clearance of the drug in a sample. Conducting subsequent tests will go a long way in confirming the drug’s availability in a person’s system. 

Some tests also show traces of more than one drug. In such cases, you are required to send the sample to a laboratory so that a more accurate test can be done. Cheap drug tests like the urine tests are credible, provided you use the right test, and you follow the instructions for use. Most of these tests also have a long period of detection, which makes them reliable.