Yes, delta 8 THC will be flagged on a drug test.
While delta 8 is legal at the federal level thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill, some employers and agencies don’t permit its use, even in states where it’s legal. So, if you are likely to have a drug test soon, consider waiting till you’re in the clear before using delta 8.
The increasingly popular cannabinoid is more potent and has fewer side effects than other minor cannabinoids, like delta 9 THC. Because of these properties, it has overtaken the other cannabinoids, and lots of people have questions about delta 8.
Let’s take a closer look at why delta 8 can cause problems if you need to pass a drug test, and how you can enjoy delta 8 while avoiding trouble.
How Long Will Delta 8 Stay in Your System?
Delta 8 can stay in your system anywhere from 30 to 60 days. However, this may vary according to your age, sex, and the amount of the drug you have taken. In some users who take a large amount, delta 8 metabolites may last even longer.
One way to potentially speed up the metabolites passing from your system is to drink plenty of water to flush them out. However, this method does not guarantee perfect results.
6 Factors That Affect Detection Time
The factors that affect the detection time of delta 8 are:
1. Frequency of Use
The length of time that delta 8 remains in the body seems to be affected by how often the person uses it, how much they use it, and how long they have been using it. In light users, it can last up to 45 days whereas in heavy users it can last up to 90 days after quitting.
2. Sex
THC is metabolized at a significantly slower pace in women than in males, owing to their generally larger quantities of body fat.
3. Metabolism
Delta 8 will leave your body quicker if your metabolism is faster. This is influenced by age, physical activity, and certain health issues. If you have certain medical conditions, or if you're taking any other medication, there may be a slowdown or a speedup in delta 8's metabolism.
4. Body Mass Index (BMI)
Because THC metabolites are frequently retained in fat cells, the more body fat you have, or the higher your BMI, the slower you'll be able to metabolize and eliminate delta 8.
5. Hydration
You'll have higher THC amounts in your body if you're thirsty. However, flooding yourself with water will not necessarily help to make you pass a drug test. Instead, it will dilute it and this may cause an inconclusive result, which means you’ll have to retake the exam.
6. Mode of Use
Delta 8 THC levels in the body decline faster when it is smoked or vaped than when it is consumed by mouth. Edibles take longer to digest and pass through your system.
Why Does Delta 8 Show Up on a Drug Test?
Drug tests look for the metabolites that are left behind after using a substance such as cannabis, and this includes delta 8.
When a person ingests a chemical for medical or recreational purposes, their body metabolizes it and the substance then shows its effects. The leftover metabolites are found in the blood, urine, saliva, perspiration, hair, and lungs as they are processed by the liver.
Even after delta 8's apparent effects have faded, its traces remain in these areas and can be discovered during a drug test.
Workplace drug testing is designed to detect illegal drug metabolites, and as the legality of delta 8 in some states is changing, it’s important to know the local laws and the policy of the company or agency administering the drug test.
Even if you use a small amount of delta 8, it can still be flagged on a drug test. The test doesn’t determine the quantity of the substance you have consumed. It only searches for the metabolites created by your body after THC has been processed.
THC-COOH is the most common metabolite in delta 8. It can linger in the body for days to weeks after consumption and may last even longer if you consume an excess of it.
THC is more difficult to pass through your body than water-soluble substances since it dissolves in lipids. This means you need to be careful if you plan to use delta 8 and may be subject to a drug test in the near future.
How Do Drug Tests Work?
While there are many distinct types of cannabinoids, most drug tests check for THC.
Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is rapidly broken down and converted into at least 80 distinct metabolites, each with its effect on the body's endocannabinoid system.
These metabolites are deposited in body fat and then excreted in feces and urine.
How long a substance exists in the body depends on its half-life. The half-life refers to the amount of time it takes for half of the drug to be digested and removed from the body.
Let’s look at the tests that can be used to identify delta 8 THC, and how they work.
- Saliva test
- Blood test
- Hair follicle test
- Urine test
Saliva
For one to 29 days after use, saliva drug testing can identify cannabinoids. This is contingent on how frequently you use delta 8 THC.
For infrequent users, it can detect cannabinoids for one to three days. However, for chronic users, it can detect delta 8 for up to 29 days. If you're pulled over on the side of the road and asked to take a drug test, you're likely to fail.
Blood
Blood tests for cannabinoids are rarely utilized since marijuana remains in the bloodstream for such a short time. Blood tests can identify delta 8 THC for up to two days after the previous intake. However, in chronic or heavy users, it may be detected up to 25 days after use.
When inhaled as a vapor, the chemical can be detected in your bloodstream within seconds.
Generally, these tests are used only after automobile accidents and at some roadside sobriety checkpoints as they are reliable at detecting only current intoxication.
A blood test does not, however, reveal a level of intoxication or impairment, unlike blood alcohol concentration testing.
Hair Follicle Test
A hair follicle test can detect THC for three months after use. Trace levels of delta 8 THC enter your hair after circulating in your system. Because hair grows slowly, the THC may not be evident for almost three months. However, this may differ from person to person as the rate of hair growth differs.
However, this test cannot consistently detect whether cannabis use is infrequent or quantify the amount of cannabis consumed.
Urine
Urine tests for delta 8 metabolites also show only recent use, not current intoxication or impairment. Delta 8 can be found in the urine for up to 30 days, or as little as two days.
This is because of the time required between use and your body breaking down THC to the metabolites that are eliminated in the urine.
Urine testing is an immunoassay-based test based on the competitive binding principle. Drugs that may be present in the urine sample compete for binding sites on their specific antibody with their corresponding drug conjugates.
A urine sample migrates upward due to capillary action during testing. Medication will not saturate the binding sites of its specific antibody if it is present in the urine samples below its cut-off concentration.
When the antibody reacts with the drug-protein conjugate, a visible colored line appears in the test line section of the drug strip.
What Drug Tests are Used to Detect Delta 8?
Most of these samples usually undergo two types of testing techniques. They are:
1. Immunoassay
The immunoassay (IA) test is a rapid biochemical test to see if a sample contains any macromolecules. It frequently gives erroneous findings.
2. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry
The gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) test combines gas chromatography and mass spectrometry to produce more precise results, although it takes longer and requires greater precision.
The structural closeness between the two metabolites, delta 8 and delta 9, causes substantial antibody cross-reactivity in presumptive testing, which employs an immunoassay.
As a result, a presumptive test for delta 8 THC use could result in a false positive for delta 9 THC, which was not included in the Farm Bill and is illegal at the federal level.
This means that if you are using delta 8 and fail the initial immunoassay test, a second test that uses the GC-MS test could help to detect the different metabolites to differentiate between delta 8 and delta 9.
Besides this, because the two metabolites have similar molecular weights and chemical characteristics, delta 8 THC can interfere with delta 9 THC detection, resulting in a false negative on conclusive testing.
Can You Pass a Drug Test as a Delta 8 User?
Delta 8 metabolites will last quite some time in your system, so there is no direct way for you to pass a drug test as a delta 8 user. And just because weed is legal in your state doesn’t mean your boss won’t fire you for testing positive for it anyway.
However, not all employers will fire you for a first-time offense, and in 14 states the law restricts them from firing you for marijuana use if you are a qualifying medical cannabis patient.
Medical use is a distinct category, and it would depend on what it's being used for, how high the reading is, and what type of therapy it's being used for. It all depends on where you reside.
Employees' off-duty use with a valid prescription is protected in around a dozen states with medicinal marijuana legislation, as long as they don't show up to work under the influence of marijuana.
Employers in these states shown in the table below are prohibited from firing medical marijuana users only because of a positive drug test.
The employer would need proof that you were under the influence of marijuana while at work or during working hours.
The remaining states with medical marijuana legislation either explicitly enable employers to terminate employees for off-duty use or do not handle the problem at all.
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If you think you might be tested for drugs in the next two months, it's best to know your employer’s policy on marijuana, as well as the details of your state’s laws, before taking delta 8.
Best Delta 8 Products
ELYXR offers numerous high-quality delta 8 THC products:
1. Delta 8 Gummies
These gummies come in a 500 mg container with 20 pieces, each of which is 25 mg. They come in four different flavors:
- Blue Razz - sweet and sour
- Cherry - relaxing and delicious
- Mango - fruity and chewy
- Watermelon - sweet and relaxing
All of these gummies contain additional ingredients including corn syrup, vegetable oil, sugar gelatin, artificial flavors and colors, pectin, lactic acid, and carnauba wax. They're perfect for helping you relax, reduce stress, and alleviate anxiety.
2. Delta 8 Tincture
For maximum effectiveness, the delta 8 tinctures comprises a broad spectrum hemp extract that includes delta 8, additional cannabinoids, and terpenes. It contains the organic medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) as a carrier oil. The terpenes give it a plant-like, botanical taste.
It comes in eight flavors:
- Passion - arousing myrcene, caryophyllene, and terpineol
- Sleep - sedative containing mellow grape, nerolidol, borneol, and linalool
- Relax - blueberry lavender lemonade, terpinolene, bisabolol, and caryophyllene
- Focus - spearmint, pulegone, cedrene and b-pinene
- Awake - lemon verbena, limonene, valencene, and A-pinene, which helps you wake up refreshed
- Relief - cherry peppermint, farnesene, camphene, and humulene
- Orange - citrus flavor
- Natural - flavorless
All of these products are designed to calm your mind and help you relax.
3. Delta 8 Disposable Vape 1 Gram
This product is designed to deliver a calming state of mind. The taste is excellent, and the terpene profiles are top-notch. A 1 mL (1g) tank is included, as well as a fully charged 280mAh battery. Each pull leaves you feeling at ease and in control.
ELYXR’s delta 8 disposable vapes come in many flavors:
- Blackberry Chill - relaxing effect as well as a buzz. It has a creamy berry flavor and a lovely berry aroma.
- Skywalker OG - provides a sense of euphoria. This cheerful strain has a fruity and earthy flavor.
- Elyxr OG - strawberry-flavored strain to relax you and help you fall asleep. It has a nice berry fragrance as well.
- Mochi - sweet and fruity snack that can help you relax and think creatively.
- Tigers Blood - herbal blend with sweet and spicy notes. It helps in inducing sleep.
- Tahoe - earthy smell that brings about relaxation.
- ZKITTLEZ - improves focus, and alertness, and provides a pleasant feeling.
- Green Crack - uplifting high with an energy boost, with a lovely citrus flavor and aroma.
- Straw Jack - delicious fruity flavor, relaxing high, and it stimulates your creativity.
- Pineapple Express - induces a fantastic, energizing high and tastes and smells like pineapple.
- Blue Dream - relaxing and uplifting effect with a berry scent and flavor.
- Train Wreck - sweet lemon and spicy pine flavors with a burst of happiness and inventiveness.
- AK-47 - soothing, mellow high with a calming earthy flavor and scent.
- Star Fruit - relaxing and stress-relieving high without the anxiety. It has a fruity and lemony flavor, as well as a sour scent.
- Key Lime Pie - very sweet and candy-like flavor coupled with lime, with a similarly pleasant scent that will help you relax and increase creativity and attention.
- Raspberry Lemonade - pleasant lemon flavor with a tinge of berry. It helps you feel relaxed and productive.
- Cookies - sweet and nutty flavor.
- Purple Dream - powerful mood boost as well as a creative spark. The flavor is reminiscent of fruit, flowers, and pine forests.
- Sour Apple - sweet and sour taste and helps you relax.
- Sunset Sorbet - relieves stress and tension with a dessert-like flavor and a sweet fragrance. It's ideal for unwinding.
- Zookies - will help you feel calm as well as powerful, with a sweet and nutty cookie flavor.
4. Delta 8 Moonrocks
These nuggets contain delta 8 oil, hemp flower, and CBD Kief, and they’re produced from registered industrial hemp. Delta 8 Moonrocks help to induce relaxation and bring about sleepiness. They come in two flavors:
5. Delta 8 Melatonin Gummies
Each gummy contains 5 mg of melatonin and 25 mg of delta 8 THC. The grape flavor of these delta 8/melatonin-infused gummies is delicious. Melatonin (5 mg) and Delta 8 THC (25 mg) are both present in each gummy. The gummy's form and size are ideal for microdosing.
These gummies are designed to help you sleep better, improve eye health, and lessen seasonal depression. A good rule of thumb when starting to use gummies is to start with 1/4 to 1/2 of a gummy and wait 24 hours to see how it affects you before increasing the dosage.
If you’re a seasoned user, start with one gummy and wait 24 hours to see how it affects you. This gummy is chewy, flavorful, and fruity.
Conclusion
While delta 8 is less potent and has fewer THC side effects compared to other cannabinoids like delta 9, it can cause you to fail a drug test because its metabolites typically remain in the body for months after use.
Therefore, if you’re due for a drug test soon, refrain from consuming any more delta 8 products and drink more water to try to flush it out before your testing day.
FAQs
Q1. Does Delta 8 Show Up on a Drug Test?
Yes. It does. No matter how much delta 8 you have consumed, if you have a history of recent consumption, you will almost certainly fail a urine or hair follicle test. For blood and saliva tests, you may be able to pass if it’s been a few days since your last use.
Q2. Is There Any Way to Pass the Drug Test as a Delta 8 User?
Unfortunately, no. There is no direct way to get delta 8 out of your system in order to be able to pass a drug test. You could try flushing out the drug by drinking plenty of water, however there is no certainty that this will work. If your employer’s policy is to punish even first time offenders, the only solution is to avoid taking this drug if you know you have a drug test coming up.