With CBD’s close association with marijuana, it has people wondering about testing positive for it on a drug test.
There are rumors abound on the internet about people testing positive for marijuana, in particular, THC even though they are only using hemp CBD. But are these rumors true or just myths? After all, did you know CBD is legally allowed to have 0.3% THC?
So with just traces of THC, let’s find out if your CBD product is going to make to test positive for drugs.
What Do Drug Tests Screen For When Testing For Marijuana?
Unlike marijuana, most drugs are in and out of the body fast. Sometimes within a week, and often within a day or two, but not marijuana. So why is that?
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that include both hemp and marijuana, and it’s full of compounds called cannabinoids. Most cannabinoids, like CBD, don’t cause a high but one does, and that’s THC. In fact, when a cannabis plant has more than — you guessed it — 0.3% THC, it’s arbitrarily labeled marijuana instead of hemp.
Cannabinoids are fat soluble, and it’s why they are paired with fats like butter when making marijuana edibles. As well, it’s why you see coconut or hemp seed oil in your CBD product. Oh, and it’s also why marijuana smell doesn’t get stuck in your furniture and clothes like tobacco. Ok, back on topic!
The first crucial thing you need-to-know about drug tests is they do not screen for the presence of CBD. In fact, drug tests don’t screen for the presence of THC. Wait, what?!
Drug tests screen for a THC metabolite called 11-nor-9-carboxy-Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THCCOOH). A metabolite is just the end result of a substance that has been metabolized or in layperson’s terms broken down for consumption by the body.
With drug tests screening for THC metabolites and trace amounts of THC in your CBD product, you may be starting to worry. But sit back, you don’t have to panic just yet!
Can My CBD Product Make Me Fail A Drug Test?
Since the overwhelming majority of CBD contains traces of THC, it’s possible, in theory, for a drug test to pick up traces of THCCOOH.
However, with such small amounts of THC in CBD products, you would have to consume quite a lot of CBD. How much so?
To be honest, no one knows for certain, but we have some decent guesses. The most common thought is if you were to take 1000mg of CBD a day for around a week, you can test false-positive for THC.
• First, that is an incredible amount of CBD to take as most people dose around 10-50 mg a day.
• Second, it should only be a false positive — meaning they will do another more accurate drug test which should come back negative.
There is a lot of questions and not a lot of answers, but on the bright side, it’s hard to confirm if anyone has actually tested positive and lost a job.
How Long Does CBD Itself Stay In Your System
We now know that it’s THC metabolites that drug tests screen for and not CBD. So if you’re worried about passing a drug test, you should be solely concerned with how long THC stays in your system.
When it comes to how long CBD stays in your system, it’s extremely difficult to say for sure.
The key point above is “your system” as age, weight, sex, frequency of usage, etc. will all factor into how long CBD will stick around. CBD itself has a half-life of 1-2 days according to a study published in the scientific journal Epilepsy Currents.
Half-life means the concentration of the drug has reduced to half the amount in the body. Most drugs are considered out of the body by the fourth or fifth half-life.
CBD’s Half-Life Conversion Chart
| Starting Dosage: | 30 mg |
| First-Half Life : | 15 mg |
| Second-Half Life: | 7.5 mg |
| Third Half-Life: | 3.5 mg |
| Fourth Half-Life: | 1.9 mg |
| Fifth Half-Life | 0.9 mg |
With some simple math, it looks like minimal traces CBD can stay in the body for up to 20ish days, and other studies have confirmed they’ve seen CBD stay around for almost a month as well
However, the same studies more-often-than-not, see CBD completely out of the body within just 4-7 days.
Again, there are many many factors that go into how fast your system removes CBD. our half-life math doesn’t take those into account all those factors from above, because how could it?
Conclusion
With CBD containing traces of THC, there is a risk, though seemly tiny, that you could test positive for marijuana. However, normal CBD usage should not result in any problems for you if tested.
If you have a drug test coming up, you may want to play it better safe than sorry, especially if you take daily dosages that exceed 100 milligrams. Studies show CBD can last in your system anywhere from 4-24 days, with it most likely being out of your system within a week.
On the bright side, more and more companies no longer test for marijuana due to it eliminating too many viable candidates.