Even if you might not want to, you still get exposed to secondhand smoke and there is hardly anything you can do about it. Secondhand smoke contains levels of THC and cannabis which are illicit drugs and if they get traced in a drug test, you will be getting a negative drug test report. But can you fail a drug test from secondhand smoke? Is it possible for you to get high after inhaling secondhand smoke? Let us discuss this in detail.
Can You Fail a Drug Test From Secondhand Smoke?
No, it can not be the case that you fail a drug test from secondhand smoke. The concentration of THC exhaled by cannabis smokers is not high enough for you to get a negative drug test report. However, continuous and direct exposure to secondhand smoke for longer durations of time might slowly result in increasing the levels of THC and cannabis that you inhale into your system and consequently, the drug test results might turn out to be unfavorable.
However, as per the studies, it was concluded that if a smoker and nonsmoker will be placed in a well-ventilated room for three to four hours then the concentration of secondhand smoke in the air will be enough for the nonsmoker to fail a urine and blood drug test. This indicates that abnormal levels of THC and cannabis in the surroundings can ultimately lead to a negative drug test report. In such cases, secondhand smoke can give a false positive result.
Not only this, but the ventilation in a room also plays a major role in the impact that secondhand smoke can cause on a nonsmoker. It is for this reason that poor ventilation results in increasing the levels of THC in the room slowly and gradually. Once the THC concentration exceeds 11.3 percent, it is enough to produce a false positive drug test report from secondhand smoke for a nonsmoker. However, the effects last only up to a few hours.
Can You Get High From Secondhand Smoke?
In case you might have exposure to secondhand smoke, you might have wondered if secondhand smoke could make you high. The clear answer to this question is NO. Secondhand smoke contains comparatively fewer amounts of THC and other toxic chemicals. Even if you inhale secondhand smoke, it is likely that you will not get high.
Continuously inhaling secondhand smoke might make you feel a buzz, that is, you might feel sleepy or fuzzy. According to research, you are required to get yourself surrounded by as many as 16 different smokers around you to get a secondhand high. Else, even if you are in a room with a smoker for an hour or more than that, you might not get a secondhand high. However, you can still get a positive urine drug test report.
How Long Does Intaking Direct THC Stay in Your System?
Intaking THC directly can show traces in the fluids samples such as blood, urine, and saliva for as long as 30 days. However, your hair can contain THC for up to 90 days. Moreover, your levels of consumption of cannabis decide the period for which it is going to stay in your bloodstream. If you are asked to appear for a drug test anytime meanwhile, you will be getting a positive drug test report.
Can You Put Secondhand Smoke as an Excuse for Getting a Positive Drug Test Report?
At times, when you are accused of consuming illicit drugs and you get a positive drug test report, you can take secondhand smoke as an excuse to put forward to your employer and get leniency for a few days until you detoxify your body and then you can appear for the drug test again.
Being in an unventilated room with a smoker for three to four hours can gradually increase the levels of THC in your system and if you undergo a drug test a few hours after that, the drug test report is likely to be positive. This can cause unnecessary trouble to you and you might even have to give up your job. Thus, secondhand smoke can be considered a valid excuse for failing a drug test.
How Can You Detoxify Your Body For Secondhand Smoke?
Having consumed secondhand smoke willingly or unwillingly might result in putting toxic substances into your body as you inhaled it. Consequently, it becomes necessary for you to detoxify your body from secondhand smoke else you might get a positive drug test report. To do that, you have to follow the below-given steps-
Consume Excessive Water
Drinking excessive water can easily help you to flush out toxic chemicals from your body. Since the levels of THC entering your system via secondhand smoke are not much, only water will be sufficient to remove the traces of cannabis from your body.
Do Regular Exercise
Regular exercise will produce more sweat and it would help in exerting toxic chemicals and THC from your body. It will take 20 to 30 minutes of exercise for 2 to 3 days to completely flush out THC from your body and get a negative drug test report.
Use Detoxifying Drinks
Lastly, if you already have detoxifying drinks available with you, you can consume them twice a day to completely remove THC from your body. Since the THC concentration of secondhand smoke is not much, flushing it out of the body is an easy process.
CONCLUSION
Secondhand smoke is not very effective in increasing the levels of THC in your body as the amount of cannabis exhaled by a smoker is very less. However, continuous and direct exposure to THC for hours can show traces of THC in your body in a urine, saliva, or blood drug test.
Moreover, if you are placed in an unventilated room with a smoker for three to five hours under regular exposure to smoke, the cannabis level will gradually and automatically increase and this might even result in making you feel dizzy and sleepy. Also, the THC can be easily detected in your drug test if that happens in the next few hours after that.
Michael S. Bardwell, an expert in workplace drug testing, specializes in synthetic urine and its impact on drug tests. As a seasoned specimen collector, he navigates the intricate realm of drug testing laboratories certified by the Department of Health and Human Services. His insights extend to drug-free workplace programs, and he collaborates seamlessly with medical review officers (MRO) in ensuring accurate specimen collections for comprehensive drug tests.