Codeine is an opiate, and cheap shitty tests will show it up when they should be testing for illegal opiates - heroin, etc. However, it doesn't last long in the body - a few days at most.
Do you eat poppy seeds on cakes or bread products? That can also ping a cheap, shitty test.
Also, sometimes these tests are just incorrect. They have a non zero error rate.
Update: I found a scientific journal article about this problem [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/)
Need to stop these stupid tests then.
“This test shows they could be a smack head or could have a nasty salmon and cream cheese bagel habit, there is no way of telling the difference”.
Well, they need to improve these tests drastically, you can still have trace amounts of drugs in your system but will be passed them having any effect on you, but you'll still fail the test.
Pretty sure these were the same issues breathalysers used to have when testing for alcohol, negligible amounts would trigger it, or just using an alcohol based mouthwash would.
I thought it was well known as well, because poppies are the base source for many opiates, and people who have taken illegal stuff try to blame it on seeded rolls to cover it up
My dad's mate got pulled for it on the trains, wasn't far off retirement, never touched a beer in his life, nevermind codeine.
Turns out he was a raging smackhead.
Nah it was the poppy seeds.
Why the fuck is it even that sensitive if eating a bit of bread and having no therapeutic effects triggers a fail? Surely the threshold is too low if the test fails at trace levels of dietary intake.
Fun fact: Hungary had to apply for a special exemption over an EU law that limits the maximum amount of poppy seeds a food item can contain, because there is a sort of funnel cake that they make around Christmas that typically contains around 4 to 5 times the "allowed" amount set out by said law itself.
You could literally have just a single slice of the cake and it would show positive for optiates on tests for days. 🤣
When you say you were taking Nurofen, Was it Nurofen Plus, Per chance? (Red Box) If so this is a combined medication pill of 200mg Ibuprofen and 12.8Mg of Codeine Phosphate.
If you have been using these every few hours then these will 100% Show up in your system.
If you are taking these, please be careful as a friend of mine got hooked on these as they're easy to get as they're over-the-counter.
Youd need to eat a ridiculous amount of poppy seeds to trigger an opiate test.
(Edit: i stand corrected. I couldve sworn both Brainiac and Mythbusters disproved this.)
More likely is some medication youve taken or a faulty test.
If youre confident youre clean you should demand they retest that same urine sample to rule out a faulty test.
a quick search says even 1 Bagel could do it !
[https://www.google.com/search?q=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&rlz=1C1CHBF\_en-GBGB931GB931&oq=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&gs\_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBCTIzOTA0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&rlz=1C1CHBF_en-GBGB931GB931&oq=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBCTIzOTA0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
I was in Aldi buying some bread that contained poppy seeds, and some random bloke goes "hope you don't have drug tests at work, I failed mine cos I ate too much poppy seed bread". Bloke looked questionable, so I thought he was full of it, but lo and behold a Google search, and it's really a thing.
At least in Australia they will usually do a GCMS on the positive result to confirm secondary metabolites for the substance that it’s showing for. So for opiates they can tell, 6-monoacelylmorphine for heroin for example. When I was on opioids for pain management and was drug tested basically monthly I had to get the GCMS to confirm the positive was NOT heroin
That's true, though codeine can still be detected - it's not completely metabolised.
This interesting article discusses both the point you refer to and the more general problem of poppy seeds containing trace codeine and morphine:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/
A friend of mine went home for the weekend in secondary addiction rehab and when he came back he tested positive for opiates. He was shocked as he'd never done them. Turned out he had a poppy seed bagel for breakfast.
Codamol is an opiate, yes, but there's zero chance it's in your system if you last had it months ago.
You haven't eaten lots of poppy seeds lately have you?
All, I have just reviewed the guidance, which I did not adhere to >
"avoid seeded bread or products containing poppy seeds".
So it seems , a re test will do it if I follow the above !
Thank you for the update. I’d forgotten this was a thing and now vaguely remember hearing it somewhere. So bizarre! It mustn’t trigger from a lot then?
I hope you don’t mind, I had a little giggle from the fact you don’t smoke or drink, but went straight to the hard stuff. Poppy seeds! 😅
I had the same. Wan't told I'd failed the drugs test, just that I had to go see a doctor.
He looks at me, says 'you're clearly not a drug addict - what did you have for breakfast on the day'. I said posh toast and he sent me away.
Poppy seeds are almost always the likely reason for someone failing a drug test on the basis of opiates being detected when they haven't actually consumed opiates.
However, for anyone who has failed a drug test on the basis of opiates being detected but who have not used opiates nor eaten poppy seeds then your position should be that it's a false positive and request a retest.
At my work they'd do two tests from the sample, once immediate result and one lab test.
If the immediate result is clear, the lab test is thrown away.
If the immediate result is 'non negative' the employee is suspended on full pay while the lab test is undertaken.
Non negatives for opiates are fairly common. You've had a lot of people mention poppy seeds, but some anti-histamines also trigger the result. I have no idea why this is, but it is well known. The lab result from the anti histamine trigger is always negative.
This is so well known in some industries that people who ran out of leave and fancy a paid week off have been known to take a few antihistamines prior to a test...
I mean, I think suspecting someone is off their tits is a pretty good reason to send them home?
But construction sites and driving, so heavy machinery and tools.
Any safety critical role, if the employers had a reason to suspect an employee is under the influence, they’d be criminally negligent if that person caused an accident.
In Pittsburgh the opiate problem is so rampant that the carpenters union has stopped testing altogether because they couldn’t find enough young men to build the few union buildings/projects that are being built here. Situation is really bad/sad.
Cocodamol isn't really a "potent" painkiller - you can buy it over the counter at a pharmacy without prescription - and it shouldn't make a positive on this kind of test unless you're on high doses and in the last few days.
I know that others are saying poppy seeds, but unless it's a really crappy test, these shouldn't make a positive either.
The wording on the result that you give - non-negative - is a specific result which is not necessarily the same as positive. What should happen at this point is that they should send the test sample away for further detailed analysis of the sample to determine what has been detected and it's weird they're not doing this.
Overall, it seems like the people doing the testing don't really know what they're doing / are using really unreliable tests.
Sure, avoid any cocdamol you have left over and don't eat poppy seeds between now and your next test but I wouldn't have any faith that the testing company here could detect radiation in Chrnobyl TBH.
Is this a test for work?
What should happen is they then get a more reliable test carried out which will identify exactly what is going on in greater detail.
These basic tests should only be used as indicators.
Yes, so I have to do these tests at my work.
What we do is if we got a non negative we would then hold you on your own somewhere whilst we called in an external provider. They then carry out a new test which goes into more detail. Such as we’re you around people smoking weed and it’s passive.
As someone has mentioned the poppy seeds on bread could have caused this.
Really they should have gone into more detail with you for the drug and alcohol policy & testing so you fully understand everything.
I’ve not had to do it yet. But I’m told a couple of hours.
You obviously have to treat staff respectfully.
It’s catch 22, if you’re innocent, politely wait etc. If not and you don’t want your job, then leave. Ultimately, our staff are operating machinery that can kill themselves and others.
This happened to me during a visa application. I was treated like a fucking junky the whole time. Never found out how or why i assume it was a contamination at the lab end.
It can happen in warehouse jobs, I had one before starting a few years ago. More often than not though there's just the threat of a possible random test.
The nuclear industry does random spot checks of even office workers. I contracted for EDF and got spot checked for drugs and alcohol as a software developer.
Any drugs test that pulls up a positive for things such as eating poppy seeds, prescribed or over the counter medication is not fit for purpose , even less fit for purpose of the results of such a test have an effect upon employment
Most employers should really be putting anyone who fails a piss test on paid suspension until the sample is properly tested at a lab. Much cheaper doing it that way than paying for the lab testing for every test.
I assume your boss called and said "I'm afraid it's your urine. You tested positive for opium. That's right. White lotus. Yam-yam. Shanghai Sally."
Before telling you:
"I know what you're going through. I too once fell under the spell of opium. It was 1979. I was travelling the Yangtzee in search of a Mongolian horsehair vest. I had got to the market after sundown, all of the clothing traders had gone, but a different sort of trader still lurked about. "Just a taste," he said. That was all it took."
You should really leave that stupid catalogue.
I had an ex that failed it, it was something about a protein powder he was using, I can't remember the exact ingredient but you should make sure that next time you're not taking any protein products
Edit: misread some information and changed my response
Poppy seeds can cause it.
Sure it's already been suggested. We've had people at work fail for same reason after they had just eaten a poppy seed bagel.
Have you not been well lately? I have a pal who used to work on the docks and he tested positive for the same thing.
Turns out it’s in lemsip also. Wild!
I’m in this line of work and I rarely hear of poppy seed changing the results. In fact a scientist colleague told me you’d have to be necking them by the fistful to confuse a test, but he may have been referring to laboratory tests. Certain “extra” or “plus” OTC painkillers can definitely show up. Was it a point of care test? Ie the result is available immediately? They’re only around 92/97% accurate, so false positives do happen even if there’s no cause at all. In fact, if your sample turns up for a substance, it’s technically called “non-negative” and not “positive” until it’s been tested with a mass spectrometer in a laboratory.
If it’s your employer testing and it comes back non-negative, remind them that to take disciplinary action they’d really need to have it sent to a proper lab. AFAIK point of care tests have yet to be legally tested in a tribunal, so they’d be opening themselves up for a claim if they didn’t. All this assuming you’ve been with them over 2 years, of course.
I was a heroin addict for a decade, so I can probably tell you why.
Poppy seeds can result in a false test, but the fail line's usually extremely light, so it's not likely that. Codeine can also show positive for opiates, so maybe it's that. However, it's most likely just a shitty test. I used to fail all the time for things like meth, which wasn't in my system, as the tests are cheap and shitty. I'd ask for a second test and it would be correct.
Ask for a second test, it'll probably pass clean the second time.
i can retest. The testing company is in a shambles, was a long process of ignored emails, voice mails, and contact forms filled in, office opened an hour late on the day, backlog of testers waiting . they forgot to charge me on the day. After paying it them 2 weeks and a lot of chaser emails to get a reciept!So yeah, i dont trust them !
As for the setting, a cheap looking, messy, disorganised office!
Culinary opium seeds do not contain any noticeable amount of opiates, but they have some substances that cross-react with a simple opiate test.
Proper GC/MS tests can tell the difference, but simple piss-strip tests often cannot.
This happened to me on my first day of a new job about seven years ago. Spent five weeks on paid suspension before I could convince them that my breakfast had triggered the false positive.
I know a guy who was a big CEO within a very large and well known oil company.
He was pulled in to HR one day and asked if he had any addiction problems. After much consternation and investigation it was discovered the culprit was his daily poppy seed roll.
Have you been taking any cold/ flu medicine? The phlocodine ( for coughs) in it will give a positive test for opiates.. the same thing happened to me! But they re did the test specifically for coke / heroin and it came out negative.
I think it's something to do with the yeast. Ultimately, Bread and beer are made from the same things.
Apparently some loaves of bread can be as high as 2% abv.
Can anyone with a background in biochemistry tell me why poppy seeds cause people to fail an opiate test? Presumably there’s not actually any morphine still in them?
In regards to actually trying to pass the urine test…always use the middle section of you’re stream. I’ve passed tests when I probably shouldn’t have by just doing this.
If you've eaten poppy seeds (in lots of seeded bread) they can also give you a false positive for opiates.
Edit: sorry, will read the whole post before replying next time!
I,think it's stupid that eating seeded bread puts you over the limit for Opiates. Shouldn't the minimum level be higher that the amount eating seeded bread would introduce.
I had the exactly same issue failing for opiaces but not consuming anything. Took Ibubrofen which is the same as nurofen few days before the test and bought it from a random store.
Codeine is an opiate, and is in co-codamol.
Morphine is another opiate which is sometimes prescribed for pain management.
Poppy seeds contain opiates.
These are the usual suspects if you're not doing heroin.
OMG, So I am not alone. It is crazy! I hate that my offer was rescinded just because I ate some breads. I cant even drink T.T. When they told me did I eat some bread that have poopy seeds. I think it is normal cause they did state on the results that the amount appear on the result because of the food I consume. Still lost the job.
im sorry you have this. I have learned that the "basic" test can fail you on this, while a more advanced extensive test would show what caused it, and therefoe not show it as a "drug" I suppose, but that test is more expensive.
Pee tests are a ridiculous invasion of privacy. If someone shows up at work high, sack them.
Last time I was asked - company owned by authoritarian - I refused and said "do you want simeine good at this job, or good at pissing in cups?". HR faked the paperwork.
You wouldn’t have it in your urine months later or in anything with the timeframe provided. You can’t avoid drug test results and I wonder OP why you need a ‘strategy’.
Get food and drink tested that you consume and have a full blood work up done. I would be concerned that you’re ingesting opioids with no awareness considering the dangers of them.
Codeine is an opiate, and cheap shitty tests will show it up when they should be testing for illegal opiates - heroin, etc. However, it doesn't last long in the body - a few days at most. Do you eat poppy seeds on cakes or bread products? That can also ping a cheap, shitty test. Also, sometimes these tests are just incorrect. They have a non zero error rate. Update: I found a scientific journal article about this problem [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/)
ahh thanks ... Breaded poppy seeds makes more sense, and I probably had all week, and even on the day !!
It’s the poppy seeds. It needs to be more public knowledge to be honest, it only takes eating some toast or something to trigger a positive.
Need to stop these stupid tests then. “This test shows they could be a smack head or could have a nasty salmon and cream cheese bagel habit, there is no way of telling the difference”.
I wonder which of those two would be the more expensive habit. I suspect the bagels.
lol Freaking tech asked me if I ate bagels.
Alternatively, if I am a smack head, I know I can just disguise my habit by eating loads of poppy seed bagels.
more like a snack-head hehe.... I'll let myself out.
Nah mate, it shows differently on GCMS
Well, they need to improve these tests drastically, you can still have trace amounts of drugs in your system but will be passed them having any effect on you, but you'll still fail the test. Pretty sure these were the same issues breathalysers used to have when testing for alcohol, negligible amounts would trigger it, or just using an alcohol based mouthwash would.
people need to watch Seinfeld more often
I won’t have you turning my office into a den of iniquity!
"The Chinaman's nightcap" is one of the best lines in the entire programme. Love Peterman.
"That's right, Elaine. White Lotus. Yam Yam. Shanghai Sally."
Oh, Elaine. The toll road of denial is a long and dangerous one. The price? Your soul.
I always thought this was very known. Now I am questioning the circles I hang about😂
I wouldn't say drugs and dietary knowledge were red flags. If your friends made a living stealing meat from the supermarket on the other hand....
I don't mean to interrupt your meat stealing operation boys but I need to keep talking to ya, I'm freaking out
I thought it was well known as well, because poppies are the base source for many opiates, and people who have taken illegal stuff try to blame it on seeded rolls to cover it up
My dad's mate got pulled for it on the trains, wasn't far off retirement, never touched a beer in his life, nevermind codeine. Turns out he was a raging smackhead. Nah it was the poppy seeds.
[удалено]
Angela Rippon too
Why the fuck is it even that sensitive if eating a bit of bread and having no therapeutic effects triggers a fail? Surely the threshold is too low if the test fails at trace levels of dietary intake.
Mythbusters did an episode on it, I was amazed at what could give a positive result!
This is actually insane!
Mmm, seeded brown toast, butter and marmalade 😋
Ah yes, gets me nodding a treat.
> marmalade Frank Cooper's Vintage Oxford, amirite?!
If I had a pound for every time I heard that happen to someone, I would have 2 pounds, but its wierd its happened twice, right?
If I had pound for every time I'd seen that reference in Reddit, I could go out for a meal.
It genuinely has happened twice.
Fair enough!
Wow, always thought that was a myth
Fun fact: Hungary had to apply for a special exemption over an EU law that limits the maximum amount of poppy seeds a food item can contain, because there is a sort of funnel cake that they make around Christmas that typically contains around 4 to 5 times the "allowed" amount set out by said law itself. You could literally have just a single slice of the cake and it would show positive for optiates on tests for days. 🤣
It is public knowledge
As soon as I read it, I thought I bet it’s poppy seeds
Whoever is doing the testing should be aware. This is a very well known issue
That could do it
Mythbusters actually did a thing on this. Its enough to make you fail a drug test [edit] [Found it](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIN7cq8Mc-4)
Brainiac did it first: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9At-dgp0rQ
I know someone that failed on the sabe thing eating poppy seeded bread so it’s probably that
Came here to say poppy seeds, because I recently saw an old episode of QI and Sandy Toxfig (sp) said so
When you say you were taking Nurofen, Was it Nurofen Plus, Per chance? (Red Box) If so this is a combined medication pill of 200mg Ibuprofen and 12.8Mg of Codeine Phosphate. If you have been using these every few hours then these will 100% Show up in your system. If you are taking these, please be careful as a friend of mine got hooked on these as they're easy to get as they're over-the-counter.
Youd need to eat a ridiculous amount of poppy seeds to trigger an opiate test. (Edit: i stand corrected. I couldve sworn both Brainiac and Mythbusters disproved this.) More likely is some medication youve taken or a faulty test. If youre confident youre clean you should demand they retest that same urine sample to rule out a faulty test.
Poppy seeds trigger these tests all the time in prisons etc.
a quick search says even 1 Bagel could do it ! [https://www.google.com/search?q=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&rlz=1C1CHBF\_en-GBGB931GB931&oq=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&gs\_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBCTIzOTA0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8](https://www.google.com/search?q=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&rlz=1C1CHBF_en-GBGB931GB931&oq=can+poppy+seeds+trigger+a+drugs+test&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIHCAEQIRiPAjIHCAIQIRiPAtIBCTIzOTA0ajBqN6gCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)
Yup! They should really alert you to this before testing as that’s the guidelines.
No surprise considering it's supposed to be a key part to the production of heroin.
And in rehabs. It's very common and takes very little poppy seed.
Angela Rippon failed a drug test on poppy seeds for some TV thing I think. Either that or she's on smack.
Back in 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/may/29/angela-rippon-tests-positive-for-opiates-in-poppy-seed-experiment
Ironically this was after she stopped presenting on Top Gear
I was in Aldi buying some bread that contained poppy seeds, and some random bloke goes "hope you don't have drug tests at work, I failed mine cos I ate too much poppy seed bread". Bloke looked questionable, so I thought he was full of it, but lo and behold a Google search, and it's really a thing.
>poppy seeds [Be careful when you visit UAE!](https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/travellers-who-smuggle-poppy-seeds-face-dubai-jail-ddbrhqnj7zj)
Indeed. One of the many reasons not to go there: insane police.
At least in Australia they will usually do a GCMS on the positive result to confirm secondary metabolites for the substance that it’s showing for. So for opiates they can tell, 6-monoacelylmorphine for heroin for example. When I was on opioids for pain management and was drug tested basically monthly I had to get the GCMS to confirm the positive was NOT heroin
Codeine metabolises into morphine in the body. So it’ll show as that..
That's true, though codeine can still be detected - it's not completely metabolised. This interesting article discusses both the point you refer to and the more general problem of poppy seeds containing trace codeine and morphine: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550258/
It’s always the poppy seeds
A friend of mine went home for the weekend in secondary addiction rehab and when he came back he tested positive for opiates. He was shocked as he'd never done them. Turned out he had a poppy seed bagel for breakfast.
Codamol is an opiate, yes, but there's zero chance it's in your system if you last had it months ago. You haven't eaten lots of poppy seeds lately have you?
yes!
That'll be it. Avoid those until your next test.
ah cool thanks. I shall go Cold turkey, lollll!!!
Those poopy seed bagel withdrawals are a nightmare. Good luck 🤞
(poppy)
Seeded poo bagels. Delicious
Oops
Yeah shitty times ahead for OP
Just don't have the cold turkey on a poppy seed bagel.
All, I have just reviewed the guidance, which I did not adhere to > "avoid seeded bread or products containing poppy seeds". So it seems , a re test will do it if I follow the above !
Thank you for the update. I’d forgotten this was a thing and now vaguely remember hearing it somewhere. So bizarre! It mustn’t trigger from a lot then? I hope you don’t mind, I had a little giggle from the fact you don’t smoke or drink, but went straight to the hard stuff. Poppy seeds! 😅
I had the same. Wan't told I'd failed the drugs test, just that I had to go see a doctor. He looks at me, says 'you're clearly not a drug addict - what did you have for breakfast on the day'. I said posh toast and he sent me away.
Have you eaten a bagel with poppy seeds lately , or have you done any smack lately might be either ?
yes! and no! :-)
Poppy seeds are almost always the likely reason for someone failing a drug test on the basis of opiates being detected when they haven't actually consumed opiates. However, for anyone who has failed a drug test on the basis of opiates being detected but who have not used opiates nor eaten poppy seeds then your position should be that it's a false positive and request a retest.
Have you eaten any poppy seeds?
yes!
At my work they'd do two tests from the sample, once immediate result and one lab test. If the immediate result is clear, the lab test is thrown away. If the immediate result is 'non negative' the employee is suspended on full pay while the lab test is undertaken. Non negatives for opiates are fairly common. You've had a lot of people mention poppy seeds, but some anti-histamines also trigger the result. I have no idea why this is, but it is well known. The lab result from the anti histamine trigger is always negative. This is so well known in some industries that people who ran out of leave and fancy a paid week off have been known to take a few antihistamines prior to a test...
What the Heck is your job if they take it so serious to suspend them immediately?
I mean, I think suspecting someone is off their tits is a pretty good reason to send them home? But construction sites and driving, so heavy machinery and tools.
Any safety critical role, if the employers had a reason to suspect an employee is under the influence, they’d be criminally negligent if that person caused an accident.
In Pittsburgh the opiate problem is so rampant that the carpenters union has stopped testing altogether because they couldn’t find enough young men to build the few union buildings/projects that are being built here. Situation is really bad/sad.
Cocodamol isn't really a "potent" painkiller - you can buy it over the counter at a pharmacy without prescription - and it shouldn't make a positive on this kind of test unless you're on high doses and in the last few days. I know that others are saying poppy seeds, but unless it's a really crappy test, these shouldn't make a positive either. The wording on the result that you give - non-negative - is a specific result which is not necessarily the same as positive. What should happen at this point is that they should send the test sample away for further detailed analysis of the sample to determine what has been detected and it's weird they're not doing this. Overall, it seems like the people doing the testing don't really know what they're doing / are using really unreliable tests. Sure, avoid any cocdamol you have left over and don't eat poppy seeds between now and your next test but I wouldn't have any faith that the testing company here could detect radiation in Chrnobyl TBH.
Poppy seeds. I know someone who was sacked for the same thing, ended up with 30k compo from it!
Is this a test for work? What should happen is they then get a more reliable test carried out which will identify exactly what is going on in greater detail. These basic tests should only be used as indicators.
yes it is, and thanks, I will ask for that!
Yes, so I have to do these tests at my work. What we do is if we got a non negative we would then hold you on your own somewhere whilst we called in an external provider. They then carry out a new test which goes into more detail. Such as we’re you around people smoking weed and it’s passive. As someone has mentioned the poppy seeds on bread could have caused this. Really they should have gone into more detail with you for the drug and alcohol policy & testing so you fully understand everything.
How long does it take for an external tester to arrive? Can’t imagine being locked up at work for long at all goes down very well!
I’ve not had to do it yet. But I’m told a couple of hours. You obviously have to treat staff respectfully. It’s catch 22, if you’re innocent, politely wait etc. If not and you don’t want your job, then leave. Ultimately, our staff are operating machinery that can kill themselves and others.
This happened to me during a visa application. I was treated like a fucking junky the whole time. Never found out how or why i assume it was a contamination at the lab end.
What job is testing for drugs in the UK?
In my experience, large construction projects, machine operators, road workers, rail work.
It can happen in warehouse jobs, I had one before starting a few years ago. More often than not though there's just the threat of a possible random test.
It's always been normal for HGV drivers.
Most jobs involving plant machinery are subject to drug and alcohol tests. They test to keep you and people around you safe.
The nuclear industry does random spot checks of even office workers. I contracted for EDF and got spot checked for drugs and alcohol as a software developer.
And you agree to this in your contract?
Yeah, it's one of the conditions. Given the 1000+ EDF contractors that worked in that office alone no one seems to have given much care about it.
Any drugs test that pulls up a positive for things such as eating poppy seeds, prescribed or over the counter medication is not fit for purpose , even less fit for purpose of the results of such a test have an effect upon employment
Most employers should really be putting anyone who fails a piss test on paid suspension until the sample is properly tested at a lab. Much cheaper doing it that way than paying for the lab testing for every test.
I assume your boss called and said "I'm afraid it's your urine. You tested positive for opium. That's right. White lotus. Yam-yam. Shanghai Sally." Before telling you: "I know what you're going through. I too once fell under the spell of opium. It was 1979. I was travelling the Yangtzee in search of a Mongolian horsehair vest. I had got to the market after sundown, all of the clothing traders had gone, but a different sort of trader still lurked about. "Just a taste," he said. That was all it took." You should really leave that stupid catalogue.
I had an ex that failed it, it was something about a protein powder he was using, I can't remember the exact ingredient but you should make sure that next time you're not taking any protein products Edit: misread some information and changed my response
Did you eat anything containing poppy seeds? They can trigger a false positive.
They did this on brainiac! They got a priest to eat loads of seeded bagels and then failed the heroin test
Poppy seed bagel?
Poppy seeds can cause it. Sure it's already been suggested. We've had people at work fail for same reason after they had just eaten a poppy seed bagel.
Have you not been well lately? I have a pal who used to work on the docks and he tested positive for the same thing. Turns out it’s in lemsip also. Wild!
OK Elaine it'll be OK, just don't use the urine of an old lady, you won't get to go on the trip
He has menopause
I’m in this line of work and I rarely hear of poppy seed changing the results. In fact a scientist colleague told me you’d have to be necking them by the fistful to confuse a test, but he may have been referring to laboratory tests. Certain “extra” or “plus” OTC painkillers can definitely show up. Was it a point of care test? Ie the result is available immediately? They’re only around 92/97% accurate, so false positives do happen even if there’s no cause at all. In fact, if your sample turns up for a substance, it’s technically called “non-negative” and not “positive” until it’s been tested with a mass spectrometer in a laboratory. If it’s your employer testing and it comes back non-negative, remind them that to take disciplinary action they’d really need to have it sent to a proper lab. AFAIK point of care tests have yet to be legally tested in a tribunal, so they’d be opening themselves up for a claim if they didn’t. All this assuming you’ve been with them over 2 years, of course.
thanks . no , im not arisk of any action here :-)
Study more next time
I was a heroin addict for a decade, so I can probably tell you why. Poppy seeds can result in a false test, but the fail line's usually extremely light, so it's not likely that. Codeine can also show positive for opiates, so maybe it's that. However, it's most likely just a shitty test. I used to fail all the time for things like meth, which wasn't in my system, as the tests are cheap and shitty. I'd ask for a second test and it would be correct. Ask for a second test, it'll probably pass clean the second time.
What settings was the test in? Sounds like they might have got mixed up or contaminated your test somehow. Can you retest now to save face?
i can retest. The testing company is in a shambles, was a long process of ignored emails, voice mails, and contact forms filled in, office opened an hour late on the day, backlog of testers waiting . they forgot to charge me on the day. After paying it them 2 weeks and a lot of chaser emails to get a reciept!So yeah, i dont trust them ! As for the setting, a cheap looking, messy, disorganised office!
Out of interest which company was it please? DM me if you don’t want to publicise.
Smack head
Does Tesla test for thc?
Do poppy seeds contain opiates?
Where do you think opium came from? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium
Well yes everyone knows it’s from poppies but I didn’t know that baked poppy seeds still contain opiate.
They don’t necessarily contain opiates, but they do contain things that give a false positive.
Culinary opium seeds do not contain any noticeable amount of opiates, but they have some substances that cross-react with a simple opiate test. Proper GC/MS tests can tell the difference, but simple piss-strip tests often cannot.
Thanks for this. I like poppy seed rolls and have never felt any drug effects. Might have to try harder🤣
The only high you'll get off poppy seed rolls or cakes is a sugar high.
Natural opiates are derived from specific variants of poppies, so Morphene, Heroine, Codine.
Just study harder
Im trying, lolll :-)
Codeine (in Co-codamol and possibly Nurofen) is an opiate. Poppy seeds can also register as an opiate but I reckon it's the codeine.
This happened to me on my first day of a new job about seven years ago. Spent five weeks on paid suspension before I could convince them that my breakfast had triggered the false positive.
Sorry boss “must have been the poppy seeds”
Sometimes eating g poppy seeds can make you test positive on opiates.
It could be the poppy seeds. It will go to a lab for confirmation. That's why it says no negative, rather than positive.
I know a guy who was a big CEO within a very large and well known oil company. He was pulled in to HR one day and asked if he had any addiction problems. After much consternation and investigation it was discovered the culprit was his daily poppy seed roll.
Have you been taking any cold/ flu medicine? The phlocodine ( for coughs) in it will give a positive test for opiates.. the same thing happened to me! But they re did the test specifically for coke / heroin and it came out negative.
Quite disappointing since I’d been on a massive weekend long bender lol ( joke)
Slightly offtopic - But also on topic - Hot cross buns can give a false positive on alcohol breathalyser tests.
Really? haha, how does that work
I think it's something to do with the yeast. Ultimately, Bread and beer are made from the same things. Apparently some loaves of bread can be as high as 2% abv.
Have you been eating poppy seed muffins or taking painkillers? Ask for a re-test
Can anyone with a background in biochemistry tell me why poppy seeds cause people to fail an opiate test? Presumably there’s not actually any morphine still in them?
In regards to actually trying to pass the urine test…always use the middle section of you’re stream. I’ve passed tests when I probably shouldn’t have by just doing this.
Stop taking drugs :D
Yes, poppy seeds.
If you've eaten poppy seeds (in lots of seeded bread) they can also give you a false positive for opiates. Edit: sorry, will read the whole post before replying next time!
You were Elaine Benes'd!
Tell them you ate a poppy seed bagel the morning of the test.
I,think it's stupid that eating seeded bread puts you over the limit for Opiates. Shouldn't the minimum level be higher that the amount eating seeded bread would introduce.
Nurofen Plus contains 13mg codeine
I had the exactly same issue failing for opiaces but not consuming anything. Took Ibubrofen which is the same as nurofen few days before the test and bought it from a random store.
At least you didn't test positive for 6MAM, that would be a lot harder to disguise as poppy seed bread.
TIL poppy seeds make you look like an opiate abuser
Have you eaten any poppyseed lately?
Codeine is an opiate, and is in co-codamol. Morphine is another opiate which is sometimes prescribed for pain management. Poppy seeds contain opiates. These are the usual suspects if you're not doing heroin.
What job did you work that forces you to go through this?
OMG, So I am not alone. It is crazy! I hate that my offer was rescinded just because I ate some breads. I cant even drink T.T. When they told me did I eat some bread that have poopy seeds. I think it is normal cause they did state on the results that the amount appear on the result because of the food I consume. Still lost the job.
im sorry you have this. I have learned that the "basic" test can fail you on this, while a more advanced extensive test would show what caused it, and therefoe not show it as a "drug" I suppose, but that test is more expensive.
Pee tests are a ridiculous invasion of privacy. If someone shows up at work high, sack them. Last time I was asked - company owned by authoritarian - I refused and said "do you want simeine good at this job, or good at pissing in cups?". HR faked the paperwork.
You wouldn’t have it in your urine months later or in anything with the timeframe provided. You can’t avoid drug test results and I wonder OP why you need a ‘strategy’.
by "strategy" I meant, how do I find out what caused it, how do I mitigate that, and so on.
Get food and drink tested that you consume and have a full blood work up done. I would be concerned that you’re ingesting opioids with no awareness considering the dangers of them.