School is Back – Take Back Your Health

It’s that time of year–kids from preschool through college are heading back to school. This means it’s the perfect opportunity to do a re-set and focus on the family’s health, coinciding with National Health Center Week (August 9-15). What you may not realize is that Any Lab Test Now® is a “health center” giving you direct access to thousands of beneficial lab tests to ensure wellness.  

Useful Lab Tests For Concerned Parents

As your children head back to school, there are any number of lab tests you can utilize. Any Lab Test Now® is a family health center, we provide many lab tests to check a number of health concerns. Perhaps you’re unsettled, wondering if your son or daughter picked up bad habits over the summer—research shows more than 3,000 teens try marijuana for the first time every day.  

Parents who are worried their child could use or abuse drugs either in high school or while away at college can easily have their son or daughter tested.  Any Lab Test Now® does drug testing, no appointment necessary.  

For example, we may utilize a screening called a Blood 5-Panel Drug Test to determine the presence or absence of 5 types of drugs or their metabolites in the bloodstream. This blood drug test checks for the presence of 5 drug metabolites including:

1. Amphetamine/Methamphetamines
2. Marijuana
3. Cocaine
4. Opiates
5. Phencyclidine

Any Lab Test Now® can also conduct tests to see if someone has been vaping, a habit that the Surgeon General has declared an epidemic among youth. The choices parents have for Nicotine tests available at Any Lab Test Now® include:

• Urine Test:
  A  Good choice if a parent suspects the child has used nicotine over the last few days. An instant test is available, and parents can get results within five to ten minutes.
• Hair Follicle Test:
  A good option for parents who think their child has been either vaping or smoking nicotine for a long time, and the child might stop using just to get through the test. It takes 3 days for nicotine to start showing in hair strands.
   
• Blood Test:
  A simple blood draw can detect traces of nicotine about 2 hours after use.

Testing at Any Lab Test Now® is confidential. No one has access to results but parents. You own the results and you can even use an anonymous name to protect your child. Most importantly, the results give parents and other loved ones’ answers so they can take next steps if needed. 

You can’t put a price tag on peace of mind. Since thousands of kids are going off to college for the first time, it might not hurt to get basic testing done to make you as a parent know that you’ve done all you can to protect your child. 

Vaccine Immunity Check

Whether you have a young child going to daycare, preschool, grade school, high school, or college, there is one constant—making sure your child is current on vaccinations protecting them with everything from measles to chickenpox. Most states have laws requiring certain immunizations for school-aged children. 

Problem is, immunization records can get lost and often be difficult to track down, especially if you’ve moved over the years. Any Lab Test Now® can help. We can do a simple blood test called the MMR Titer that checks if you are immune to measles, mumps, and rubella by measuring your antibody levels, thus determining if your immunization is up-to-date. The results demonstrate whether or not your immune system has the capability to respond to an infection from one of the viruses.

Take Back Mom’s Health

Knowing the kids are taken care of is a sense of relief for parents. Especially for moms, it’s been a busy summer, running non-stop, taking the kids to swim practice, soccer camp, or a friend’s house, and now getting ready for school can be exhausting and stressful.  Any Lab Test Now® can run a Cortisol Test to see how much daily life stressors have been affecting mom’s overall health.  

Taking Charge of Your Health

Taking these proactive measures helps you advocate for your family’s health. It puts you in the driver’s seat. Blood work, after all, can provide many much-needed answers about our health. This trend is called healthcare consumerism. It’s all about giving people the tools and control to live their best, healthiest lives.  Take the control to say; I need this test done whether or not my insurance company will pay for it. 

If you are ready to check your family’s health as you head back to school, Any Lab Test Now® is the health center you’ve been looking for. Call now to schedule an appointment at a location near you to take back your health.

 

Be Proactive When Protecting Your Teens 

It’s a dreaded conversation for every parent: drug testing your teen. Often, this conversation can be met with a tense, awkward, or even defensive tone from your kiddo. Ultimately, many teens are just entering the world of proving their independence, wanting your trust, but also thinking they know what’s best for them. This mindset can lead to dangerous results if left to wander. It’s easy and perfectly understandable for parents to feel helpless in approaching these kinds of situations. 

An excellent method to keep in mind is to be proactive! Have these conversations and act before you suspect something nefarious is going on. That way, speaking about drug use is not something that is shrouded in suspicion and distrust but just seen as a routine check-in. Although it can be a minor annoyance for your teen, at least it might help to cut down on the animosity.

If you’re looking for a safe place to check your teen and make sure they’re not engaging in drug use, be sure to consider your neighborhood Any Lab Test Now®. 

 

Impact of Drug Use Among Teens 

High school can be a difficult time for teenagers, they enter high school as children, but they leave as young adults. Fo just about every teen, this four-year period is extremely transformational and experimental. For most, this means trying drugs and alcohol for the first time.

Facts:

• Teens experiment with drug use due to peer pressure and academic pressure 
• Marijuana is the most commonly used illicit drug among teens

Cotinine (Nicotine Metabolite) Test

At Any Lab Test Now®, we offer a urine drug test called the Cotinine (Nicotine Metabolite) Test that determines the presence of cotinine or nicotine in the system. It’s the test of choice to evaluate active tobacco use or exposure to tobacco. Cotinine is the metabolite or what is left after nicotine consumption. Cotinine is more stable and has a longer life in the body than nicotine. Nicotine is highly addictive and found in tobacco, cigarettes, and e-cigarettes used for vaping. 

Results from the Cotinine Test are typically received in 24 to 48 business hours. We encourage you to consult with your primary physician about all test results. 

10 Panel Instant Drug Screen (Saliva)

Any Lab Test Now® also offers the 10 Panel Instant Drug Test Screen. This test determines the presence or absence of 10 types of drugs in the saliva. it checks for the following metabolites:

• Amphetamine 
• Barbiturates
• Cocaine 
• MDMA
• Methamphetamines
• Methadone 
• Opiates 
• Oxycodone 
• Marijuana 
• Phencyclidine

As always, we recommend sharing your results with your physician to create a plan for the next steps. 

School is Back – Take Back Your Health Too

Either of these two tests could provide you with information that could put your teen on a healthier road for their future. It can be gut-wrenching thinking your child may be engaging in drug use, and drug testing can be a scary thought, but it’s necessary to make sure your child is being safe and making healthy choices. 

Convenience is key when it comes to Any Lab Test Now®. We recognize how difficult it can be to get your child drug tested, so we strive to have work and school accommodating hours, so it’s not a hassle visiting one of our clinics. Any Lab Test Now® supports the parents out there. Trust your instincts! You’re doing your best, and that’s enough. Schedule an appointment with your local Any Lab Test Now® today. 

 

Dealing With Back-To-School Stress: How Will Your Child Cope?

Back-to-school can be an exciting and stressful time for teens. On one hand, they are excited to see their friends, but on the other, they’re facing increasing stress and anxiety when it comes to their daily responsibilities. Any Lab Test Now knows that parents are worried and sometimes unsure of how to respond. We try to make it easier with our discreet and confidential drug testing.

Why Teens Take Drugs

One of the first steps to confronting your fears as a parent is understanding exactly why teens take drugs. The National Institute on Drug Abuse offers us some insight.

• Teens take drugs to fit in. They want to be accepted in a social circle that includes drug-using peers.
• Teens take drugs to feel good. Drugs produce feelings of pleasure. The intensity of the euphoria differs by the type of drug and how it is used.
• Teens take drugs to feel better. Depression, social anxiety, stress-related disorders, and physical pain are just some of the issues facing adolescents. Stress especially plays a significant role in starting and continuing drug use.
• Teens take drugs to do better. The pressure to perform athletically and academically can be intense. Some teens turn to drug use because they believe it will enhance their performance.

Sometimes there’s no real reason; teens just like to experiment, especially doing those things that they perceive as thrilling or daring.

Take Control With ALTN

Any Lab Test Now is here to help you, confidentially and anonymously. Our knowledgeable and professional medical assistants will help you navigate the choices available if you’re unsure of what test might be right for your family. We offer a wide range of tests that can determine drug use. The options include:

Hair Drug Test – A test of hair strands can determine if someone has used drugs as far back as three months. This test is a good choice for parents if they want to find out if their teen has been using drugs for a longer period, or if they think their child knew they were going to get drug tested and stopped using just to pass the test.

Fingernail Test – It takes two weeks for ingested drugs to begin showing in the fingernails. Nail clippings can determine if your child has used drugs as far back as six months.

Urine Test – If you think your teen has used drugs within the last 24 to 72 hours, this is a good choice.

If you suspect your child may be experimenting or using drugs, it can be very frightening. You don’t have to face those fears alone. The right test from Any Lab Test Now will provide you with the information you need to take control of the situation.

Confidentiality and Trust

Protecting your child’s identity is paramount. All testing at Any Lab Test Now is confidential. No one will have access to the results but you — the parent. You will own the results and can even use an anonymous name if you would prefer. Confidentiality and discretion are of the utmost importance to Any Lab Test Now. We work hard to make an already worrying situation as easy as possible.

Back-to-school can mean back to pressure, stress, and temptation for some students. Let your local Any Lab Test Now help you and your child face the challenges of the coming school year, together.

Drug Testing Students

The upcoming school year seems so full of excitement and promise. Students can’t wait to find out which friends will be in their classes and re-commit themselves to getting top grades this year. Parents are frantically running around making sure that school supplies are purchased and doctor appointments attended. School administrators and teachers patiently prepare lessons and activities.

Yet for all the positive activity, there is a looming reality that some of these students will make poor choices when it comes to alcohol, tobacco or drugs. In fact, 11.3% of students have tried marijuana by the age of 13. So, it’s important for parents, administrators and teachers to be on the lookout for children who may be at risk and to routinely engage in open discussions about the dangers that these substances can cause.

If the time comes when you suspect that a student is using drugs, alcohol or tobacco — or if you’re simply looking for a tangible deterrent to help your student avoid the temptation — turn to Any Lab Test Now for support. We offer a variety of drug tests for teens that can help you determine if the student is using substances and what those might be.

Confidential

Any Lab Test Now, there’s no reason to worry that samples or personal data will be insecure. Specimens follow strict chain-of-custody protocols, and results are heavily protected throughout the testing process to preserve confidentiality. Individuals maintain complete control over their specimens; unless the results need to be court-admissible, you can even bring your specimen in yourself. Additionally, to maintain our various accreditation’s and certifications, we must regularly report on our efforts to protect client data security and confidentiality. This gives patients and regulatory agencies alike confidence in the safety and accuracy of test results.

Comprehensive

No matter what drug, or drugs, you expect to find, you can rest easy knowing Any Lab Test Now has a panel that can uncover it. We have 5-panel, 10-panel and 12-panel tests that look for the most commonly abused drugs, or you can select a customized healthcare or prescription drug testing panel. Within these panels, we can find evidence of recent use of illegal drugs, prescription drugs, nicotine and alcohol. Any Lab Test Now can also do emergency drug testing, in the event you believe a student was unknowingly drugged.

Customizable

With Any Lab Test Now, you can choose which tier to test at and for which drugs you would like to look. If you just want to know whether a student has recently taken drugs of any kind, a simple drug screen might be the only thing you need. A drug screen is much faster than a full test, but it cannot differentiate between different types of drugs and can only confirm or refute the presence of drugs in someone’s system.

You can also choose the type of test used, depending on how far back you need your results to span. For example, testing urine or saliva will reveal recent use of the drug. If you need to know whether the drug was used in the past three to six months, testing fingernails or hair follicles is the better way to go.

As adults, we understand the impact that using drugs can have. While students may look like adults, they simply aren’t yet. Their brains still haven’t finished developing the centers that manage reasoning and self-control. So, it’s important that we all keep an eye on our teens. Whether you work with them or raise them lovingly, continue to talk about the dangers of illegal substances. And, help them make the right choices by using drug testing as a deterrent.

If the time comes that you do suspect a student of using drugs, reach out to your local Any Lab Test Now for help with teen drug testing.

Why Not Trust, but Verify Your Teen?

Summer is coming to a close and schools all across America are back in session. That means your teenager is preparing to meet lots of new people and have some wonderful new experiences in the coming year. However, we all know sometimes teens can be led down the wrong path, through impulsive decision-making, situations involving peer pressure and that feeling of pure invincibility that almost all teenagers experience. These common themes in many teenagers’ lives can sometimes lead them on the path to drug use.

Being able to trust your child more as they grow older is a wonderful thing to celebrate. But when we know that even the best teenagers can be prone to making poor decisions every now and then, why not take the preventative steps to protect them from engaging in dangerous activities?

The Trust, But Verify random teen drug testing program offered by Any Lab Test Now is a great way to help your teenager make good decisions when it comes to drugs. When your teen knows they can be randomly drug tested at any time, they can say “no” to their friends more easily, without succumbing to peer pressure. Your teen can let their friends know that they can’t try drugs — not even once — because they get drug tested at home. You can still have a trusting relationship with your teenager knowing that you’ve given them the tools they need to refuse dangerous substances, without having to feel like their activities are constantly monitored.

At Any Lab Test Now, teen drug testing options include:

• Rapid drug screens for when you need to know now.
• Lab-based drug screens and confirmations of drug screens for your assurance, including but not limited to prescription medications, cocaine and synthetic designer drugs like K2, Spice and “bath salts.”
• Drug tests for different detection periods.
• Additional tests are available for:
  • Alcohol Use
  • Tobacco Use
  • Unknown substances suspected of being drugs
  • Dextromethorphan (DXM) abuse

Contact Any Lab Test Now to learn more about our Trust, But Verify teen drug testing program today.

Red Ribbon Week is October 23 Through 31!

If you are a parent, this is an important week. No, we’re not talking about Halloween and trick-or-treating, we’re talking about Red Ribbon Week! Red Ribbon Week is an alcohol, tobacco and other drug and violence prevention awareness campaign that occurs annually in October, and this year it’s happening October 23 through 31!

With school back in session and lots of upcoming holidays, this time of year is full of potentially risky situations for your teen. Peer pressure is rampant among teenagers, especially at parties and other social gatherings, and your teen may be pressured into trying drugs, alcohol or tobacco products. This week as you’re preparing for all the excitement of Halloween, take a moment to celebrate Red Ribbon Week as well! Talk with your teen about the dangers of tobacco, drug and alcohol use, and learn what you can do if you suspect your child is dabbling in or abusing drugs.

Could your teen be abusing drugs? Here are some warning signs to look for:

• Sudden behavioral changes
• Noticeable changes in hygiene and appearance
• Otherwise unexplained health issues
• Problems at work or school
• Increased rule breaking, delinquency or other suspicious behavior

If you notice any of the signs listed above, it may be time to get more information about your teen’s activities. Any Lab Test Now offers many options for teen drug testing, including a Trust But Verify random drug testing program for teens.

Our teen drug testing includes options for rapid drug screens, drug tests for different detection periods and lab-based drug screens that test for some of the most commonly used drugs including, but not limited to:

• Marijuana
• Prescription medications
• Cocaine
• Synthetic designer drugs like K2, spice and bath salts.

Additional tests are available for alcohol use, tobacco use, unknown substances and cough syrup abuse. Talk to our experts at Any Lab Test Now to find the right test for you and your child’s needs. Getting answers is the first step in helping your teenager. Celebrate Red Ribbon Week by getting the answers you need!

Latest Drug Trends Parents Need to Know About

Your teen is at a party. They told you the parents would be home and that it’s just a small get-together. But even a small party can be a toxic pool of peer pressure for a growing teenager. Do you actually know what your teen is doing at that party? Will there be drinking or even drugs? While it’s important to have a trusting relationship with your teenager, it is also important to know when it’s time to step in and take charge of their activities. New drug trends can pop up fast, and before you know it, your teen may be in a dangerous situation at a social event. But you can take action just by staying in-the-know about drug trends and being aware of the warning signs that your teen might be abusing drugs. With the right information, you can better monitor your teen’s activities and behaviors. You don’t want to find out too late.

Here are a few of the drug trends for 2015 you should know about:

Molly: Commonly known as Molly or ecstasy, the official name for this drug is MDMA. It has been steadily gaining popularity since the late 2000s, and it is certainly a drug to watch out for among teenagers. Molly is considered a club drug and is typically used in pill form at raves and other kinds of parties. It is a synthetic psychoactive drug that produces feelings of increased energy, euphoria, emotional warmth toward others and distortions in sensory and time perceptions. Because it is lab-created, Molly is an unpredictable drug that can vary greatly in strength, composition and dosage — you never know what you’re going to get. It can result in a rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, blood vessel constriction and sweating, and the inability for the body to regulate temperature. It has also been known to cause panic attacks, psychosis, seizures and extreme dehydration.

Flakka (or Gravel): Flakka, also sometimes called Gravel, is a new and highly dangerous drug trend that has recently been seen emerging in Florida but is spreading to other areas as well. The drug is a combination of crystal meth and bath salts, giving it a gravel-like appearance. It can be eaten, snorted, injected or vaporized in an e-cigarette or similar device and can cause a condition called “excited delirium” that involves hyperstimulation, paranoia and hallucinations that can lead to violent aggression and self-injury. It has been linked to fatalities from suicide and heart attacks, and it can raise body temperatures to dangerous levels, leading to kidney damage and kidney failure.

K2 (or Spice): K2 is a particularly tricky drug to look out for as a parent because it can be obtained legally and is sold in gas stations, head shops and on the Internet. It is a synthetic cannabinoid of herbal mixtures that is chemically similar to THC, the active ingredient found in marijuana. However, the effects of this drug are much more powerful than marijuana and can include anxiety and agitation, nausea and vomiting, high blood pressure, shaking and seizures, hallucinations and paranoia, and violent behavior. Recently, there have been increasing instances of hospitalizations due to overdoses of K2.

Adderall: Adderall (and other stimulant medications like Ritalin and Concerta) is the dangerous drug your teen might be getting right out of a friend’s medicine cabinet. Typically prescribed to people with ADHD, Adderall has recently become a heavily abused drug among young people, especially students. People with prescriptions can easily give or sell it to others, usually those seeking the ability to focus better while studying. The problem? When abused or taken without a prescription, these drugs can be highly addictive. This type of drug suppresses the appetite, increases wakefulness, and increases focus and attention. It can also produce feelings of euphoria and is often abused for recreational purposes as a result.

Fentanyl: This drug is an opioid twice as potent as heroin and has been increasing in popularity across the nation since 2013, causing hundreds of overdoses and deaths. An opioid overdose can stop a person’s breathing, and fentanyl can cause this to happen very rapidly. In some cases, people have been unknowingly taking fentanyl in what they believed to be pure heroin, though a growing number of people are intentionally seeking out the stronger drug. Fentanyl produces a state of euphoria and relaxation.

Any Lab Test Now partners with the Partnership for Drug Free Kids and their Medicine Abuse Project to help educate parents about the problem of teen drug abuse, as well as share tools to help them talk to their teens. Be sure to talk to your teenager about the dangers of drug abuse and how to get help if something happens. If you think your teen may be abusing drugs, you may want to consider bringing them in for a drug test through our Trust But Verify teen drug testing program. Talk to our experts at Any Lab Test Now to find the right test for you and your child’s needs.

Are You Ready for That Job Interview? And The Drug Test That Comes With It?

 

When you are preparing for a job interview, you are probably making sure that your interview outfit is clean and ironed, you have work samples ready, your licenses or certificates are in order, and you have your resume handy.  You get yourself psyched up to answer questions and present yourself in the best possible light. You hope you’re ready for anything that they throw at you. Will you be ready if you are sent into the next room to provide a urine, hair, finger/toenail or oral fluid sample for a drug test? If you are looking for a job, it’s more and more likely that you will be asked to provide a sample. Clearly, now is the time to “Say No to Drugs!”

You may be thinking: “It doesn’t matter what I do on my own time. If they do a drug test I’ll have time to get clean if I get an interview.”  While this may have been the case in the past, it is no longer a safe excuse to keep using and hope that a few days is enough to clean up your act. While the urine drug screen is still the most common type of sample used for pre-employment and random drug testing, there are alternative specimens that can be used to detect drug use for months prior to the test.  It’s important to be aware of these drug and alcohol testing technologies so that you aren’t caught off-guard and denied the perfect job based on a positive drug test.

Drug testing technology has advanced dramatically since the tests were first instituted in some industries in the late 1980’s.  Standard urine tests can detect drug use on average within a one to three day window; and an oral fluid swab detects drug use within an even shorter period, only 2 to 24 hours.  Hair follicle, and finger or toenail drug tests are able to detect drug use for 3 to 6 months, depending on the drug andavailabilityof a sufficient amount of the specimen to be collected.  If you don’t know the test is coming, there is no way to prevent a positive test if you are a consistent, recreational drug user.

Hair and finger/toenail samples are very difficult to adulterate and very easy for the test collector to observe. The window of detection varies based on multiple factors, including frequency of use, concentration of the drug ingested, type of drug or drugs used, and even a person’s metabolism. What this all boils down to is that if you are job-hunting, you need to be prepared to take a drug test. Many prescription medications such as sedatives, opiates, and mood stabilizers can cause a positive test result.  In these instances, be prepared to provide a copy of your prescription to the Medical Review Officer (MRO).   If you don’t have a verifiable prescription for medication, just don’t take it.  In some states, although marijuana may have become legal for medical use, this does not guarantee that the company will hire you. Even if you have a valid prescription, marijuana use may go against their hiring or drug-free workplace policy.

Employers are increasingly testing prospective employees to comply with drug-free workplace mandates.  Some industries, for example, those that hire drivers, pilots or heavy machinery operators, are required to conduct drug testing on candidates and random testing on employees due to government regulations.  Other employers just want to prevent problems on the job that can lead to injury or liability.  And, employers have the right to conduct drug testing regardless of the type of work or environment. As long as they test everyone, drug testing is not considered a discriminatory hiring practice.

If you’re gearing up for a job search, get clean now and be sure that you put your best foot (and hair, fingernail and toenail!) forward.

Which Alternative Specimens for Drug Testing Ensure a Drug-Free Workplace?

Drug testing has become common practice for many employers, but navigating the various types of specimens that can be tested to meet your company’s goals, objectives and DrugfreeWorkplace Policy requirements can get confusing. Urine tests have been the gold standard since pre-employment and random drug testing was instituted by many organizations in the 1980s. Unfortunately, there are candidates who know how to get around the urine drug test collection process so that they are able to continue drug use, potentially endangering your clients and their workplaces.

While not all employers need, or want, to test current or prospective employees, those whose employees have access to confidential information or perform jobs operating heavy machinery or driving or flying may be required to use drug testing. Common reasons companies institute aDrugfreeWorkplace Program include:

• Government regulations or contract requirements
• Reduce risk and safety liability
• Reduce incidences of theft
• Reduceworker’scompensation premiums
• Reduce absenteeism
• Improve productivity
• Ensure the habits of drug users and abusers don’t negatively affect their company’s culture and good employees

According to a recent survey of 1,000 companies performed by the American Management Association, 51.5% of the respondents engaged in some form of drug testing, representing a net increase of 140% since 1987.

The urine drug test is the easiest to administer and is inexpensive, but it can be easy to adulterate and pass. To ensure that this doesn’t happen, it is sometimes necessary to observe the urine collection, a degrading process for everyone involved. Urine drug testing detects drug use within an average window of the past 1-3 days.  This is only an average, as frequency of use, concentration of the drug ingested, and even the donor’s own metabolism influence the detection period.  In situations where direct observation is required, same gender collectors and facilities that accommodate proper urine collection protocols. Current alternative testing technologies provide not only accurate results with a longer detection window, but simpler test administration.

If employers want to conduct drug testing there are other options that may be easier, less invasive and more difficult to tamper with. Hair and fingernail/toenail drug testing offer longer detection windows (common employer practice is a 90 day period for a hair follicle test; nails provide 4 to 6 months of information). These tests are easy to administer with very simple facility accommodations and without the need for gender based test collectors. In addition, these biological specimens are very difficult for candidates or employees to adulterate. Although more expensive than urine testing, an employer has the ability to monitor a candidate’s usage over a longer period of time and with less inconvenience and discomfort than traditional urine drug tests. These tests also offer the benefit of identifying long-term drug use, while urine tests only show use within the most recent few days.

Oral fluid testing is also available and may be the right test if there is a suspicion of drug use or immediately after an incident. Because the detection window is even shorter than a urine test, only 2-24 hours, this test is best used to pinpoint short-term, immediate use or for a random drug test. Oral fluid testing is a lab-based test, not a rapid test, is difficult to tamper with, very easy to administer, and requires virtually no facility adjustment or specific test collector requirements.  It is also a good solution for remote work areas, where it may be challenging for a drug testing provider togetonsitewithina reasonable period of time.

Alternative specimens for drug testing provide flexibility for employers to better meet their corporate and HR goals and objectives, especially for those with higher risk and safety issues at stake.  It is important to incorporate language for alternative specimens intoyourDrugfreeWorkplacePolicy if you choose to expand testing beyond the more common urine drug test.

Although not every employer will need to know how their employees, either current or prospective, spend their time over the weekend, whether engaging in drug use or not, many employers want to know that employees are not coming to work under the influence, missing work or deadlines due to drug use or endangering clients or other employees. Each drug testing specimen has benefits and situations in which it is best suited.

The urine drug test still has a place in an overall drug testing program and is ideal for random drug testinginongoing drug-free workplaces. It is cost-effective and provides instant results when a rapid screen is used. Adulteration and dilution testing of specimens collected is available, and it is still the most common method of drug testing.

Employers considering instituting a drug testing program should investigate and design a comprehensive program that utilizes multiple tests to deter drug use. Multiple detection windows and test specimens can help to ensure that candidates and employees are staying clean, thereby protecting your workplace, your employees and your clients.

Parents, Do You And Your Teen Know The Dangers and Relationship Between Prescription Painkillers and Heroin Abuse?

As a parent, it is incredible to sit back and think how far the world of medicine has come since you were a child. Thanks to the speed of technology and growing medical research, it seems like there is a medicine for everything nowadays. While we can be thankful for the advancements that have been made, it is important as parents that we make sure our children are aware of the pros and cons associated with medicine… in particular, prescription drugs.

Did you know that heroin abuse is closely linked to prior use of prescribed painkillers? Also referred to asopioiddrugs, painkillers have an agent in theirmake-upthat has a tendency to induce tolerance in the person taking the drug. Because of this, a person taking a prescribed painkiller will over time begin to feel like the drug is not responding as strongly as it once did. They then become dependent and begin to experience severe withdrawal symptoms. This series of events causes the person to start desiring a stronger, more addictive drug leading them to heroin use. Why heroin, you ask? Heroin is much like a painkiller in that it provides the same satisfying effects, yet it is cheaper than prescribed painkillers and mainly sold on public streets making it easier to obtain. However, what makes heroin different from painkillers is that it is extremely addictive and has a high likelihood of overdose; making it one of the most dangerous drugs out there today.

Take a look at this interactive tool the Medicine Abuse Project designed to help illustrate how a young person after surgery is prescribed a painkiller by her doctor and how a harmless situation like that can translate into an addiction to heroin. Now you can understand that it is no wonder reports are showing that nearly half of all young people who are using heroin today started off by using prescription painkillers.

So the question is, what can you do as a parent? The most important thing to do first is to have an open conversation with your teens about proper use of medicine and the risk of abusing prescription drugs. Take a minute to look through the medicine cabinet or drawer in your house and dispose properly of any unused medicines. Safeguard the prescriptions you do use by keeping them in a secure place. If you think your child may have dependenceon a medicine, call the Parents Toll Free Helpline and contact your doctor immediately. For more information regarding prescription drug abuse and how to keep your family safe, visit the Medicine Abuse Project’s website, a campaign catered to providing resourcesto parents and young adults focused on preventing millions of teens from becoming subject to drug abuse.

As a supportive partner withthe Medicine Abuse Project, Any Lab Test Now® is committed to providing you with preventative resources and quality testing toyou and your family. Contact your local Any Lab Test Now® today to learn more about our involvement with the Medicine Abuse Project and the services we can provide to help you and your teens when it comes to safe drug use.