Posts Tagged drug test
Mixed Martial Arts Fighters Pass Drug Tests
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Testing, Steroid Abuse on May 22nd, 2010
There’s good news for MMA enthusiasts: fights are still taint-free, at least when certain fighters are involved. The six fighters who were tested for performance-enhancing as well as illegal drugs have passed drug tests with flying colors.
The testing was conducted last Saturday at the “Strikeforce: Heavy Artillery” event at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Six fighters were confirmed drug-free by Strikeforce spokesperson Mike Afromowitz.
A post on Testing It Up wondered about whether testing will be conducted during the May 15 fight, being as it were that there were speculations that Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion Alistair Overeem may be using performance-enhancing drugs. Overeem defended his title against challenger Brett Rogers, whom he defeated with a first-round TKO. The fighters included in the list of fighters who passed drug testing were Overeem, Antonio Silva, Joey Villasenor, and Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcente.
Test results for main-card competitors – including Brett Rogers, Andrei Arlovski (who fought Antonio Silva), Roger Gracie and Kevin Randleman – are not yet available.
Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker shared that they worked with a local facility in the implementation of the testing. Coker shared the following with MMAJunkie.com: “We fixed the problem by drug testing everybody. If there’s a problem, we’ll let people know. It was the right thing to do because the commission is doing random testing, and I didn’t want to leave any chance or a crack of skepticism. And this puts everybody in check. We’ll do it again if we have to.”
From Paul and Cheryl Vanacore: Signs of Addiction
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Addiction, Drug Rehabilitation, Drug Testing on May 19th, 2010
In a previous post, we shared with you the decision of Paul and Cheryl Vanacore of Lancaster, New York, to share their experience with their son Joshua – who is serving a prison sentence for drug-related robberies – in order to help other families. Among the experiences that they shared are the warning signs they noticed before they learned about their son’s addiction.
One of the signs started in May 2005; Joshua was no longer able to pay his car loan on time. He eventually admitted to his father that he was experimenting with painkillers and heroin. Their family doctor, however, said that Joshua did not seem to be addicted.
Then, other signs emerged – including money missing from the house. An over-the-counter drug test revealed that Joshua was “clean”; they were unaware, however, that the reason why it came out clean was that the drugs have already cleared his system at the time he took the test.
Paul Vanacore recalls: “He said, ‘I swear to God.’ That phrase will resonate in my head forever… ‘I swear to God, I’m not doing anything. I swear to God I didn’t take any money.’” They believed Joshua, and the clean test made them hopeful. However, when they noticed that Joshua was wearing a hoodie on a hot day, they found needle marks on his arm when they asked him to roll up his sleeves.
He underwent a five-day rehab program at the Erie County Medical Center, but he was back on heroin after a couple of weeks. He was unable to pay drug dealers – who beat him and threatened his then-pregnant girlfriend. His father at one time paid the dealer so that the threats would stop.
Eventually, they stopped giving him money – so he resorted to robbery.
Hair Follicle Drug Test: Easy, Effective and Discreet
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Testing on February 9th, 2010
Hair follicle testing is a manner of drug testing wherein strands of hair are searched for traces of drugs. The drugs that can be detected through hair follicles include Phencyclidine (PCP), Methamphetamine (Methamphetamine/Amphetamine & Ecstasy), Cocaine (Cocaine & Benzoylecgonine), Marijuana and Opiates (Codeine, Morphine & 6-Monacteyl Morphine).
Compared to a urine test, hair drug analysis is a far more effective method of testing especially in identifying low-level drug use over an extended period of time. Hair follicle testing can trace a drug intake history of 90 days, depending on the person’s hair growth rate. After a drug is ingested whether smoked, snorted, ingested, or injected, metabolites which are intermediates of metabolism are produced as the drug is processed by the body. As these metabolites and drugs are circulated in the body, they nourish hair follicles which are consequently introduced into the hair strand.
A standard hair follicle test requires about 40 milligrams of hair, or approximately 50 to 70 strands of hair for proper results. Hair strands that are approximately 1.5 inches in length are used. If no head hair is available as a result of balding, body hair can be tested as a substitute. They can be collected and then combined to meet the required quantity of hair.
Hair follicle testing is easy and discreet. Parents who want to know whether or not their child is using drugs can benefit from its discretion by collecting hair strands. Easy-to-use hair follicle testing kits are available on the market, which are beneficial because of its confidentiality. By using hair drug testing at home, parents can take preventive measures or help with the child’s recovery, if he has been found already abusing drugs.
How Drug Tests Are Usually Done
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Testing on December 16th, 2009
A drug test is a way of determining the presence of specific drugs on people. The test subjects are usually instructed to submit biological specimens, such as, urine, hair, blood, or saliva.
Multiple factors, such as, the drug used, how much of the drug was consumed, and how often the drug was used, can affect how well or how fast a drug or its metabolites can be detected. The subject’s metabolism, body mass index, age, and heath can also pose as factors.
When a drug is consumed, it takes about 6–8 hours or more from the time of consumption for the drug to be metabolized and excreted in a subject’s urine. This is why testing through urine analysis cannot detect current drug use.
When a person receives a request for a drug test, he or she is typically instructed to go to a collection site. The subject’s urine or a biological specimen required by the testing site is collected in a specially designed secure cup in a secluded location, usually accompanied by a site assistant to make sure the specimen has been collected on the site and not tampered with in any way. The cup containing the specimen is sealed, and sent to a testing laboratory to be screened.
People undergoing drug tests are usually asked if there is any legitimate reason for the possibility of concentration of a certain drug in his or her system. A person, for instance, may have been prescribed by a physician to take certain drugs while undergoing medical treatment.
All test results are reviewed by a medical physician. Subjects are then informed whether the screen show negative results in the specimens or not. The test results come out positive if the specimen shows a concentration level of a drug or metabolite above an established limit.
Factors That Complicate Drug Addiction Recovery
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Abuse Prevention, Drug Abuse Treatment, Drug Addiction, Drug Facts, Drug Rehabilitation, Drug Testing, Prescription Drug Abuse, Steroid Abuse on December 10th, 2009
Recovering from drug addiction is never an easy task. The process of preventing relapse becomes even more difficult due to the presence of certain factors which complicate the recovery process. Awareness regarding the presence of such factors will help the service providers to understand the difficulties and adopt measures to avoid the associated problems.
Chemical dependency is often accompanied by certain psychiatric disturbances the most common ones being major depression, paranoid disorders, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia and psychopathic personality disorders. This co-occurrence of drug abuse with psychiatric problems is referred to as dual disorder and the situation demands an integrated treatment approach. Both the problems should be treated simultaneously failing which the untreated disorder will increase the chances of relapsing to the other disorder. Apart from continued counseling and group therapy, such clients should be given medicines as prescribed by the psychiatrist.
Certain problems are more common within dual diagnosed clients compared to those with single disorder. Such people may suffer due to psycho-social chaos which may be caused by certain inter-related factors such as loss of job, legal problems, family conflict, homelessness, indebtedness, and others. It is beneficial to prioritize the treatment goals in such situations. Involving the family members and strengthening the support and networking with other agencies to mobilize resources are extremely essential.
Many substances like Methamphetamines, when abused overtime, may lead to brain damage which in many cases could be irreversible. This damage may limit the addict’s ability to understand issues, comprehend, remember and apply them in his journey of recovery. The counselor should be extremely patient in dealing such cases. The messages should be given in clear and simple language using concrete examples.
Traumatic past experiences of the recovering addict also complicate his recovery. Specialized help may be sought to deal with Post Traumatic Stress Disorders.
Lack of family support also cause complications and delay the recovery process.
Women and Drug Addiction: Any Correlation?
Posted by DrugFreeHomes in Drug Abuse Treatment, Drug Addiction, Drug Facts, Drug Rehabilitation, Drug Testing, Prescription Drug Abuse on October 14th, 2009
Drug addiction is a serious problem that has been affecting both the genders without any bias. Women have been known to play the multiple roles of home makers as well as bread earners. But the common notion about the fairer sex is that they are emotionally stronger than males and have a strong shoulder to bear all the responsibilities that their counterparts fail or resign from doing. But the truth is that the more you are tough the easier it is to break you.
The underlying vulnerability is masked by the toughness and the burden of responsibilities and constant stress make them internally vulnerable and a physical or emotional disturbance might cause a turmoil triggering drug abuse leading to drug dependency.
Women drug abusers face serious challenges to their well-being during their lives. Researches show that a large number of them present a history of physical and sexual abuse. The condition worsens when such women get into flesh trade just to earn the money to sustain their drug taking habit. The result is obvious – sexually transmitted infections, HIV/AIDS.
Often it is found the initiation of the habit is through her male counterpart – spouse or boyfriend- who is also an addict. In such cases it becomes very difficult for the women to abstain from drugs since the lifestyle of the partner supports it.
Research indicates that women become more easily dependent on certain drugs like cocaine even after experimental or casual use. Thus by the time she seeks treatment she may be severely addicted.
A problem with female addicts is that most of the time they do not seek treatment due to fear of rejection from their family members, community. But treatment is an absolute necessity for them. A comprehensive treatment approach that takes care of the special needs of women together with support and encouragement from the family and community is essential to help them in refraining from addiction.
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