By Monterey Bud
As Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada look poised to jump on the Reform, Tax, and Regulate train currently blazing its way across the country, more than a few souls with swelling optimism are curious … if they hit that celebratory blunt on election night, how long will those pesky THC metabolites linger in their soon-to-be-scrutinized system?
Hopeful of the potential future while tolerant of the current reality, the voting masses understand their gainful employment will most likely remain linked to their passing of the next company drug test; theoretically waiting for everyone bright and early the morning of November 9th. With a firm grasp of the potential new reality, there are a few critical factors we should all understand when it comes tipping the scales in favor of passing these potential violations of our Fourth Amendment, a.k.a. workplace drug tests:
How frequently do you get high? How much do you weigh? What is your overall body fat index? And, in reference to THC saturation, do you smoke concentrates … If so, how often?
Picking on the usual suspects first, the above variables are just a few of the well-known factors that can dramatically skew the results of your next drug test. As most in the MENSA crowd understand it, THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, is stored in an individual’s fat cells. Meaning the lower your overall body fat, total weight, and frequency of hittin’ those tasty pre-run-flowers, or terpene-rich dabs, the greater your chance of passing.
How long does marijuana stay in your system?
Primarily utilizing both blood tests and urinalysis as a means of measuring the overall THC saturation in the human body, today’s modern screenings are actually detecting carboxy-THC, a.k.a. THC – COOH. It’s this infamous metabolite that’s responsible for exposing workers’ marijuana consumption around the globe. The byproduct of a properly functioning liver, THC’s whistleblowing metabolite is produced when the liver breaks down the THC cannabinoid, converting it to the THC-COOH metabolite.
And you have to drive to get to work…
Currently, those unfortunate drivers found with more than 5ng/millimeters of THC-COOH coursing through their blood while cruising the highways and byways of Colorado, are considered too high to drive. While ridiculously low for some and incredibly high for others, the set per se limit of active THC raised more than a few eyebrows when a marijuana critic for a Mile High publication tested well above the state’s limit after drying out for three days. Taking one for the team, William Breaths subjected his blood to some rather scientific scrutiny, and according to his post in Westworld, the results identify the massive elephant in the room.
“The lab ran a serum/plasma test which showed my THC count to be at 27. According to Dr. Alan Shackelford, who ordered the blood work and evaluated my results, the number of active THC nanograms per milliliter count is about half of that total or 13.5 nanograms of THC per milliliter of blood.” Breaths explained, “I would be over the limit by 8.5 nanograms. By that logic, I would be more likely to have mowed down a family in my car on my way to the doctor’s office that day than actually arriving there safely. But I didn’t — because I wasn’t impaired.”
The bottom line is this; the scientific community is collectively scratching its head trying to gauge what level of consumption results in a <5ng test result. Just be aware, it varies from person to person based on individual circumstances – understanding that it can take anywhere from 30 to 45 days for the THC metabolite from that celebratory blunt to completely leave your body.
