One of the effects of legalization and better research into the capabilities of the cannabis plant has been the rise in awareness of cannabidiol (CBD) and what it can do, especially for those with medical ailments. There has been an explosion of CBD products – from gummies to oils to salves used for topical applications – on the market.
Since so many more people are using CBD, an obvious question arises for many of them: Will taking CBD make them fail a drug test?
The short answer is ‘no’, since most drug tests are only testing for the presence of THC, the cannabinoid in marijuana that gets you “high”. But some CBD products contain small amounts of THC, so can that present a problem for those who use those products regarding whether they fail a drug test?
From Westword in Denver: “…all CBD products originated from a plant with at least some trace of THC, even if it’s just 0.04 percent. That 0.04 THC percentage wouldn’t come up on a drug test if you smoked the raw plant material, but concentrating it can make things tricky. Consuming unusually large dosages of CBD, such as 1,000 to 2,000 milligrams per day, could theoretically trigger a positive for THC on a urine test.”
The information on this topic from Herb is slightly different: “The truth is that not every company makes CBD oil the same way. While some companies produce CBD oil that’s completely THC-free, others formulate products that contain a slight amount of THC so that all the compounds in cannabis can work together more efficiently to enhance the medicinal benefits of the plant. This is referred to as ‘the entourage effect’. But often, these products only carry roughly 0.5% THC or less.”
While those 2 sources disagree slightly on whether or not all CBD products will have trace amounts of THC, they both agree that CBD-based products that do contain THC will have small amounts that should only cause a problem if you ingest a lot of CBD on a daily basis.
So what should someone who is worried about THC showing up in a urine drug test do? The “pass a drug test” market has been expanding as well in recent years, with companies offering everything from the Whizzinator to synthetic urine. Detox drinks for a drug test have also become a popular way to pass, especially for those who are monitored in some way while they take the test.
In the final analysis, unless you are ingesting large amounts of CBD every day, you shouldn’t have to worry about THC showing up in your system. Of course, if you are ingesting large amounts of THC as well, that will definitely show up on a drug test unless you do something about it.
