If you have used and have been asked to take a drug test, you may be curious, how long does weed stay in your system, and how long it may take for the drug test result to be clean? The effect of marijuana or weed can be felt almost immediately and usually doesn’t last for over a few hours. Nevertheless, traces of cannabis can be found in the body for up to 90 days. The exact length of the time cannabis can be detected in the body depends on the frequency of usage and quantity you are consuming.
A single weed dose can be detected in the system for up to 13 days, based on the type of test. In case you hardly smoke weed or just had a few puffs, it is going to leave the system much more easily than if you use cannabis heavily and frequently.
In case you have a dreaded drug test and are worried about how long does weed stay in your body, you should know that there is no real answer compared to the time it takes for marijuana to leave the body. This is because the detection time depends on different factors, including frequency of consumption, test type, and last cannabis usage.
By the end of the article, you will know everything about how long does marijuana stay in your system.
What Is THC and Why Is it So Popular?
The ingredient in marijuana is called tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC which makes users feel euphoric. Tests detect THC in the body for days and even weeks.
The time for which the chemical stays in the body or keeps appearing for drug testing is based on various factors. These include,
- How often they are consuming the drug?
- The amount of body fat in a person.
- The drug test’s sensitivity.
- How frequently the person is smoking?
Drug tests detect THC in blood, urine, and hair for several days after use. But for only a few hours, THC may be detected in saliva. For this reason, the metabolization process of THC is longer.
When and Why Do Employers Perform Drug Tests?
Employers run drug tests for employment as it helps them ensure safety and make well-informed hiring decisions. A regular substance user can get intoxicated at work and make it uncomfortable for their coworkers. It can also lead to a dip in productivity.
Take a look at when employers can perform drug tests.
Pre-Employment
It ensures safe hiring, employers require their prospective candidates to pass the drug test prior to becoming a part of the company. Usually, it happens before you receive the employment letter. If you fail, employers will not hire you.
Reasonable Suspicion
If any drug abuse symptoms and signs are observed in an employee, employers can take the liberty to perform a drug test on the employee they suspect.
Periodic Testing
This is performed annually or periodically. Jobs needing physical activity are ideal examples where periodic testing is required.
After a Workplace Accident
In case an employer suspects an unpleasant event or workplace accident that involves drug consumption, they might run a drug test. During such times, it is important to have a few guidelines to decide if the drug test will be conducted.
Random Testing
Employers might conduct random test results on chosen individuals. Computers can make the selection randomly so that there is no discrimination.
Companies perform drug tests for different reasons, such as compliance with government regulations and accuracy in employment decisions. Drug abuse among employees can have an impact on the safety of customers and other employees, prospectively leading to injuries, accidents, or absenteeism. Employers might ask you to take a drug test as a part of their regular monitoring process or high-risk jobs.
How Long Does Weed Stay in Your System?
You might be thinking about how to get weed out of your system in 2023 which may be possibly detected in the drug test based on different factors, such as,
- The amount of THC in cannabis.
- The frequency and dosage of use.
- Your hydration levels, gender, overall health, body mass index, genetics, and lifestyle.
- Your excretion routes and metabolism rate.
- The way you are consuming cannabis.
Drug detection can also depend on the drug test that is being used. Usually, toxins from weed stay in the hair longer and can be detected for up to 90 days from the day of your usage. Tests will detect cannabis for up to 30 days in the urine, up to 24 hours in the saliva, and 12 hours in the blood.
Since various factors have an impact on how long does weed stay in your system, the detection might vary.
| Specimen | Detected in System |
| Blood | Up to 12 hours |
| Saliva | Up to 24 hours |
| Hair | Up to 90 days |
| Urine | Up to 30 days, depending on the usage frequency |
What Factors Affect How Long Weed Stays in the System?
Before you find out how long does weed stay in your system, you need to know many factors that can influence how long does weed stay in your system. It includes
Frequency of Use
How often you are using marijuana, how long you have been using it, and how much you use it. If someone is smoking weed every day, they are going to test positive for much longer than occasional users.
Metabolism
People having faster metabolism can expel cannabis from their bodies at a much faster pace. But people having slower metabolism will take longer for eliminating THC metabolites.
Gender
Usually, women have a higher body fat than males. Hence, they can metabolize THC at a slower pace.
Exercise
Those having a healthier lifestyle and exercise can eliminate THC from their body much faster. Nevertheless, doing excessive exercise before drug testing isn’t a good idea since it can increase the concentration of THC and lead to positive test results. The reason behind this is the fat breakdown of fat molecules, releasing THC stored in the fat back of the system.
Body Mass Index
Usually, the more cells in the body, the longer drug metabolites are going to stay in your system. This is because THC is often stored in fat tissues. BMI usually measures the body fat of a person, even though it is not always accurate.
Consumption Method
The consumption method also affects the time it will remain detectable. In case you smoke cannabis, THC levels in the body drop at a faster pace. On the contrary, ingesting it orally by having edibles will take longer to break down in the body and leave the body.
How Long Does Weed Stay in Urine?
The amount of time that weed will show up on urine drug tests will largely depend on how the individual is using it. Here are some basic guidelines on how long cannabis can show up on a urine test depending on how often you use it. So, here are the THC detection times in urine:
- Oral Ingestion: 1 to 5 days
- Less Than Twice a Week Smoker: 1 to 3 days
- Multiple Times a Week Smoker: 7 to 21 days
- Daily Smoker: 30 days or more
Toxin Rid Review
Toxin Rid offers a natural solution, which helps in detoxifying your body for a drug test with pills. It is the fastest way to get weed out of your system as it follows a series of detoxification programs.
The detox kits that Toxin Rid offers are purely minerals, vitamins, and herbs. It helps in cleansing the body of toxins without synthetic materials. The kits don’t use any fillers or animal products. It uses supplements to enhance the physiological detoxification mechanism. It has cleansing programs both for rare and frequent users. 1-day is for the lightest and the 10-day program is for the heaviest users.
Electrolytes are supplied by the potassium, magnesium, chloride, and sodium in the tablet. It helps you beat a urine drug test. If using this, you will not have to worry about the temperature of your urine. Also, you may pass a blood test if you have at least 24 hours.
The pills take a minimum of 1 hour to start working. Nonetheless, the duration does not mean you will begin seeing results in 24 hours, regardless of the THC concentration in the system.
Use Synthetic Urine as a Backup Plan
The most accurate approach to determine whether someone is using drugs is through urinalysis. Before hiring people, many organizations conduct drug testing. If you’re wondering what synthetic urine is, you should be informed that it resembles actual urinating. There are available in powder form in stores. Just add water to it to make it appear like true pee. Brands creating this product make sure to recreate and imitate actual urine. They ensure that the fake urine duplicates its odor, color, density, pH balance, and temperature.
Faking a drug test becomes much easier with synthetic urine. The industry offers a wide variety of synthetic urine preparation kits. Every synthetic urine kit includes detailed guidance on how to use it. Some of them even have hidden tubing. It is useful when you have to urinate in front of people. A little amount of synthetic urine is also offered in liquid form. With this, you do not have to worry about mixing. It is available in ready-to-use form. So all you have to do to utilize the mixture is shake it and heat it.
TestClear Powdered Human Urine Review
TestClear Powdered Human Urine, launched in 1997, is a completely synthetic urine product created to help people pass drug tests.
This powdered urine contains all of the same properties as real human urine, including uric acid and urea, and is balanced for specific gravity, pH levels, and creatinine levels -all of which will be tested during a drug test. What’s interesting is the product also smells like real urine.
The preparation is simple and comes with clear instructions. When you are done preparing the solution, walk into the lab. But make sure the artificial urine is at the proper temperature.
To use this product, you simply mix the powder with water until it reaches body temperature (98-100 degrees Fahrenheit). TestClear Powdered Human Urine also comes with a premixed heat activator packet that can help keep the sample at the correct temperature when submitting it.
The ingredients used in TestClear Powdered Human Urine are 100% safe and non-toxic and include Uric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Creatinine, Potassium Chloride, and Super Potent Monatab Complex. It’s important to remember that TestClear offers multiple solutions to pass a drug test but the most effective one is Testclear Detoxification Program along with this powdered urine solution. All in all TestClear Powdered Human Urine is an effective substitute for real human urine that can successfully pass any drug test.
It is one of the most popular synthetic urine products available in the market. The makers claim that urine has been produced using natural urine.
How Long Does Marijuana Stay in Your Hair?
Marijuana has been in the bloodstream for only a short time. Hence, tests for cannabis metabolite detection are not typically used. That is because while the THC reaches the bloodstream faster, the THC concentration in the blood will decrease rapidly just 3-4 hours after ingestion.
The question as to how long cannabis stay in the system might be spiraling in your head if you have to undergo a hair follicle test.
As already mentioned, just like any other cannabis, it stays in the hair follicle for 90 days. The drug detection window for hair will depend on the amount of time that generally takes hair to grow past the scalp. It also depends on where the hair sample will be collected from.
A lab test requires 1.5 inches of hair samples from the roots for running a follicle test. So, you are going to need about 90 days for completing detoxification. Hence, if you are a cannabis user and take a drug test before 90 days, you might test positive for the drug test.
Old Style Aloe Toxin Rid Review
It is a popular shampoo among cannabis users and can remove traces of the drug within a minimum time. Old Style Aloe Toxin Rid can help you pass a hair follicle drug test. With this shampoo, you can clean the drug residue from the hair follicle within just 24 hours. However, if you are a heavy user, it is better to use the shampoo for 3-10 days to get a better result. It will take some time based on the type of cannabis user you are.
The formula used for creating this detox shampoo is very efficacious in removing impurities and drug metabolites from the hair follicles. It can eliminate drug residues without damaging the scalp.
When you are using the shampoo, make sure you are also staying away from weed. Customer reviews suggest, it is the best choice. To get the best result from the shampoo, make sure you are following the instructions.
How Long Does THC Stay in Saliva?
Most studies have shown that the cannabis detection time from saliva is 24-72 hours after the last use in individuals who use infrequently. But new research is showing that THC can be found in saliva tests of chronic users for up to 20 days after the last usage. Like with most rapid testing, false positives are possible.
A mouth swab offers a non-invasive, quick drug test. An absorbent or sponge pad on the end of a stick will rub along the inner part of the tongue or cheek. Research shows that there is considerable absorption of THC in the mouth that increases the concentration for multiple hours after use.
Toxin Rid Rescue Wash Mouthwash Review
It is a reliable solution, which will help you pass an oral drug test. It is made of detox mouthwash for drug tests and can easily clean your mouth of toxins in just a few minutes making sure that you pass the saliva drug test without any hassle.
The scent of the mouthwash is rather briny and a tad metallic. It might be due to witch hazel, magnesium, and chloride in the mouthwash since the salty scent, mineral dominates the smell of the product.
It tastes like pepper in the mouth and isn’t pleasant. It can cause a stinging sensation in the soft tissues of the mouth, particularly the tongue. But the effect can wear off after some time. However, it is intense and not pleasant at first contact.
How Long Does Weed Stay in Your Bloodstream?
THC metabolites remain in the bloodstream for 2-7 days, contingent on the usage frequency.
A study by the journal Addiction from 2009 shows THC blood concentration levels in 25% of long-term, frequent cannabis users over an abstinence period of 7 days.
Marijuana stays in the bloodstream only for a short time. Hence, blood test for cannabis detection is not typically used. This is because THC reaches the bloodstream rapidly, and the THC concentration in the bloodstream decreases 3-4 hours after cannabis ingestion.
FAQs
How Long Does Delta 8 Stay in Your System?
The half-life of Delta 8 has been reported to be somewhere between 40 minutes to 7 hours. It can linger in the body much longer than other toxins and is usually believed that Delta 8 stays in the body for 1-3 days after consumption.
Can You Hide Synthetic Urine in a Drug Test?
As most of the labs don’t conduct genetic analyses on specific, fake urine can affect most drug tests. They look like urine and have the same properties as urine.
How Long Does THC Stay in the Body?
Usually, THC metabolites can be detected in the body for up to 1-30 days after the last usage. Frequent cannabis users might have elevated THC levels after an abstinence period.
Is a Hit of Weed Going to Show Up in a Urine Test?
Studies have shown that person using cannabis only once receives a positive urine test for up to 3 days after the last usage.
Bottom Line
When it comes to marijuana use and the detectable periods that come do drug testing, no two cases are the same. Relying on how you’re using cannabis – whether that’s as an edible, smoked, or another way – different test standards can result in differing windows of detection in a person’s system. After the previous usage, cannabis can stay in the system for a few days to many months. The drug metabolite detection window depends on the currently common drug test and various other factors, such as if ingest week or smoking it. Also, it depends on the frequency of usage.
There is no accurate amount of time it is going to take a person to metabolize cannabis and get rid of it from the body. But there are some effective ways we have discussed that will help in passing a drug test. Not one single calculator exists that determines the amount of time prior to passing a drug test; however, there are indeed reliable methods that could help your results before an upcoming screening.