Adulteration is the tampering of a urine sample in order to produce a desired result. There are many adulterants that are on the market that try to do this. Adulterants can either create false negatives or destroy the drugs in the urine, or both. People also try to dilute urine in order to get a false negative result.
Fortunately, drug tests are ready to take this challenge on. One of the best ways to test for urine sample adulteration or dilution is to determine certain urinary characteristics such as pH, specific gravity, oxidants/PCC, nitrite, glutaraldehyde and creatinine.
pH: This tests for the presence of acidic or alkaline adulterants in urine. Normal pH levels should be between 4.0 and 9.0. If outside this range, the sample may have been altered.
Specific gravity: This tests for sample dilution. The normal range is between 1.003 to 1.030. If the value is not within this range it may be the result of dilution or adulteration.
Oxidants/PCC: This tests for the presence of oxidizing agents such as bleach and hydrogen peroxide. UrineLuck, a popular adulterant product, is one of the agents tested for. Normal human urine should not contain oxidants or PCC.
Nitrite: This tests for common adulterants like Klear or Whizzies. These adulterants work by oxidizing the marijuana metabolite THC-COOH. Normal urine should contain no trace of nitrite. If the urine is nitrite positive, then the urine was probably adulterated.
Glutaraldehyde: This tests for the presence of aldehydes. Adulterants that it tests for include UrinAid and Clear Choice. Both contain glutaraldehyde which can cause false negatives by disrupting the enzyme used in some urine tests. Glutaraldehyde is not normally in urine; so when it is found it is generally a good indication that adulteration has occurred.
Creatinine: This is a waste product of creatine which is naturally found in muscle tissue and urine. A person may try to dilute their results by drinking excessive amounts of water or using diuretics like herbal teas to “flush” their system. Like specific gravity, creatinine is a way of checking for dilution and flushing/”cleansing” tactics. If specific gravity and creatinine are low, the urine may have been diluted. If there is no creatinine in the urine (or it is below 5 mg/dl) then the specimen is not consistent with normal human urine.
Home Health Testing offers two drug tests that have the technology to detect adulterants and make sure the urine sample is fresh. These are the 4 and 5 panel iCups (see below). Through easy to read color charts you can determine the pH and specific gravity of a sample, and also find out if there are any Oxidants/PCC in the sample. Dilution products and products like UrineLuck WILL be detected. If you are worried about someone trying to cheat a drug test you are administering, these tests are for you! The 4 panel tests for marijuana, cocaine, opiates and methamphetamine, while the 5 panel tests for all of those and amphetamines. Order now!