Drug Testing

Drug testing is one way that large companies, governments and sports organizers can deter people from using drugs. In occupations, such as air traffic controllers, drug testing is part of the job. This is because the use of drugs impairs the mind and reflexes and in these jobs, all the employees need to be working at their best.

By using drug testing, it can help to identify people that are using drugs and help them get the treatment they need. Throughout the world, there is massive routine testing done of employees, athletes and students in high school. It is arranged so that no one knows exactly when the testing will take place and so users cannot plan accordingly. The testing consists of urinating into a small jar and testing the urine in labs to identify substances that are not supposed to be there. Many people look upon it as a fact of life and it is rapidly becoming a part of society in the 21 st century.

As a result, the drug testing industry is a multi-billion dollar business. Many of the people tested have never used drugs, nor do they intend to. Sometimes, the effects of perfectly normal drugs, such as antihistamines or medication for migraine headaches, turns up in a drug test. The testers only know that the urine contains a foreign substance and they cannot identify it. As a result, many innocent people go through a harrowing experience, accused of taking drugs when they haven’t done anything wrong.

Most drug testing does reveal the use of illicit drugs, such as marijuana. This is because it remains detectable long after its use. Some of the drugs that people use do not prevent them from working at their best, but this is not the main aim of drug testing. The testing simply shows that a person has recently used drugs and not whether or not that person is able to perform his/her duties to the best of his/her ability.