If any of you are, like me, subject to routine or random drug screening tests, you need to be aware of this.
Two weeks ago I attended my bi-annual medical and drug screening test for work. Imagine my shock when I failed the drug screening test! Due to the nature of my work I was immediately prevented from travelling offshore and was 'grounded' pending further laboratory tests.
After 6 days of worrying what had caused this failure, I was finally passed to travel to work as the tests were declared a 'False Positive'.
During this period I spent some time going back over everything I had eaten and drunk in the 48-hours prior to the test and eventually narrowed it down to the toast I had for breakfast that morning. When at home I eat Warburton's Seeded Batch bread and this contains poppy seeds. Apparently even a small amount of poppy seeds in bread, or on a bagel, can show up in urine within 2 hours and can take up to 48 hours to dissipate. This shows up as 'opiates' on a drug screening test. Not only did I not know this before, but neither did my employers or the management on the oil platform on which I work. Apart from the worry, it caused me no problems professionally as I am a 'known quantity' and my employers weren't concerned that I was a habitual drug user. But anyone setting out on a career in an industry such as ours could find themselves blacklisted before they start.
Two weeks ago I attended my bi-annual medical and drug screening test for work. Imagine my shock when I failed the drug screening test! Due to the nature of my work I was immediately prevented from travelling offshore and was 'grounded' pending further laboratory tests.
After 6 days of worrying what had caused this failure, I was finally passed to travel to work as the tests were declared a 'False Positive'.
During this period I spent some time going back over everything I had eaten and drunk in the 48-hours prior to the test and eventually narrowed it down to the toast I had for breakfast that morning. When at home I eat Warburton's Seeded Batch bread and this contains poppy seeds. Apparently even a small amount of poppy seeds in bread, or on a bagel, can show up in urine within 2 hours and can take up to 48 hours to dissipate. This shows up as 'opiates' on a drug screening test. Not only did I not know this before, but neither did my employers or the management on the oil platform on which I work. Apart from the worry, it caused me no problems professionally as I am a 'known quantity' and my employers weren't concerned that I was a habitual drug user. But anyone setting out on a career in an industry such as ours could find themselves blacklisted before they start.
Martin.
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) as random checks .
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