Kratom Drug Test: Everything you should know

THE COMPLETE GUIDE TO KRATOM DRUG TEST

Kratom is a very potent drug that is relatively new and unknown in the US. So, naturally, the issue of how you can test for its presence in the body is still being studied and debated. One reason why not much has been advanced in coming up with a drug test is that Kratom is not a banned drug in the US. In this article, I look at issues touching on drug tests for Kratom. But let’s first look at what Kratom is, what it does, and how it works.

What is Kratom?

It is a tropical coffee tree that grows in Southeast Asia with Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand being the biggest producers. It is also grown in the Philippines and New Guinea. Growing to be as tall as 25 meters, it is a special tree that yields leave the size of a man’s palm when fully grown. These leaves are elliptical, more like hearts, and feature an underside covered with hair-like growth.

The herbs drew the interest of the local people who ended up using them for centuries to uplift mood, fight pain, increase concentration levels and boost energy with the rest of the world, hardly having a clue about it. The herb which has a bitter taste, contains psychoactive compounds that deliver these results to users. It was also relied on as an aphrodisiac. Today the use of Kratom has spread beyond Eastern Asia and is now used by thousands in the west.

Status in the US

Kratom is legal in the US and can be bought online or from various vendors like gas stations. Kratom use has spread fast and wide 9 pm hmm 2 and is now used for many benefits such as

• Anti-anxiety
• Anti-inflammatory
• Anti leukemic
• Antimalarial
• Boost energy
• Boost libido
• Enhance cognition
• Improve mood
• Treat opiate withdrawal
• Lower blood sugar
• Analgesia
• Fighting fatigue and extending productivity
• Relieve insomnia
• Strengthens immune system 

Why the need for kratom drug tests

Drug screening may be necessary for certain workplaces when companies want to determine if employees are abusing drugs. It can help in ensuring safety at the workplace, investigating poor productivity, or supporting counseling and rehabilitation of troubled workers.

Some companies have a drug free company policy which they enforce at the workplace, so routine testing is usually done. Think of pilots steering a plane or workers operating heavy machinery.

Even though Kratom is not illegal in the US, companies may reserve the right to institute such policies at the workplace. They may even do this with other supplements and legal prescription medications.

How long before visible kratom effects appear after intake?

Even without a Mitragyna drug screening, there are some effects that can give a clue to the drug’s presence. You won’t have to wait long before you or a person who has taken Kratom begins to show signs of Kratom use. Typically, they start to kick in about 10 to 15 minutes after ingestion. How long you’ll feel the herb’s effect is determined by various factors, including the amounts taken and the Kratom form used, i.e., capsule or powder. For a small dosage, it will take about 2 hours for the effects to elapse while the effects of a larger dosage could go on for around 8 hours

For small dose users, which is about less than 5 gm of the raw leaves, signs may include stimulant effects such as the following

• Enhanced energy and alertness
• Increased libido
• Reduced appetite
• Greater sociability

Negative signs for a low dosage may include

• Anxiety
• Tremors
• Agitation
• Coordination difficulties
• Increased heart rate

These stimulant signs can seem similar to those of amphetamine

The high dosage effects of Kratom resemble those of opioids even though the two have different chemical structures. They include

• Sedation
• Pain reduction
• Euphoria
• Cough suppression

These positive results mimic the ones you get with morphine, but with less intensity, There are also side effects of high dose kratom which include

• Hallucinations
• Constipation
• Nausea
• Itching etc

Apart from these dose-dependent effects and signs, one can also experience effects that are regardless of the amounts consumed. These can happen when Kratom is combined with other psychoactive drugs, which can lead to dangerous results like seizures. Continued abuse of Kratom is also known to cause addiction on its own and produce different withdrawal symptoms similar to the ones noticed among other opioid addicts. Remember that Kratom is a psychoactive plant that interacts with the central nervous system and opioid receptors in the brain. Therefore, if you find yourself in this predicament, get in touch with an addiction treatment center right away.

Screening cut-off

To be able to detect a  drug’s presence in a person, one has to consider the cut-off level. This is the least amount of the drug you should find in a sample for you to declare it as a positive result. A negative test, however, does not mean that the drug is not present.

Can one evade detection in a kratom drug test?

Many of the standard drug tests that are used to catch opioids like heroin, marijuana, and other substances won’t produce positive results when testing for Kratom. Some of these standard panel drug tests include tests screening for opiates, amphetamines, cocaine, PCP (SHAMSHA 5), and cannabinoids. However there are some blood and urine drug tests, including the 10-panel kratom drug test, that can detect certain kratom alkaloids

Types of test

Kratom urine drug test – A urine test is usually the most preferred way to test for a drug. But can Kratom alkaloids be detected in your urine after you have used it? Researchers are still building effective ways and reliable methods of finding out. Some Kratom alkaloids could show up in your urine based on the urine drug test used.

Kratom blood test – In theory, Kratom alkaloids could be easily detected in the blood. Heavy or prolonged use of Kratom should yield clues in your blood in the form of kratom metabolites. However, blood tests are not as preferred as a urine drug test. This is because it is an invasive method and that they have a very short window for detection.

Kratom hair tests – The hair drug test typically focuses on the follicles and is usually a favorite strategy employed for many drug tests. That’s because it is a reliable method and can be carried out for extended periods. Currently, however, there is no evidence for Kratom metabolites showing up on hair follicles. More research, however, is needed to know if a testing method using hair follicles is possible.

Kratom saliva tests -You could, in theory, detect Kratom in a saliva test. Many drug tests employ oral fluid tests, usually for legal drug screening. This test, however, is hardly done for Kratom in the US since Kratom is legal.

Can Kratom Produce A False Positive Result?

A false positive drug test result is a concern shared by many Kratom users. False positive results are generated when you fail a drug test for a substance you don’t even use. In this instance, certain users reported testing positive for methadone, yet the only thing they are taking is Kratom. Cases of producing a false positive for marijuana have also been reported. You can imagine the kind of mess one could end up in if this were to happen in a strict workplace or learning institution.

But here is the thing; false positive results are indeed possible but very rare, so you have nothing to worry about. Also, chances are you can completely avoid this problem by sticking to reputable vendors who guarantee high-quality products. False positives may also be generated in case you are using Kratom products alongside other supplements or medications. In any case, if you do find yourself producing false positive results, the best way to dig yourself out of the mess is by requesting an additional mass spectrometry or a gas chromatography test, which usually generates extremely accurate test results.

How long before Kratom clears from your body?

Kratom has not been extensively studied, so its half-life is somewhat shrouded in mystery. It is widely believed to be around 23 or 24 hours for mitragynine; it’s the main active ingredient. This means a person will take one day for his system to clear 50% of the Kratom alkaloids present in his body. It would, therefore, take about five days for this substance to fully clear from the body.

On the other hand, the alkaloid element in Kratom with the shortest half-life is slightly above 7 hours, which means about 1.6 days are needed for full elimination. So the total estimated days for elimination of all Kratom is about nine days if we consider the slower side of the range of half-lives of Kratom elements.

Other factors to consider that affect the length of time Kratom stays in your system and therefore making it potentially detectable in drug screening tests are

• Age – younger people tend to clear Kratom faster from their bodies than older people. This applies to all other substances besides Kratom, and it is due to issues like renal function and other factors like age-related changes in the body. If you are taking other medications, these can also slow down elimination. Generally, individuals aged above 65 will retain Kratom for longer periods in their systems.
• Body fat percentage – mitragynine, the active substance in Kratom, is highly fat-soluble. This means that given a high body fat percentage in your body, you are likely to retain a higher amount of Kratom metabolites for much longer. People with less body fat eliminate Kratom faster in their urine since there is less fat in which to store it.
• Genetics – some people have specific genes and genetic markers that quicken the speed of Kratom removal. This allows them to naturally excrete Kratom faster or more efficiently than others who are less genetically predisposed.
• Your diet and hydration levels – if you take Kratom with a high-fat meal, you’ll absorb it much faster, so peak kratom concentration tends to develop faster. Also, taking more water can quicken the speed at which Kratom is flushed out through urine.
• Type of Kratom – not all kratom varieties contain the same amount of mitragynine, 7-Hydroxymitragynine, and the other ingredients. This will also affect the elimination speed of Kratom from the user’s system. Kratom obtained from South East Asia is richer in mitragynine compared with those grown outside South East Asia and in greenhouses.
• Frequency of kratom usage – it has been observed that those who take Kratom fewer times or use lower dosages tend to excrete it faster than those who use it more frequently or use higher doses. Kratom could typically take 5.5 days to completely clear from the system of a long term user.
• Renal function, urine PH, food and water intake, health conditions, and metabolic rate can also influence the period of retention in the system of not only Kratom alkaloids but other substances as well.

Conclusion

Many suggested Kratom drug screenings are still at the theoretical stage and are still being formulated to be reliable methods. Other tests do exist but are rarely used in the US because Kratom is legal and so testing is rarely required. False positive results are incredibly unlikely so there is nothing to worry about on that front either. Since the drug is new in the US and relatively less researched, information about it is mostly anecdotal, and most come from users in Thailand and other parts of Southeast Asia where it has been used for ages.