Why is hair tested in toxicology?
Hair analysis may be a useful adjunct to conventional (urine, blood) drug testing in toxicology. Specimens can be more easily obtained and with less embarrassment, and hair can provide a more accurate history of drug use.
Why would you need a hair drug test?
Hair follicle drug testing detects evidence of drug use or misuse in a sample of hair. Drug testing can screen for the use of illegal drugs, as well as the misuse of prescription medications, over-the-counter medicines, and legal substances including alcohol and tobacco.
Can hair be tested for toxins?
Hair samples are tested with specific chemicals and looked at under a microscope. Hair analysis can also be used to check for poisoning caused by metals such as lead or mercury. But hair analysis alone usually is not used for this type of testing. Hair is a protein that grows out of hair follicles in the skin.
What is hair toxicology?
In forensic toxicology Hair testing is an increasingly common method of assessment in substance misuse, particularly in legal proceedings, or in any situation where a subject may have decided not to tell the entire truth about his or her substance-using history.
What can chemical tests on hair reveal?
You can’t wash them out. Because of that, your hair can reveal if you’ve been using drugs like opioids, cocaine, amphetamines, and cannabis. While a urine test will reveal if you’ve used drugs in the last several days, hair testing can show if you’ve done drugs over the past 3 months.
What can be learned from forensic toxicology of hair?
In forensic toxicology, however, the dead part of the hair can reveal a wealth of information. In fact, by analyzing your hair, a forensic toxicologist can recreate the history of your interactions with chemicals, drugs and toxins.
What does a hair analysis tell you?
Your hair absorbs chemicals from the medications you take, the foods you eat, and environmental toxins, and this information stays in the hair shaft for several months. Hair analysis can reveal drug use habits, genetic diseases, heavy metal poisoning, and other conditions.
What can hair analysis reveal?
Hair analysis can be used to check if people are blood relatives. Forensic hair analysis can be done to help identify a criminal by evaluating hair structure and DNA from cells attached to the root of the hair. Hair samples are tested with specific chemicals and looked at under a microscope.
Who needs a hair and scalp analysis?
A hair and scalp analysis allow us to see the state of your scalp up close. We used a magnified scope to assess the condition of your skin, the density of your hair and view your hair follicles. Our findings help us guide you to a solution specific for you.
How accurate is a hair analysis?
A hair drug test detects a pattern of repeated drug use over the last 90 days. Because hair growth rates vary from person to person, this test can’t accurately determine when in the 90 days drugs were used.