How does the Hair Follicle Screening work?
By understanding how the test functions, you can start to distinguish between home remedies that can plausibly work versus those that won’t do anything.
The principle of the hair follicle test is relatively simple. For your hair to grow, it needs to be supplied with nutrients. It gets these nutrients from a blood vessel that connects to the root of the hair follicle. When you use drugs, these drugs and their metabolites [1] end up in your bloodstream. These drugs are then deposited onto the hair shaft of the hair follicle, where they remain.
The hair follicle screening can then detect these substances or metabolites directly from the hair sample. As your hair grows, it forms a record of your drug use history, and the test can tell how long you’ve been using a particular drug. The test can tell if you’ve stopped using it in recent months.
This type of drug test can test for a wide array of substances, both legal and illegal. The most commonly tested include:
- Marijuana
- Heroin
- Cocaine
- Amphetamines
- Ecstasy
- In general, employers don’t test for:
- LSD, mushrooms and other hallucinogens
- Anabolic steroids
- Nicotine
- Hydrocodone [2]
The test is usually conducted at either a designated test location or at your workplace. A sample of hair, approximately 50 stands of 1.5 inches, is taken from the back of the head. In this way, it won’t interfere with your hairstyle. The sample is sent back to the lab, and the results can be expected within a couple of days.
If you think that you can avoid having the test taken by shaving your head, you may want to reconsider your options: hair samples can also be taken from other parts of your body, such as your arms, legs, and chest.
Our Top Hair Follicle Shampoos
Many DIY home remedies claim they can help you in your screening by a combination of salicylic acid [3] and vinegar, or bleach and ammonia-based hair dye. These home remedies rely on stripping your hair follicle of all traces, but in doing so, they severely damage your hair. There’s also no guarantee that they’ll work.
If you want to go for the more straightforward and more reliable option, you want to look at several detox shampoos. The more reputable detox hair shampoo manufacturers will even back up their claims with money-back guarantees, which would suggest that they’re confident in the efficacy of their product.
Aloe Toxin Rid Shampoo
This shampoo is by far the most highly recommended product to get rid of toxins in your hair. It’s important to note, however, that you need to buy the old formula, which was discontinued by the manufacturer. The new formula doesn’t work at all, which means you need to be vigilant when buying this product online.
Currently, the most reputable vendor is TestClear, which bought up all of the old stock of the old formula when it was discontinued. However, because this product is so in demand and that there is no further supply, you should expect to pay up to $250 per bottle.
Zydot Ultra Clean Shampoo
A good second option is the Zydot Ultra Clean shampoo. It combines an ordinary shampoo, a deep-penetrating purifier, as well as a conditioner to keep your hair looking great, even as you detox. It’s recommended to be used sparingly, as it remains a harsh treatment. But many reviewers appear to be pleased with their results using this product. If you’re not willing to pay the price for old-formula Aloe Toxin Rid shampoo, give this one a look instead. It’s much cheaper, and it appears to be just as effective.
Clear Choice Hair Follicle Shampoo
This shampoo follows a two-step process that uses shampoo and a purifier. The shampoo removes all the surface grime, while the purifier penetrates deep into the hair follicle to remove all traces of toxins and other contaminants. The process is simple, and it requires that you leave both the shampoo and purifier in your hair for a while to ensure maximum effectiveness.
Conclusion
Hair follicle screenings are becoming more and more prevalent. If you’re looking for the best hair follicle shampoo, the answer is Aloe Rid Shampoo, as long as you can get the old formulation. The drawback is that it’s in very high demand and short supply, so expect to pay a hefty premium.
Resources
What are Metabolites? https://www.news-medical.net/life-sciences/What-are-Metabolites.aspx
Hydrocodone https://medlineplus.gov/druginfo/meds/a614045.html
Salicylic acid https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/Salicylic-acid
