An increasing number of companies are marketing home drug testing kits to parents and school administrators looking for solutions. Drug testing companies describe their products as the catchall solution for detecting and preventing adolescent substance use and abuse.

The Safety First Project has long opposed mandatory random drug testing in schools. Drug testing infringes upon the rights of parents to make the important decisions as to whether, when and under what circumstances their child should submit to a drug test. However, a new trend is emerging — a large number of companies and Internet sites are promoting drug-testing kits directly to parents for use at home. These companies claim it is a way of knowing for sure whether their teenager is using drugs.

How should parents react?

First and foremost, the decision to drug test a young person should always be made by a parent, never imposed by schools on a random basis or as a prerequisite to participation in extracurricular activities. Additionally, it is important to recognize how these home drug testing kits can expand suspicion-less drug testing, as a tactic of first resort versus parents turning to the technology after clear grounds for suspicion are established. However, in all circumstances, parents need to be educated about the limitations, technical challenges, and possible negative effects on parent-child relationships of drug testing.

Researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston conducted a study in 2004 examining home drug-testing products and the Internet-based recommendations intended for parents. They concluded that the surveyed Internet sites failed to appropriately educate parents and contained unsubstantiated claims regarding the benefits of drug testing.  The study suggested parents may find it difficult to determine which testing method to use, and precisely what drugs the devices detect.

Furthermore, drug testing is technically complex, requiring proper administrative procedures. Parents must navigate through a challenging process of obtaining informed consent*, collecting a valid specimen, controlling for adulterants and dilutions and following chain of custody protocols. In urine testing, direct observation, shutting off water, and placing blue dye in toilet water are best practices for discouraging cheating a test. However, direct observation may not be appropriate and may hurt the parent-child relationship.

Interpreting a drug test presents myriad challenges. Parents must deal with the possibility of false positive results caused by food products or over-the-counter medications. They may also be prone to misinterpreting the test results. For instance, the Children’s Hospital Boston study points out that regular cannabis users’ tests will remain positive for several weeks, even after stopping use.

Parents also risk being lulled into a false sense of security by negative test results as many drugs have short windows of detection. Moreover, there are a multitude of effective strategies for masking illicit drug use and avoiding detection. A simple Google search yields a wide array of home remedies to “cheat” drug test, available to any savvy young person with a computer.

In addition to all the technical challenges, parents should think hard before turning to drug testing. A trusting, open relationship with a parent or other respected adult can be the most powerful element in deterring abusive patterns.

Teenagers need to know that the important adults in their lives are concerned primarily with their safety, and that they have someone to turn to when they need help. If they find themselves in a compromising or uncomfortable situation, they need to know we will come to their aid immediately and unconditionally.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends the best response to suspicion of substance abuse is referral to a qualified health-care professional for evaluation, counseling and treatment as needed.

* The American Academy of Pediatrics states that adolescents should be given the right to informed consent to a drug test without threat of negative consequences for noncompliance.

Home Drug Testing Resources

American Academy of Pediatrics Policy Statement: Testing for Drugs of Abuse in Children and Adolescents: Addendum—Testing in Schools and at Home
Committee on Substance Abuse and Council on School Health
This 2007 addendum to the 1996 AAP Policy Statement, “Testing for Drugs of Abuse in Children and Adolescents,” opposes involuntary drug testing of adolescents at school or at home and believes more research is needed on both the safety and effectiveness before testing programs are implemented. The AAP encourages parents who are concerned their child may be using drugs or alcohol to consult their child’s pediatrician rather than rely on school or home-based drug testing.

A Review of Internet-Based Home Drug-Testing Products for Parents
Sharon Levy, Shari Van Hook, and John Knight
Researchers at Children's Hospital Boston conducted a study in 2004 examining home drug-testing products and the Internet-based recommendations intended for parents. They concluded that the surveyed internet sites failed to appropriately educate parents and contained unsubstantiated claims regarding the benefits of drug testing. The study suggested parents may find it difficult to determine which testing method to use, and precisely what drugs the devices detect.