Instead of random urine tests, employers are looking to drug and alcohol hair testing Recent new discoveries in alcohol testing have suddenly changed how far employers can test someone for alcohol abuse. Alcohol hair testing has opened a window of opportunity for prescreening employers that wasn't previously available. Not only is hair alcohol testing less intrusive than other forms of testing, it provides a lengthy record of the person's drug or alcohol habits, or lack of.

According to Alliance for Worldwide Alcohol Research and Education, 5-10% of ingested alcohol is excreted unchanged in urine, sweat, and expired air. The remainder is turned into carbon dioxide and water. For example, a serving of alcohol, or

? a shot of 80 proof alcohol

? a 4 ounce glass of wine

? or 12 ounces of beer

will be completely cleared from the body in approximately 1.75-3.5 hours, depending on the person's body type, age and gender.

Alcohol hair testing is a fairly new discovery. Hair drug testing has been around for awhile, but until now, urine alcohol testing was the way to test a person for alcohol consumption. Hair testing for drugs use to be the only type of hair testing that had been done, because alcohol testing for hair wasn't available. Types of alcohol prescreening commonly used before alcohol hair testing and often still used today are urine alcohol testing and saliva testing.

Now there is an accurate way to test for chronic alcohol abuse, where there wasn't a way before. A metabolite, ethyl glucuronide, (EtG) found in urine as well as hair is only found when a person has consumed alcohol. EtG has been reported to stay in the urine for up to 5 days after drinking, up to 2 days for a single drink and up to 5 days after heavy drinking, well after alcohol itself has been eliminated from the body. For many employers, this 5 day window isn't enough to prove a real problem.

If You and Your Employees Care About Your Company, They Will Get Tested

According to the national Drug Free Workplace Alliance:

? Alcoholics and problem drinkers are absent from work 3.8 to 8.3 times more often than normal.

? When they do show up, substance abusers are 33 percent less productive and cost their employers

? Up to 40 percent of industrial fatalities can be linked to alcohol abuse and alcoholism

Hair alcohol testing is helping to convict the guilty as well as prove the innocent. Prove to your community they can trust your business by showing them a clean bill of health. Get your employees tested and be proud to be drug free.