It is reported that sales of products containing delta-8-THC have increased significantly in states where recreational cannabis is still illegal. Delta-8-THC is a chemical cousin of delta-9-THC, the main psychoactive constituent of marijuana. Although delta-8 is less potent, will delta 8 show up on a drug test, it interacts with the same brain receptors and produces a similar high. However, despite being less potent than delta-9, beta-8 interferes with both presumptive and definitive urine drug tests for delta-9, according to Jack Kain, PhD, Medical Science Liaison at Quest Diagnostics.
Due to the 2018 federal Farm Bill, which made hemp cultivation legal, delta-8 products are on the rise. In the same way as marijuana, hemp contains less than 0.3% delta-9, which is insufficient to produce marijuana’s “high.” Cannabidiol is a substance in hemp that is widely used for its purported health benefits and is mostly legal will delta 8 show up on a drug test. In recent years, delta-8-THC vape liquids, tinctures, and edibles containing delta-8-THC have become increasingly popular as medicinal or recreational cannabis products.
There is some grey area around delta-8’s legality. It has been clarified that all synthetically derived tetrahydrocannabinol, including CBD, a legal hemp product, are included in the schedule I controlled substances. However, the rule does not clarify whether such compounds are included.
They differ only in the position of one double bond within one ring within the THC molecule. As a result of their similarity in names, delta-8-THC and delta-9-THC are structurally very similar. Their major urinary metabolites, delta-8-THCA and delta-9-THCA, are similar in one bond. Those structural similarities can make testing difficult, Dr Kain said.
Antibodies can react strongly with both metabolites for presumptive testing, which uses immunoassays. The presumptive test of a person who has used delta-8 (which may be legal in his or her state) may produce a false positive for delta-9-THC. Moreover, delta-8-THCA and delta-9-THCA have similar molecular weights and chemical properties, so detecting delta-9-THCA on final testing may result in a false negative.
Clinicians must consider these important caveats when counselling patients using delta-9-THC test results. The best thing to know before taking any type of medication or recreational drug is that some tests can detect Delta 8, so keep it in mind before you take it. We will discuss in this article the different types of drug tests and how Delta 8 might show up on them as well as how to clear your system before a drug screening in case you are concerned.