The Home Drug Test Kits

Vicodin is a derivative of opium, which also used to manufacture heroin. It is the most widely known brand name for a combination of hydrocodone and acetaminophen. Some of its generic equivalents include brand names Lorcet, Lortab, Norco, Panacet and Zydone.

Vicodin Prescription:

Vicodin is one of the most widely prescribed opiate medications for treatment of moderate to severe pain in injury, illness, surgery or a chronic condition across the globe. Overall, it has been reported as an effective, well tolerated opioid for analgesic purposes. It is quite inexpensive, with a mild side effects profile. It is one of the most favored prescribed pain relievers as allergic reactions are highly unlikely with Vicodin.

Vicodin Abuse:

It is estimated that in 1999, 4 million people were using prescription drugs non-medically and out of these 4 million, 2.6 million misused pain relievers the most common of which is Vicodin. In 2000, the National Institute on Drug Abuse listed Vicodin as an emerging recreational drug. Its use has risen steadily each year, and has now achieved the status of no longer being emerging. Vicodin has become one of the most commonly abused prescription medications. In 2006, USA Today reported that more emergency room visits are made by Vicodin and other prescription drugs abusers than by all other illicit drug abusers combined.

Effects of Vicodin Abuse:

Some of the common side effects of Vicodin abuse include confusion, nausea, vomiting, lightheadedness, dizziness, drowsiness, redness of the face, and temporary changes in vision or mood, along with infrequent constipation. These effects can be subdued by drinking a lot of water and consuming fiber rich foods on daily basis.

Over a period of time, effects of Vicodin abuse become more serious and more damaging. There may be cardiac arrhythmia leading to speeding up or slowing down of the heart rate. As Vicodin use grows, its effects can be characterized by blurred vision, hallucinations, and severe confusion.

Vicodin may interact with many other drugs if taken in conjunction, like, various sedatives, tranquilizers, antidepressants, other analgesics, antihistamines, anti-anxiety & anti-spasmodic drugs to name a few. Because of this high potential for drug interactions, it is highly recommended to avoid alcohol, which can increase drowsiness and dizziness, and may cause damage to the liver, and other medications containing acetaminophen.

As with other Opiate drugs, Vicodin withdrawal symptoms include restlessness, muscle pain, bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting, cold flashes, goose bumps, involuntary leg movements, watery eyes, runny nose, loss of appetite, irritability, panic, nausea, chills & sweating to name a few.

Vicodin Testing:

When consumed, some amount of Vicodin remains unchanged in the body while rest of it is metabolized to different secondary products called metabolites. A diverse array of techniques is available nowadays to detect these unchanged Vicodin or Vicodin metabolites, such as:

•Blood sampling for Vicodin/metabolite testing

•Urine based Vicodin/metabolite testing

•Hair follicle based Vicodin/metabolite detection

•GC/MS based Vicodin/metabolite detection

•Vicodin/metabolite-specific antibody based diagnostic kits

GC/MS or Antibody based screening can be done on any of the blood, urine or hair follicle samples. Some companies have also come out with rapid screening kits for home use which can be used without any previous expertise.

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Home Drug Test Kits: Since the beginning of time, good kids have been known to do dumb things. The same can be said of naïve and well-meaning parents. Because they don’t know what to say, some parents fail to talk to their children about drugs. Others develop a false sense of security after they do.

It’s much more comfortable for parents to hold the belief that things haven’t changed much since they were young than it is to accept the fact that they have. It’s also much easier for parents to believe that their teenagers always tell them the truth and would never try drugs, but who ever said parenting was supposed to be easy?

Parents ask me when they should talk to their kids, what they should say, and what they can do to follow through. Ben Franklin said, “Wise is the man who fixes his roof before it rains.” I couldn’t agree more. I suggest that parents would be well served to sit down with their children and start talking about a home drug testing program as early as middle school.

To protect privacy, home drug testing kits can be ordered on the Internet and shipped in nondescriptive packaging. The accuracy of the most popular test kits is comparable to labs and medical clinics at a fraction of the price. Results usually appear within minutes and are easy to read by the average parent in the convenience of their own home.

If the idea of drug testing your teens sounds unreasonable, consider how much times have changed. If someone told me when I was in high school by the time my son attended middle school, that police officers (now affectionately referred to as school resource officers) and dogs trained to detect drugs would patrol school hallways, I would have never believed it. Metal detectors and school shootings aren’t nightmares: they have become a reality.

A successful program will have several key components. The first component is comprised of parents willing to place a higher priority on acting as a parent than as their teenager’s best friend. I find it hypocritical that parents who are quick to assert that it’s more important for their kids do the right thing than it is to do what’s popular are reluctant to start a home drug testing program because the newfound accountability might not be popular with their kids.

The second component is the introductory conversation in which parents acknowledge that their kids are growing up and are deserving of additional freedom. However, additional responsibility and accountability should come with expanded freedom.

Dr. Michael Reznicek, a medical doctor with emergency room experience, actually developed a software program that facilitates the initial parent-child conversation and eliminates potential misunderstandings by creating a contract that spells out specific rewards and consequences tied to home drug test results. The software also becomes the preferred target of potential animosity over requests for hair, urine, or saliva samples for drug testing purposes because it also selects random testing dates.

From the time children are very young, they’re taught to “just say no” to drugs, and I’m convinced that the peer pressure usually gets worse when they do. Teens don’t know what to say next. Parents who follow through with a home drug testing program give their teens a socially acceptable excuse. The words “My parents test me” stop pushy peers in their tracks.

The final component of a successful program is effective parental follow-through. Teens want their parents to trust them. If they think their parents are naïve and/or won’t test them, they are more likely to try drugs because they don’t expect to get caught. While teens place a high value on maintaining their parents’ trust, they just don’t feel it is in jeopardy without testing. Teens’ behavior and choices change when they know that it is a near certainty rather than a virtual impossibility that their drug use will be discovered.

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Some people view the creation and use of home drug test kits as radical.  But once you know the facts, you’ll think otherwise. Today’s teens are exposed to a plethora of easily accessible drugs.   A national survey sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) yielded some shocking results.   On an average day in the United States,  641,000 use illicit drugs.  Why is this so disturbing?  At a time when a teen should be building a healthy character and identity, discovering and attaining a career, they can waste years of their lives in addiction.

Getting Back Your Control

As parents, you are legally and financially responsible for the behavior of your children.  You have every right to know and get all the facts that you can in regards to your child’s possible drug use. So if you suspect your child is using drugs there is something you can do to stop and prevent further use.   One of the most important and cost-effective ways to prevent and stop drug abuse in children is to use home drug test kits.  Home drug testing kits provides precise, dependable, and rapid results by identifying the existence of drugs in urine or saliva samples.

What Drugs Are Screened?

Home drug test kits typically are panel  (group) tests that screen for the following:

THC – marijuana, weed, smoke, pot, hash Cocaine  - crack, skitz, snow

Methamphetamines – ice, crank, crystal, glass

Opiates -heroin, horse, vicodin, morphine, codeine

Amphetamines -speed, uppers, go

Benzodiazepines -t-bars, roofies, date rape drug, valium, librium, xanax

Peace of Mind

Children will avoid taking drugs if they know that their parents will be testing them for drugs at home.  They also have a good excuse to “opt out” of using drugs in peer pressure situations.  Parents can also breathe easier knowing they can use home drug test kits to ensure children are not using drugs when they are away from home.

Technorati Tags: 5 panel drug test, Drug, drug test kits, drug testing kits, drugtest, heroin, home drug test kits, home drug testing kits, Marijuana Test Kits, pot, teens, Testing, THC