Marijuana consumption is one of the most exhilarating activities you will ever indulge in. However, if you happen to have an impending drug test, you might speedily revise your outlook on this particular indulgence.

How to clean out your system in 24 hours is a problem many a smoker has had to grapple with. The answer is actually quite simple: acquiring the relevant knowledge and having a good detox plan.

There are many reasons why people would want to be squeaky clean for that marijuana drug test, but it mostly revolves around employment. Join us as we take you through what you need to do to quite literally dodge the bullet and clean out your system in a day.

But how will you know you are not clean in the first place?

Workplace drug tests usually involve urinalysis (having your pee tested) for metabolites. Metabolites are the byproducts of processed substances in your body, in this case, THC.

After the consumption of marijuana, the THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) levels in your body immediately increase to detectable levels (THC is the psychoactive cannabinoid found in your weed which is responsible for giving you a high). Both THC and THC-COOH stay in the fat tissues of your body for different lengths on time depending on a number of factors.

As the THC is cleared out of your bloodstream, metabolites are usually left behind, and this is what the drug tests detect.

To determine whether you are “clean” enough to take a drug test, and know how best to go about getting the weed out of your system, you need to be clear on the following:

• The quantity of THC as well as its metabolites that are present in your system
• What type of test you are required to take
• What testing levels your drug screening will use

How Can You Tell How Much THC Is in Your Body?

There are a number of factors which when put together determine the amount of THC and THC-COOH in your body, a length of time after your consumption.

These factors are:

• Frequency of consumption: Determining how much THC is in your system will require you to take how often you consume into consideration.

Do you smoke just once a month, once weekly or every day? Are you just having a puff or are you consuming a whole joint or two by yourself?

Why is this important, you ask?

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It goes without saying that the more often you consume and the actual amount you consume determines how much THC and THC-COOH the fatty tissue throughout your body will accrue.

• Total body fat: As we earlier mentioned, the storage of THC and THC-COOH take place in fat cells, whichever the frequency and quantity used. It follows then that the more body fat your body has, the higher the amounts of THC and metabolites will end up getting stored.
• Metabolism & overall health: Another important factor is your general health. The healthier you are, the more efficient your metabolism and the mechanism of breaking down and kicking out the THC and its metabolites from your system will be.

It is important to note however that exercising can break down stored THC and push it back into your system. You should therefore avoid working out before a test.

• What you’re consuming: The type and quality of what you consume has a huge bearing on how it ends up being metabolized and whether it ends up showing on a drug test. Whether you consume concentrates or flowers and even whether flowers are top shelf or schwag all make a difference in your eventual testing.

How Long Will THC Stay in the Body?

Typically, this psychoactive cannabinoid will still be in the system of a particularly infrequent user 1-2 days after consumption. If you consume every day, however, you can expect it to be in your system longer.

Generally, the half-life of THC metabolites is considered to be 7 days. This means the amount in your body decreases by 50% every 7 days, and so on and so forth.

Taking this into consideration, most people will be clean of metabolites within a period of 3-4 weeks, depending on their body weight as well as the frequency and amounts they consume.

What Are the Different Kinds of Drug Tests?

Employers and other agencies have become very creative in running tests to detect even trace amounts of THC in their employees and future employees systems.

Some of these tests are:

• Urinalysis (UA): This is by far the most commonly administered drug test. Most organizations use it because it is both fairly affordable and pretty accurate. It is important to note that the urine test detects the metabolized form of THC, (THC-OOH) rather than the THC itself. I
• Blood Test: This test picks the THC in your bloodstream. Unlike the urine test, a blood test will also indicate impairment.  This is good news for those who rarely consume because the THC should be out of their bloodstream in a couple of hours. However, for more frequent users, THC is normally detectable days after consumption has ceased.
• Hair Test : This is a much less common method of testing. However, some workplaces have started adopting it. It measures the remainders of THC-OOH in the follicle of the hair from as far back as several months.

Sounds complicated, yes?

As difficult as this one sounds to get around, we might just have something for you.

How Do I Pass a Marijuana Drug Test?

If you have a test coming up in a few days, the most sure fire way to pass it is to not consume at all. As soon as you know you might have to be tested for consumption of cannabis in any and all forms. The longer the period between your last consumption and a drug test, the better your chances of passing it.

However, if it is already too late for this particular brand of advice, do not despair, we have a back-up plan just for you that could help you mask the THC in your system.

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It has become common knowledge on the streets that taking cranberry juice, vinegar, niacin, ginger root tea, creatine pills, bleach, sure jell and copious amounts of water among other things will do the trick. These taken in a haphazard way are not likely to give you the results you are looking for.

Try these three methods instead:

Forget detox programs, detox pills and detox kits! If your health is normal and you are in good shape, you can naturally get rid of the toxins in your body within 4-6 weeks as long as you take plenty of water, a great diet and exercise regularly. Naturally, if you have faster metabolism, an overall lower BMI and lower water retention, this would be even faster.

• Use detoxification products 

If you happen to be in a tight bind timewise having received notice of a drug test a few short days in advance, this could be a great option for you. Detoxification products will help you get rid of toxins (including the THC metabolites) in a relatively short period of time. It is believed that you could be okay for testing within 3-5 days, or generally within the period of a week.

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These detoxification products are usually successful because they leverage herbal supplements to cleanse you of the effects of marijuana intake. However, be sure to use a home drug test kit before your actual test to ensure you are totally clean of THC.

And now to the big one…

• Clean your system in 24 hours using same day cleansers

If you have truly been caught in the headlights and you need to take a drug test in the next 24 hours do not panic. Trying a same day cleanser might be worth your while. What this does is temporarily target your urinary tract, flushing out metabolites to give you a brief period in which the sample collected from you will be clean. This means that you could actually get to pass that test.

How to Flush Your System in 24 Hours

The primary method of passing a urine drug test on short notice is to dilute your urine enough for it to be below the threshold of 50 ng/ml. This value is actually higher than you might think. Once you have beaten it to register a less value, you are well on your way to drug free results.

Is diluted urine all there is to it?

Unfortunately not. Modern drug tests also check for dilute samples. Therefore, you will need to manage both the concentration of your urine and ensure it is not too dilute at the same time.

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Let’s look at the factors that will help you flush out the THC metabolites and pass a urine drug test in just 24 hours:

Water: In as much as there is no reason to start chugging down huge amounts of water weeks or even days before a test, it is a vital component of our plan. Water will only temporarily dilute your urine hence the need to take it right before the test, ideally throughout the day before you do your test. 2-3 liters on the day before the test and 1-2 several hours before the test should do.

That said, you shouldn’t take too much water because it is not safe. Start with two liters and monitor your limits.

After you have consumed this much water over a short period, your pee will be quite dilute, that is colorless with low creatinine levels which are both red flags during a urine test.

Take these to mask your excessive water intake:

Vitamin B: Because you want your pee to be yellow, taking vitamin B will be very beneficial. Vitamin B-2 and B-12 seem to be quite effective in achieving this. All you need to do is drop by your nearest drug store, purchase 50-100 mg of either and take several hours before your test.

Creatinine: This is a chemical waste that is the byproduct of muscle metabolism. Creatinine naturally occurs in the human body and labs use it as one method to determine whether a urine sample is diluted.

Taking creatine supplements that can be purchased at almost all health food stores will have your body break it down into creatinine which will then be flushed out in your pee.

Creatinine has a half-life of three hours; therefore time your creatine intake to coincide with when you will take your test.

Try Detox Drinks

The market has an abundance of detox drinks which dilute your urine and contain creatine and vitamin B to mask the dilution.

The advantages of taking a detox drink are that:

• They are very convenient
• They have pre measured out amounts of creatine and vitamin B to ensure you are taking just the right amount before your test.

Avoid Exercise

This might sound counterproductive, right?

Actually, exercising breaks down fat cells in your body, slowly releasing the THC metabolites stored there back into your bloodstream. This is beneficial in the long term if you were trying to rid your body of all the stored THC. However, exercising just before your drug test will ensure that you actually fail it. To ensure this doesn’t happen, refrain from exercise 24 hours before your drug test or even a couple of days if possible.

Avoid Beginning & End of Urine Stream When Collecting Sample

This is a trick that has been used by stoners for a very long time. Both the first and last parts of the urine stream have the most concentration of metabolites. When peeing into the cup, ensure that you collect a sample in the “middle” of your stream. Simply first pee into the toilet, stop and collect your sample then finish back in the toilet.

And while we are on the subject, do not give early morning pee as it also contains very high amounts of the metabolites.

How Do You Pass a Hair Follicle Test?

As we discussed earlier, hair follicle testing is one of the ways of detecting THC metabolites. Purchasing shampoos and home testing kits designed for this purpose will definitely improve your chances of passing the test.

Final Thoughts

As a smoker of marijuana, one of the most stressful things you can go through is a drug test. This is bound to cause you extreme anxiety and stress. We hope our guide on how to clean your system in 24 hours will get you out of the rut and ensure you have a long and successful career, while still occasionally indulging in your stick of choice.

This article originally appeared on MyCannabis.com and has been reposted with permission.