Nicotine Drug Testing Facts

The standard cutoff levels of nicotine in a Enzyme Multiple Immunoassay Test (EMIT) and Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometer (GC MS) drug test are 200ng/ml.

Drug Test Results

Positive: A rose-pink band is visible in each control zone. No color band appearing in the appropriate test zone indicates a positive result for the corresponding drug of that specific test zone.

Negative: A rose-pink band is visible in each control zone and the appropriate test zone, indicating that the concentration of the corresponding drug of that specific test zone is below the detection limit of the test.

Invalid: If a color band is not visible in each of the control zones, the test is invalid. Another test should be run to re-evaluate the specimen.

Nicotine drug tests are very common for both health and insurance purposes. Although nicotine is legal, some companies offer benefits to their employees and customers who are nicotine free. Nicotine drug tests are conducted in a one step immunoassay for the detection of cotinine, the major metabolite of nicotine in human urine and blood, at a cut-off concentration of 200 ng/ml. Nicotine is one of the most heavily used addictive drugs in the United States. Cigarette smoking has been the most popular method of taking nicotine since the beginning of the 20th century. In 1998, 60 million Americans were current cigarette smokers (28 percent of all Americans aged 12 and older), and 4.1 million were between the ages of 12 and 17 (18 percent of youth in this age bracket).

In 1989, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a report that concluded that cigarettes and other forms of tobacco, such as cigars, pipe tobacco, and chewing tobacco, are addictive and that nicotine is the drug in tobacco that causes addiction. In addition, the report determined that smoking was a major cause of stroke and the third leading cause of death in the United States.