The most common drug affecting performance in the workplace and other institutions is alcohol. This has opened up the market for various alcohol tests. Businesses, schools, universities, and law enforcement groups use these tests to check the level of alcohol in a person’s system. Alcohol abuse in a workplace may make a person a danger to themselves and others, or simply unproductive.

Some of these tests can only determine the recent consumption of alcohol. Others can detect a pattern of alcohol abuse over time.

The available tests can analyze samples of a person’s breath, urine, blood, saliva, hair, and sweat. The most commonly used personal alcohol tests currently are breathalyzers which analyze a sample of a person’s breath.

Breath Alcohol Tests

Breathalyzers provide an almost instant result of the alcohol test. They can also be an economical way to keep track of your Breath Alcohol Concentration (BrAC), levels. Breathalysers can detect alcohol in your system for up to 24 hours after drinking. You can also easily buy Personal breathalyzers online in a range of sizes, functionalities, and prices.

Some are a compact key ring style. This means you always have your breathalyser handy for those “spur of the moment” after-work drinks. Other models are more durable and are perfect for a workplace to use to test employees regularly. Most come with replacement mouthpieces. This makes hygienic sharing easy. Some models also work with a smartphone app so that you can keep a record of your alcohol levels and consumption over time. Quality personal breathalyzers are as accurate as Police issued ones so you can have complete faith in the test results.

Blood Alcohol Tests

Police use Blood alcohol tests to confirm the results of breath and urine tests. A laboratory test analyses a blood sample, and the result shows a person’s Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). A drunk driver can be convicted with this result. This kind of tests can detect the level of alcohol consumption in the past 24 hours. Blood tests are also done in a hospital after workplace or traffic accidents.

Saliva Alcohol Tests

Saliva alcohol tests are a cheap, easy, and effective way to test alcohol consumption in the workplace. This test is reasonably non-invasive, simply requiring a swab from the inside of the cheek. This does require the test subject to cooperate. Saliva tests can detect alcohol in the system for around 10-24 hours after drinking. Saliva test kits can give a result in as little as 20 seconds.

Like urine tests, they will not give an accurate BAC. They simply detect the presence of alcohol, and further testing with a blood alcohol test may be required.

Urine Alcohol Tests

Urine tests are easy to use but require a sterile sample. This is intrusive and can be hard to obtain. Urine tests show the presence of alcohol in a person’s system. Therefore, they can’t show how much a person has drunk, how regularly they drink, or how long it has been since they last had a drink. Urine can contain alcohol for 12 to 48 hours after drinking.

The more complex EtG (ethyl glucuronide metabolite) urine test can detect alcohol for up to 5 days after ingestion. Exposure to ethanol found in alcohol causes a metabolite called Ethyl Glucuronide to form in the urine. EtG in urine is proof of alcohol consumption at some point in the last few days. It does not, however, show current or previous levels of intoxication.

Hair Tests

Your hair can also be tested for alcohol use. Hair follicles, like urine, also show a record of EtG from alcohol consumption. It can be found in hair for up to 90 days after the consumption of alcohol. This complicated process is completed in a laboratory. Tests are usually only performed in cases of extreme alcohol abuse. Usually, when someone is required by the courts to abstain from alcohol completely. This could be for child custody, probation, or other legal reasons.

This test shows long term behaviour patterns, rather than current status. However, the EtG test is very sensitive and can pick up even the slightest traces of alcohol. Some positive test results may result from contact with alcohol in items such as common household cleaners.

New Technology Tests on skin

A thin, flexible patch worn on the skin is the most recent development in alcohol tests. This patch detects a person’s BAC through their sweat. The BACtrack Skyn is the most advanced technology available on the market. It is also the world’s first wearable transdermal alcohol monitor. This device is worn continuously showing real-time monitoring of blood alcohol levels. The patches work by stimulating the body to sweat in the area under the patch. It uses a technique that drives a chemical across the skin creating sweat. An electronic chip analyses the sweat. The sensor works quickly and sends the results to a mobile device or laptop.

Alcohol Test Generation

The sweat generation can be continuous, therefore allowing for constant monitoring over hours or days. Additionally, you can link the patch to a vehicle interlock system. This is a vehicle locking device will only allow the vehicle to start when the driver has passed an alcohol test. Results from comparison Tests on skin patches and breathalyzers found that the results were almost identical. Above all, this effective newer technology can be relied on to give accurate results.

The Reliable S80

The Bactrack S80 has proven to be easily the most accurate and reliable personal breathalyser on the market. This unit may not be the most compact or the most technologically advanced breathalyser available in Bluetooth/cell phone connectivity. Still, it makes up for this in being uncomplicated and efficient. It simply does what it is designed to do correctly, over and over again.

The S80 is tough, resilient, and clever and is always accurate and reliable. The S80 has trusted the world over by law enforcement and health professionals who rely on quick, accurate alcohol test results every time. The Bactrack S80 can be relied on as both an entry-level workplace breathalyser and a high-end personal breathalyser. Clever design by Bactrack has allowed one model to cross over two very different markets.