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Hair Testing & Alcohol

Hair tests for alcohol came into being in 2008; prior to that, hair tests only detected drug use. Testing for alcohol use can be important to employers, as statistics show that alcohol problems account for two-thirds of substance abuse related issues, including nearly half of all industrial accidents.

  1. How It Works

    • As the body metabolizes alcohol, it produces fatty acid ethyl esters, which are absorbed by growing scalp hair. The greater the extent of alcohol use, the higher the concentration of these esters in the hair. Longer hair strands provide a more comprehensive history of alcohol consumption, which can date back months or even years, depending on the length of the hairs.

    Pros

    • Hair tests tell not only whether alcohol was consumed during a certain time period, but also the amount of alcohol consumed. Dying, bleaching, relaxing, perming or straightening the hair does not alter test accuracy. Also, the same hair strands used for alcohol testing can also be used to check for other drugs.

    Cons

    • Hair tests for alcohol cannot be performed on people who have shaved their heads or who have extremely short hair. The test requires multiple hair strands from the scalp. Additionally, this method of checking for alcohol use is relatively expensive.

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