Gone are the days of searching under your kid's mattress or sock drawer. Seems there's a new high-tech way of finding out whether your child uses not-quite-legal substances.
A San Diego company now sells a mail-in drug test. All you have to do is pluck a hair from your child's head and send it to the company's lab. Within 24 to 48 hours, your beloved son or daughter may have some serious explaining to do.
The test, called Hair Confirm Prescription, tests for one dozen illegal or prescription drugs commonly abused by teens. It costs $89.99
Confirm BioSciences, the company that sells the kit, bills the test as a way parents can regain control.
“Hair Confirm is designed to help parents take a proactive role in preventing their children’s illegal and prescription drug use,” said Zeynep Ilgaz, CEO of Confirm BioSciences. “Talking with your child about drugs and taking preventive measures like hair drug testing can be a significant factor in preventing substance abuse.”
No word yet on whether Confirm is developing a trust-detection kit.
Ken Alltucker covers healthcare for the Arizona Republic and is the father of a happy li'l girl.
That seems like a lot of
That seems like a lot of money. It also sounds like they are trying to scare parents into it. I hope I never have to resort to this kind of thing.
Sad that parents need to use this. Says a lot about how things have changed.
KarilouMomof2 is a discussion leader for arizonamoms.com living in Tempe. Her daughters are 9 and 6.
Frankly, I don't think you
Frankly, I don't think you need a kit. You just know - there are so many signs - unless you don't really pay attention to your kids. Sadly, many don't.
Arizona Moms Editor Yvette Armendariz shares stories about raising her kids and tips for busy parents in her Time-starved (goddess) Mom blog. She and her husband are raising two children, ages 8 and 11.
BTW, welcome to Ken! I've
BTW, welcome to Ken!
I've know Ken a few years now - got to know him when I was part of the Republic's business reporting team.
I'm so glad he's covering health care. Often the issues touch on children, so I've asked him to post his blog here, too. Besides, us moms have plenty of opinions on health care issues, don't we? :)
P.S. His daughter is adorable!
Arizona Moms Editor Yvette Armendariz shares stories about raising her kids and tips for busy parents in her Time-starved (goddess) Mom blog. She and her husband are raising two children, ages 8 and 11.
My father must have been
My father must have been ahead of his time. He told me growing up (mostly to scare me away from ever taking a drug) that he would take a hair sample from my brush and he'd know by testing it. He was in law enforcement - so he probably did have access to such type of detections twenty years ago. Of course I was a cautious girl - never once took any type of drug, ever (I dont think over the counter Tylenol for headaches counts as a 'drug'). I didn't even take the 'pain killers' that are prescribed to me after my last surgery - I just deal with the pain or took Tylenol or Motrin. I guess I just always thought that parents could find out if their kids were taking drugs by doing some test like the one mentioned - however thats interesting that it is now on the market and available (for real this time.)
LisaMommy is a 38 year old discussion leader for arizonamoms.com from the Paradise Valley/Scottsdale area. Her two boys are ages 7 months and 3 years old.
My dad also scared me about
My dad also scared me about drugs. He was at one time with California Highway Patrol. I was so afraid of losing control that I never took anything except what was prescribed. And even with pain meds, I wait until I just can't take it.
Arizona Moms Editor Yvette Armendariz shares stories about raising her kids and tips for busy parents in her Time-starved (goddess) Mom blog. She and her husband are raising two children, ages 8 and 11.
That is an excellent
That is an excellent resource to have in your back pocket! I am glad to know it exists. I agree, you'll know from the gut, but it's always nice to have that as proff or relief. I think money well spent.
I won't say that, growing
I won't say that, growing up, I was an angel (it was, after all, the 70's), but I never really went overboard. I think that's because:
We always sat down to dinner.
Someone was always waiting up for us.
We did not own "our" cars.
Privacy was being able to shower without someone else coming into the bathroom to brush his/her teeth.
We could stay out on Saturday night, but we had to be up and ready for church at 9:00 Sunday morning.
Our parents assured us that, if we got arrested for underaged drinking or using drugs, they'd come to see us on visiting day. Eventually.
Good point, not-the-mama. I
Good point, not-the-mama. I grew up in the 80's and 90's and I too, wasn't an angel. However, I was still afraid of what my Mom had threatened to do (drive by the mall to make sure I wasn't ditching school and I never did!!!).
Owning 'our' cars is a good point. Kids of today expect too much. I attended an honors' ceremony last night for my 8-year old daughter. There were girls and boys from grades 1st through 8th there, each receiving an award for being on honor roll all year round. The way some of the girls were dressed, you would have thought they were in a red light district, and not at a school district event.
My Mom was appalled when it came time for some of these girls to accept their award but I told her how hard it is to find age appropriate clothes these days. Some girls (and not just in the upper grade range) had heels on, backless dresses, nail tips professionally done, etc.
What ever happened to innocence and purity?
Anna - mama of Joshua, Isabella, Sofia and Israel