Did you ever figure out why this was happening? My husband, also in drug court, has had this happen twice now. I know for a fact he hasn't used in a long time. The drug court staff believes us but can't do anything they say.
Hello @anjintulsa, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect.
Drug court is such a great program and an important option for individuals in recovery. It's great to hear that the staff believe your husband — that kind of support can make a big difference. As long as there are no consequences tied to the positive drug screens, and both you and the team know he isn’t using, that’s what truly matters.
Some helpful follow-up steps could include requesting a confirmatory test, like @bbranin mentioned, and providing a list of all medications, supplements, and over-the-counter products he’s currently taking. It's also good practice to save packaging or prescription bottles, in case results are ever questioned in the future.
There are so many substances and interactions that can affect how things show up in the body — having that documentation can be really useful.
@terrimindy, Have there been any updates to your drug screens since your original post? Have you learned anything new or gained any insight about what might have caused the false positives?
@anjintulsa, Has drug court offered any support or resources to help you understand or follow up on the false positives?
There have been consequences. He should have graduated in July. Now not until October. They believe he isn't using but they said there are guidelines they have to go by. He doesn't take any medications at all. Not even Tylenol. He won't even let me rub icy hot on his aching back. There isn't any reason for these positives. Honestly.
I am in drug court and was just called and said I tested positive for meth. How can this be? I have been clean for 668 days. What can cause this? I take no prescriptions not even advil. I am devastated
@kcongine I feel it's possible they may even have your file mixed up - those results might not be yours.. be firm and ask to speak to someone higher up because you know this is not your true result. You have put the work in to each and every one of those days of being clean- no admin error is going to take that away from you. You want to be retested. Immediately. Get mad about it. You have nothing to feel devastated about. Make them fix it. I believe in you- we all do
@visibleghost33, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I really like what you said about possible errors not taking sober time away comment. That is so true.
Any periods of sobriety, short or long, IS SOBRIETY. It is time away from addiction, it is time spent strengthening sobriety, it is time breaking cycles, it is time making and practicing new and healthy habits, it is empowering yourself, it is building relationships. It is never to be minimized.
@visibleghost33, have you had any personal experiences with needing to advocate for yourself?
Metformin does not cause a true positive for methamphetamine. It is not known to cross-react on a confirmation drug test.
What’s likely happening instead (clear & common causes):
1. False positives on initial screens (immunoassays).
Many urine drug tests are screening tests, not confirmatory. These can mistakenly flag meth/amphetamines due to cross-reactivity.
2. Medications that are known to cause false positives for meth/amphetamines include:
Pseudoephedrine / ephedrine (Sudafed, some cold meds).
Bupropion (Wellbutrin).
Trazodone.
Selegiline.
Labetalol.
And certain inhalers or OTC decongestants.
3. Critical point most people are not told:
A screening positive is NOT definitive.
GC-MS or LC-MS confirmation can separate methamphetamine from look-alike compounds.
On confirmation testing, false positives almost always disappear.
4. Why metformin gets blamed (incorrectly):
It’s commonly prescribed.
People taking it may coincidentally test positive from another medication or OTC product.
There is no evidence in toxicology references that metformin causes amphetamine or meth positives.
The information I stated comes from toxicology and clinical references on drug testing, which are based on peer-reviewed literature and official guidance for interpreting urine drug screens.
Key points:
1. Metformin is not listed as a known cause of false positives for methamphetamine or amphetamines in major references, including:
Goldfrank’s Toxicologic Emergencies, 12th Edition
UpToDate: “Urine Drug Testing: Interpretation and False Positives”
SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) guidance on urine drug testing
Suggestions:
Ask whether your test was screening only or confirmed by GC-MS.
Request confirmatory testing in writing.
Provide a full medication + OTC list (especially cold/allergy meds).
If this affects work/legal/medical decisions, confirmation testing is essential.
Bottom line:
Metformin does NOT cause meth positives.
False positives are common on screening tests.
Confirmation testing clears this up.
What is confirmation testing?
Confirmation testing is a follow-up, more definitive test used to verify results from an initial screening, ensuring accuracy by using a different, more specific method to rule out false positives, common in drug/medical testing (e.g.,
GC-MS for drugs, DNA tests for HIV) and software quality assurance to confirm bug fixes. It provides higher confidence in the final result, whether identifying a substance, diagnosing a condition, or verifying a software fix.
The information I have provided comes from toxicology and clinical references on drug testing, which are based on peer-reviewed literature and official guidance for interpreting urine drug screens.
What is known:
1. Metformin is not listed as a known cause of false positives for methamphetamine or amphetamines in major references, including:
UpToDate: “Urine Drug Testing: Interpretation and False Positives”.
SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) guidance on urine drug testing.
Why you see claims online about metformin that are misleading:
Some anecdotal reports exist on forums where someone tested positive while taking metformin, but no peer-reviewed study or official toxicology source supports this. These are likely coincidental or misattributed.
Online sources often repeat anecdotal reports without verification.
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Did you ever figure out why this was happening? My husband, also in drug court, has had this happen twice now. I know for a fact he hasn't used in a long time. The drug court staff believes us but can't do anything they say.
Hello @anjintulsa, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect.
Drug court is such a great program and an important option for individuals in recovery. It's great to hear that the staff believe your husband — that kind of support can make a big difference. As long as there are no consequences tied to the positive drug screens, and both you and the team know he isn’t using, that’s what truly matters.
Some helpful follow-up steps could include requesting a confirmatory test, like @bbranin mentioned, and providing a list of all medications, supplements, and over-the-counter products he’s currently taking. It's also good practice to save packaging or prescription bottles, in case results are ever questioned in the future.
There are so many substances and interactions that can affect how things show up in the body — having that documentation can be really useful.
@terrimindy, Have there been any updates to your drug screens since your original post? Have you learned anything new or gained any insight about what might have caused the false positives?
@anjintulsa, Has drug court offered any support or resources to help you understand or follow up on the false positives?
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Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 ReactionThere have been consequences. He should have graduated in July. Now not until October. They believe he isn't using but they said there are guidelines they have to go by. He doesn't take any medications at all. Not even Tylenol. He won't even let me rub icy hot on his aching back. There isn't any reason for these positives. Honestly.
@kcongine I feel it's possible they may even have your file mixed up - those results might not be yours.. be firm and ask to speak to someone higher up because you know this is not your true result. You have put the work in to each and every one of those days of being clean- no admin error is going to take that away from you. You want to be retested. Immediately. Get mad about it. You have nothing to feel devastated about. Make them fix it. I believe in you- we all do
-
Like -
Helpful -
Hug
1 Reaction@visibleghost33, Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I really like what you said about possible errors not taking sober time away comment. That is so true.
Any periods of sobriety, short or long, IS SOBRIETY. It is time away from addiction, it is time spent strengthening sobriety, it is time breaking cycles, it is time making and practicing new and healthy habits, it is empowering yourself, it is building relationships. It is never to be minimized.
@visibleghost33, have you had any personal experiences with needing to advocate for yourself?
Metformin does not cause a true positive for methamphetamine. It is not known to cross-react on a confirmation drug test.
What’s likely happening instead (clear & common causes):
1. False positives on initial screens (immunoassays).
Many urine drug tests are screening tests, not confirmatory. These can mistakenly flag meth/amphetamines due to cross-reactivity.
2. Medications that are known to cause false positives for meth/amphetamines include:
Pseudoephedrine / ephedrine (Sudafed, some cold meds).
Bupropion (Wellbutrin).
Trazodone.
Selegiline.
Labetalol.
And certain inhalers or OTC decongestants.
3. Critical point most people are not told:
A screening positive is NOT definitive.
GC-MS or LC-MS confirmation can separate methamphetamine from look-alike compounds.
On confirmation testing, false positives almost always disappear.
4. Why metformin gets blamed (incorrectly):
It’s commonly prescribed.
People taking it may coincidentally test positive from another medication or OTC product.
There is no evidence in toxicology references that metformin causes amphetamine or meth positives.
The information I stated comes from toxicology and clinical references on drug testing, which are based on peer-reviewed literature and official guidance for interpreting urine drug screens.
Key points:
1. Metformin is not listed as a known cause of false positives for methamphetamine or amphetamines in major references, including:
Goldfrank’s Toxicologic Emergencies, 12th Edition
UpToDate: “Urine Drug Testing: Interpretation and False Positives”
SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) guidance on urine drug testing
Suggestions:
Ask whether your test was screening only or confirmed by GC-MS.
Request confirmatory testing in writing.
Provide a full medication + OTC list (especially cold/allergy meds).
If this affects work/legal/medical decisions, confirmation testing is essential.
Bottom line:
Metformin does NOT cause meth positives.
False positives are common on screening tests.
Confirmation testing clears this up.
What is confirmation testing?
Confirmation testing is a follow-up, more definitive test used to verify results from an initial screening, ensuring accuracy by using a different, more specific method to rule out false positives, common in drug/medical testing (e.g.,
GC-MS for drugs, DNA tests for HIV) and software quality assurance to confirm bug fixes. It provides higher confidence in the final result, whether identifying a substance, diagnosing a condition, or verifying a software fix.
The information I have provided comes from toxicology and clinical references on drug testing, which are based on peer-reviewed literature and official guidance for interpreting urine drug screens.
What is known:
1. Metformin is not listed as a known cause of false positives for methamphetamine or amphetamines in major references, including:
Goldfrank’s Toxicologic Emergencies, 12th Edition.
UpToDate: “Urine Drug Testing: Interpretation and False Positives”.
SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) guidance on urine drug testing.
Why you see claims online about metformin that are misleading:
Some anecdotal reports exist on forums where someone tested positive while taking metformin, but no peer-reviewed study or official toxicology source supports this. These are likely coincidental or misattributed.
Online sources often repeat anecdotal reports without verification.
I hope you get this situation resolved.