# What does it mean when a urine drug test comes back as "diluted"? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 14, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340 "2011-09-14T22:42:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Pann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a4c791/32.png) [@Pann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pann)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 10:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/1 "2011-09-14T22:42:56Z")
My boss told me today that he is sending a person that I want to hire back for another drug test because the results came back as “diluted”. Personally, I don’t think it’s any of the company’s business what a person does on their own time. However, as an employee I have to follow the higher up’s wishes. So what is the result of diluted likely to mean? She told me that she drank 4 bottles of water while she was out doing yard work before she went for the drug test. Would drinking that much water cause this result? Or is the only way you can get that result is by actually “diluting” the urine sample? I’m just curious more than anything. If she passes this next drug test I will hire her. If not then I won’t be permitted to hire her. thanks ---
**Author:** ![Morbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morbo/32/389_2.png) [@Morbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morbo)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/2 "2011-09-14T22:56:25Z")
That’s exactly what happened to me - I had run a 10k the day before and drank lots and lots of water. It came back “diluted” so I had to take another one. ---
**Author:** ![VOW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vow/32/3043_2.png) [@VOW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VOW)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2011, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/3 "2011-09-14T23:13:39Z")
A diluted urine specimen is exactly that: the specific gravity is almost identical to that of water and the normal components of the specimen are not as prevalent, because a lot of water has been processed through the kidneys. I would imagine that someone who feels he or she might show signs of drug usage would try to drink as much water as possible in order to minimize the appearance of residue in the specimen. That little trick could kill you. There is something known as “water intoxication” and it is caused from drinking more water than the body can process. All fluids within the body become diluted. The heart won’t get the proper level of electrolytes it needs to function. The brain swells. You die. ~VOW ---
**Author:** ![ClevelandProud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7bcc69/32.png) [@ClevelandProud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ClevelandProud)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/4 "2011-09-15T02:03:19Z")
3 DJs fired after deadly water-drinking contest California woman competing for a Nintendo Wii died of water intoxication Wednesday, January 17, 2007 _”SACRAMENTO, CA - A radio station fired 10 employees, including its three morning disc jockeys, after a woman died following an on-air water-drinking contest last week. …”_ [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16660273/ns/us\_news-life/t/djs-fired-after-deadly-water-drinking-contest](http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16660273/ns/us_news-life/t/djs-fired-after-deadly-water-drinking-contest) ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/5 "2011-09-15T02:51:20Z")
I work at a drug lab, and **vow** is right; not only do we check incoming samples for specific gravity, but we also check for creatine (a substance created by the body’s muscle processes). If either measurement is closer to water than urine, then the sample was diluted or tampered in some way. Ever wonder how those kits claiming to help you pass drug tests (such as Urine Luck) “work”? Well the instructions on these kits tell you to drink lots of water after consuming the contents of the kit. The contents don’t do anything; the heavy drinking of water helps dilute the urine. That’s why drug labs measure specific gravity and creatine levels. Don’t feel too bad about this. When I took a drug test for my current job, I couldn’t urinate at first and had to drink a 20 oz. soda. I passed the test, but a manager years later pointed that had been a risky thing to do. ---
**Author:** ![CaveMike](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cavemike/32/16379_2.png) [@CaveMike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaveMike)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/6 "2011-09-15T03:06:46Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > I passed the test, but a manager years later pointed that had been a risky thing to do. Why? The company didn’t hire soda drinkers? ---
**Author:** ![snailboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/97f17d/32.png) [@snailboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snailboy)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/7 "2011-09-15T03:16:25Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > There is something known as “water intoxication” and it is caused from drinking more water than the body can process. The technical term for it is hyponatremia. It results in cells absorbing more water than they should by osmosis and eventually rupturing. It does take a lot of water to cause it though. ---
**Author:** ![Ambivalid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Ambivalid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ambivalid)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/8 "2011-09-15T06:39:24Z")
> [@snailboy](#): > > The technical term for it is hyponatremia. It results in cells absorbing more water than they should by osmosis and eventually rupturing. It does take a lot of water to cause it though. Yes, this is what I was going to say; _ **a lot** _ of water. It takes several gallons of water in a relatively short period of time to induce hyponatremia. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/9 "2011-09-15T06:45:54Z")
> [@VOW](#): > > That little trick could kill you. There is something known as “water intoxication” and it is caused from drinking more water than the body can process. All fluids within the body become diluted. The heart won’t get the proper level of electrolytes it needs to function. The brain swells. You die. The problem there is not “drinking water”, it’s drinking low-salts-content water. Drinking a ton of Aquarius would also produce a “diluted urine sample”, but wouldn’t cause hyponatremia. ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/10 "2011-09-15T06:57:48Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > I work at a drug lab, and **vow** is right; not only do we check incoming samples for specific gravity, but we also check for creatine (a substance created by the body’s muscle processes). If either measurement is closer to water than urine, then the sample was diluted or tampered in some way. … Creatine or creatinine? I would have thought it was the latter. The hospital lab where I work does drug screens. If you can’t produce at least 30 mls of urine you’re allowed to drink no more than four cups of water only before trying again. ---
**Author:** ![thatguyjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6de8d8/32.png) [@thatguyjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thatguyjeff)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/11 "2011-09-15T16:38:27Z")
It’s also possible she’s attempting to hide drug use by intentionally diluting the sample. Just saying… ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/12 "2011-09-15T16:59:29Z")
> [@thatguyjeff](#): > > It’s also possible she’s attempting to hide drug use by intentionally diluting the sample. Just saying… Yup. I knew a very hardnosed judge once who warned felons on probation to her that, when they underwent urine testing, she would treat a dilute urine as a failure of the test, and impose prison without further ado. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/13 "2011-09-15T18:39:49Z")
> [@CaveMike](#): > > Why? The company didn’t hire soda drinkers? Maybe he thought Coke still had coke in it. ---
**Author:** ![rekkah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ee59a6/32.png) [@rekkah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rekkah)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/14 "2011-09-15T23:16:51Z")
> [@dwyr](#): > > Creatine or creatinine? I would have thought it was the latter. Since creatine is quite unstable in urine samples, I’d assume creatinine. That’s what we check in my lab and all the other labs I’ve worked in. > [@thatguyjeff](#): > > It’s also possible she’s attempting to hide drug use by intentionally diluting the sample. Just saying… It’s also possible that she drank lots of water to produce a sample on schedule or had been exercising/dehydrated and drank lots of water because of that. A dilute sample needs a repeat, but in and of itself isn’t a reason to suspect someone. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2011, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/15 "2011-09-15T23:26:48Z")
> [@jamiemcgarry](#): > > Yes, this is what I was going to say; _ **a lot** _ of water. It takes several gallons of water in a relatively short period of time to induce hyponatremia. It has occurred a number of times with marathoners who run in the 4 to 5 hour range. During the marathon, if they only drink water, then they can get into trouble due to a lot of sweating. The combination of ingestion of plain water and the loss of minerals (sodium, potassium, etc) through sweating gets the body totally out of whack. Most EMTs at major marathons have been properly educated, but it didn’t used to be that way. There were cases where someone was suffering from hyponatremia, but the EMT figured that they were dehydrated so they hooked up an IV to put water back into them. That just exacerbated the hyponatremia, and occasionally killed the person. ---
**Author:** ![Jaxnative1210](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df705f/32.png) [@Jaxnative1210](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaxnative1210)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/16 "2011-09-16T02:27:58Z")
Thats why we do not give just plain water through an IV. It is one of several fluids like sodium chloride at 0.9%, or Lactated Ringer’s solution. If the event organizers are smart, they will have Paramedics that can run EKGs on dehydrated athletes to catch hyponatremia, and administer the correct solution to help correct the problem. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2011, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-it-mean-when-a-urine-drug-test-comes-back-as-diluted/596340/17 "2011-09-16T02:32:09Z")
> [@rekkah](#): > > Since creatine is quite unstable in urine samples, I’d assume creatinine. That’s what we check in my lab and all the other labs I’ve worked in. Yep you’re right; the actual testing is done in a different department so I mixed up the names.