# Will Meth & Adderall ping the same on a drug test since they are almost identical chemically? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 12, 2016, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773 "2016-03-12T19:13:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2016, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/1 "2016-03-12T19:13:23Z")
[Discussion here about similarities](https://www.quora.com/Methamphetamine/Are-Adderall-and-meth-the-same) Can drug screens distinguish between some taking prescription Adderall for ADD and someone using meth? ---
**Author:** ![Gray\_Ghost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c0e974/32.png) [@Gray\_Ghost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gray_Ghost)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2016, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/2 "2016-03-12T19:39:16Z")
[Here](http://www.medtox.com/Resources/Images/5301.pdf)’s a drug screen manufacturer’s FAQ on false positives for Adderall and Ritalin. (Aside, fuck you Adobe for making what used to be a simple right click/select/paste, a gigantic pain in the ass.) After much laborious unlocking and converting so that I could cut and paste, here’s what they say about Aderall and Ritalin: > [@](#): > > 1. Question: Will the MEDTOX AMP or mAMP Screen be positive if the person is taking methylphenidate (Ritalin™, Concerta™)? > > Answer: No. Methylphenidate does not cross react with the AMP or mAMP/MDMA assays. Urines “spiked” with up to 100,000 ng/ml of methylphenidate screened ‘negative’ for amphetamine and methamphetamine. Abusers of methamphetamine frequently offer up an alibi for “crank” use claiming that they take Ritalin for an alleged attention deficit disorder. This sort of excuse is a poor one since Ritalin is structurally different and will not cause a positive screen for methamphetamine. > > 1. Question: Does Adderall™ (contains a mixture of amphetamine salts) cause a positive Amphetamine screen? > > Answer: Yes. Adderall™, a drug widely used to treat attention deficit disorder (AAD) contains only AMPHETAMINE, there is no METHAMPHETAMINE in the product. Therefore, if this prescribed medication’s concentration in the urine is near or exceeds the AMP cut-off threshold, the AMP screen will render a ‘positive’ result. The methamphetamine/ecstasy (mAMP/MDMA) screen will be negative however. A person who is prescribed Adderall must acquire a special type of prescription from his/her physician; the drug is strictly regulated under Federal Schedule II. This drug is found in populations of adolescent and adult patients being treated for ADD and ADHD. Anyway, I’d take their claims with several large grains of salt, considering the difference between laboratory practice and field reality, not to mention any cross-reactivity that results in a positive test is likely to end the inquiry right there, and not trigger a further expensive test to clarify the results. Much easier to just go to the next applicant, IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2016, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/3 "2016-03-13T17:14:45Z")
I work in a toxicology lab, and I’ll note “drug test” and “drug screen” are not necessarily the same thing. Technically, a drug screen is an immunoassay test. (Short version, you pick a specific antibody for a specific drug. The drug you are targeting will be far more likely to attach to the antibody than other drugs.) Done in a lab by trained personnel, the false positive or negative rate is incredibly low but not quite zero. Done by a parent using a cheapo drug test from Walgreens, false positives and negatives are far more likely. “Drug tests” in general use a wide variety of techniques. For a positive drug result to be useable in court, a client must test positive in two tests–one an immunoassay test, the other gas or liquid chromatography. The second test is definitive, as close to a 100% accuracy rate as scientifically possible. They are so good, that with a little prep, you can actually tell stereoisomers (exact same chemical structure, just different arrangement in space) apart. ---
**Author:** ![Gunslinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gunslinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gunslinger)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2016, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/4 "2016-03-14T15:38:52Z")
Yes, but if you show the person watching you pee in the cup your Adderall prescription label, they’ll make a note of it, and you’ll be okay as long as the detected amount is within the range of your therapeutic dose. Of course, if you don’t have a prescription and are buying it on the street to try to plausibly deny your meth habit, you’re still boned. ---
**Author:** ![Guest-starring\_Id](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guest-starring_id/32/21736_2.png) [@Guest-starring\_Id](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guest-starring_Id)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/5 "2016-03-16T01:07:42Z")
I’m on both, and yes - they’re pinging. ---
**Author:** ![tafowler87](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f07891/32.png) [@tafowler87](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tafowler87)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/6 "2016-03-16T01:11:53Z")
Not an administer of drug tests, but I would think that differentiating between the two is possible. ---
**Author:** ![hocow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hocow/32/4112_2.png) [@hocow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hocow)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-meth-adderall-ping-the-same-on-a-drug-test-since-they-are-almost-identical-chemically/748773/7 "2016-03-16T01:25:29Z")
I drug test clients as part of my job, and the lab we use can differentiate between the two. Also worthy to note that methamphetamine is metabolized to amphetamine. Typically, tests that are positive for meth will also be positive for amphetamines due to that. My clients that are legitimately prescribed Adderall or the like will only have amphetamines show up on their results.