Can I Test Body Hair for Drugs or Alcohol, and Is It the Same as Testing Head Hair?

Yes. If your head hair is too short, shaved or otherwise unavailable, hair from your body can be tested for both drugs and alcohol.

The sample is analysed by the same accredited laboratory using the same laboratory testing methods. However, body hair grows and sheds differently from scalp hair, so the way the result is interpreted, particularly the estimated timeframe, is different.

Both give an approximate timeline. No one can determine exactly how fast an individual hair follicle grows, and head hair has resting (dormant) follicles too. Body hair has a significantly higher proportion of them, so its timeline covers a wider window and can be out by up to three months compared with head hair. If timelines are critical to a legal matter, it’s best to provide head hair.

Which body hair can be used?

Hair can be collected from a number of body sites, including:

• Underarm
• Beard
• Chest
• Arm
• Leg
• Pubic

Hair is cut, not pulled, and is collected as close to the skin as possible. The collection site is recorded and the hair is prepared for laboratory analysis under the appropriate collection and chain-of-custody procedures.

The amount of hair required depends on the laboratory requirements and the type of testing being performed. How we collect hair explains what happens during the collection appointment.

Head hair and body hair side by side

Head hair and body hair side by side

	Head hair	Body hair
Growth	About 1 cm per month on average	Slower and varies according to body site
What 3 cm represents	Approximately 3 months of scalp-hair growth	Approximately 6 months as a laboratory-supported estimate
Timeline	Approximate	Approximate, over a wider window
Month-by-month segments	Available for drug testing	Possible, but the results can’t be relied upon
Drug testing	Yes	Yes
Alcohol testing	Yes	Yes
Legal matters	Generally preferred	Can be used when head hair is unavailable

Why does body hair cover a longer period?

Head hair grows at approximately 1 cm per month on average. This relatively consistent growth rate allows the length of a scalp-hair sample to provide an approximate timeline.

Body hair grows differently. Growth rates vary between different parts of the body, and a greater proportion of body-hair follicles are in a resting phase at any given time.

As a result, the same length of body hair generally represents a longer period than the equivalent length of head hair.

The laboratory uses the following as an approximate timeline guide:

Why does body hair cover a longer period?

Body hair length	Approximate window
1 cm	Up to 4 months
3 cm	About 6 months
4 cm	About 7 months

That’s a longer reach than head hair, and it’s why shaving your head doesn’t avoid a test. Can you cheat a hair drug test covers that in more detail.

The trade-off is precision. Body hair answers whether a substance was used over the period well. It’s less suited to when, because the window has softer edges.

Drug testing on body hair

Body hair is tested for the same drugs as head hair, using the same laboratory methods. The result reports which substances were detected and at what concentration, in picograms per milligram of hair (pg/mg).

Two things are read differently:

• The concentration. The Society of Hair Testing, which sets the international standards, advises that body hair concentrations are interpreted with caution, because body hair grows in different cycles from head hair. What results mean explains how levels are read.
• Segments. Head hair can be cut into 1 cm sections and reported month by month. The laboratory can segment body hair too, but body hair doesn’t grow continuously, so a centimetre can’t be matched to a particular month and the results can’t be relied upon. That’s why we recommend head hair wherever a month-by-month picture matters. Segmental hair testing explains how that works on head hair.

Alcohol testing on body hair

A hair alcohol test measures ethyl glucuronide (EtG), a marker the body makes only after drinking alcohol. Results are read against the Society of Hair Testing’s two international cut-offs: 5 pg/mg for abstinence and 30 pg/mg for chronic excessive drinking. Hair alcohol test results sets out all three bands.

Hair from any body site can be tested for alcohol, and the laboratory reports results for all of them.

Pubic hair is the most sensitive sample for showing abstinence. The international standard describes a negative EtG result in pubic hair as the most sensitive test of abstinence, because a single drinking occasion may give a positive result. If you’re showing that you’ve stopped drinking, a negative result from that sample carries that weight.

Is a body hair result as strong as a head hair result?

It’s the same test, by the same laboratory, under the same chain of custody. An AHPRA-registered practitioner checks your photo ID before collecting, and the sample is sealed under chain-of-custody protocol.

Head hair is still preferred for legal matters, because its timeline is clearer and its segments can be relied upon. Body hair is the accepted alternative when head hair isn’t available.

If your case turns on specific dates, talk to your solicitor about which sample suits it before collection. A body hair result covers a wider window, and that can matter when the question is whether use stopped before a particular date.

Book a body hair test

Collections are by appointment at our Melbourne clinic, and kits are posted Australia-wide to a GP you nominate. Fees are on the fees page.

If you need a body hair result explained for a family law, workplace or criminal matter, independent forensic toxicologist Dr Michael Robertson provides opinions on hair, blood, urine, saliva or breath results, whoever did the testing. See the expert medico-legal service.

Book a test online, or call (03) 9380 5434 to book by phone. Calls are answered by our reception staff, who look after bookings and can’t give legal advice. Our frequently asked questions answer the questions people ask most.