Drink Spiking Test Strips: How Do They Actually Work?

Drink spiking test strips are becoming an increasingly familiar part of night-out safety, but there’s still plenty of confusion about what they actually do.

Can they tell you if your drink has been spiked? What substances can they detect? How quickly do they work? And perhaps most importantly, can you trust a negative result?

The short answer is that drink spiking test strips can be a useful safety tool, but they have limitations.

Here’s what you need to know.

What are drink spiking test strips?

Drink spiking test strips are small chemical screening tests designed to identify certain substances that may have been added to a drink.

Rather than sending a drink away to a laboratory, they allow you to take a small sample of your drink and screen it on the spot.

Different test strips detect different substances, so it’s important to understand exactly what the product you’re carrying is designed to test for.

How do drink spiking test strips work?

The process is surprisingly simple.

You place a small amount of your drink onto the designated testing area of the strip and wait for the reaction.

If a substance the test is designed to detect is present, the testing area will produce a colour response that can be compared with the instructions supplied with the test.

The exact process and reaction time depend on the particular test, so you should always follow the manufacturer’s instructions.

What do CYD drink spiking test strips detect?

The CYD test strips available through Safer Sips are designed to screen for substances including:

• GHB
• Ketamine
• Cocaine
• Scopolamine
• More than 650 amine-based substances

That broad screening capability can make them a useful addition to your night-out safety toolkit.

However, there’s an important limitation we want people to understand.

CYD test strips do not detect benzodiazepines.

No drink-spiking test strip should be treated as a test for every possible substance that could be added to a drink.

Does a negative test mean my drink is definitely safe?

No.

And we think it’s really important to be upfront about that.

A negative result means the test hasn’t detected the substances it is designed to screen for under the conditions of that particular test.

It does not guarantee that nothing has been added to your drink.

There are many substances that could potentially cause intoxication or impairment, and no rapid test can screen for everything.

So if your test is negative but something still doesn’t feel right, don’t drink it.

A test result should never override your instincts.

When might you use a drink spiking test strip?

You might decide to test your drink if:

• You’ve left it unattended
• Someone you don’t know has handled it
• It tastes or smells unusual
• You feel uneasy about what has happened around your drink
• You suddenly feel more intoxicated than expected
• A friend is concerned their drink may have been tampered with

You don’t need to prove that something has happened before deciding not to drink something.

If you’re uncomfortable, putting the drink down is always an option.