An average person can eliminate half a dose of the drug in approximately 11.2 hours. For Xanax to be entirely eliminated from a person’s body, the number will be several days. However, many other factors at work can change this number.
Testing for Xanax
The presence of Xanax in a person’s system can be tested in several different ways. Each method is different and means that the time the drug can be found can vary.
- Urine: Urine is not necessarily the preferred test when Xanax is at the forefront, though it can be detected for up to five days after being taken.
- Hair: Xanax can be detected for quite some time with some hair samples. Three months is the usual time to detect the drug for a head hair sample, while positive results can be found in body hair as long as an entire year after initial consumption.
- Blood: Blood is perhaps the most varied of these tests for Xanax. The effects may long be over, but tests can detect the drug for as long as four to five days after initial consumption.
- Saliva: When testing saliva, the average amount of time that Xanax stays in a person’s system is 2.5 days.
| Test | Saliva | Blood | Urine | Hair |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | 2.5 days | 4-5 days | 5 days | 90 days |
Factors that increase or decrease the time spent in a person’s system
The amount of time Xanax stays in a person’s system can change a bit depending on a few things. The following items can factor into how long the drug stays in a person’s system.
- Age: Age can play a significant impact on how long Xanax stays in a person’s system. An older person is more likely to have it in their system longer, with an average of 16.3 hours. For comparison, this is more than 5 hours longer than the average time spent in a person’s system.
- Weight: When it comes to the time Xanax lingers in the body, how much a person weighs works in a very similar fashion to the age of a person. The more a person weighs, the longer the drug will stay in the system. If someone is obese, Xanax will remain in their body for an average half-life of 21.8 hours.
- History with alcohol: The strength of an individual’s liver will also play a massive role in how long the drug stays in the system. People who have a history of alcohol consumption will average 19.7 hours with Xanax in their system.
Can a person reduce the amount of time Xanax is in their system?
Indeed, a person can actively work to reduce the total amount of time that Xanax stays in their system. This is done by consuming a type of medicine called an “inducer.” These inducers include fosphenytoin, carbamazepine, topiramate, and phenytoin.
Why do people take Xanax?
Xanax is a benzodiazepine and is not particularly short or long-lasting but somewhere in the middle for the drug classification. The effects of the drug reach their peak about an hour after consumption, and the central nervous system is depressed. This creates a feeling of anxiety relief for the user. After this initial period, the effects begin to lesson until the feelings have entirely worn off. Of course, this can differ for those people who take the drug more frequently. Finally, there are extended versions of the drug that are made by the manufacturers that could impact the amount of time that a user spends with these symptoms.
Make sure to consider all of these aspects when thinking about taking Xanax. The amount of time the drug stays in a person’s system varies with the individual, but the various studies indicate it will be present for some time.
