Picking the right detox method can keep you employed or help you avoid a probation violation. 

You may have heard of using Certo or Sure Jell, fruit pectin brands, to flush THC and their metabolites from the body. Anecdotal evidence suggests that this method can be effective.

However, there is no clinical evidence demonstrating or explaining its efficacy as a detox. The most likely reason that Certo detoxes work is because they incorporate the consumption of copious amounts of water and a daily dose of vitamins. 

Urine tests are by far the most popular and marijuana is the most commonly found drug. Therefore, if you’re close to the job of your dreams, use weed, and are called in for a drug test, your only hope of passing it is by using one of the myriads of detox methods online. The Certo Drug Test detox has been championed as one of the best ways to get clean in a hurry; but is it all hype or the real deal? Read our full review to find out.

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What Is Certo?

‘Certo’ is a generic name for Fruit Pectin with the trademark held by Kraft. The company also has another brand called ‘Sure Jell’ which is the same thing as Certo but with different packaging.

Certo has been available in the United States for over 100 years but has only recently become associated with detox.

Fruit pectin is a naturally occurring polysaccharide in fruits and is extracted from sweet fruits such as peaches, pears, apples, and berries. All polysaccharides consist of long-chain monosaccharides and they are a digestible fiber. You will typically find fruit pectin in jellies and jams because of its ability to gel things together. As it is a highly soluble fiber, it does a good job of detoxifying your system. It is excreted through the system via your feces.

How Certo or Fruit Pectin Can Help Detox Your System

One of the main misconceptions about Certo is that it traps toxins by coating your stomach. In reality, it works as a typical fiber by enabling your body to absorb and expel the toxins via your fecal matter. As it forms into a gel, it absorbs more liquids than ‘normal’ fibers. As toxins that normally leave your system via urine end up in your stools, Certo is theoretically a great way to pass a urine drug test.

For instance, here’s a more detailed explanation of how Certo detoxes your system. Fruit pectin traps the toxins and breaks them down into smaller metabolites that are easier to remove. The process typically takes 60 minutes and can last for 3-5 hours in total. Eventually, the toxins are released and leave the body via your urine.

Anecdotal Evidence Says Fruit Pectin Might Work as a Detox Method

There is no peer-reviewed evidence exploring the use of fruit pectin as a detox method. However, there is an abundance of documented anecdotal evidence: forum posts written by cannabis users with first-hand experience using fruit pectin to pass drug tests. 

A 2010 Rollitup survey by 31 forum users answered the question, does Certo pass a drug test? This is what those responders had to say:

• 19.4% said they’d heard it did not work. 
• 38% said they’d heard it did work. 
• 19.4% said it had not worked for them. 
• 22.6% said that it had worked for them. 

This 2012 Reddit post explaining in detail how to use Certo to pass a drug test has over 243 comments, many of which come from users who followed the instructions and passed a test. There are many other forum posts describing successful uses of Certo to pass a drug test.  

However, without clear scientific evidence explaining why these users were successful, there is no way to conclusively prove it was the fruit pectin. In each case, the authors of each post and those who responded positively had one thing in common: they drank enormous quantities of water in a very short time.
Many of them drank 1-2 entire gallons of water in a 2-hour window or less.

Most of them also consumed a multivitamin and B12 to keep their urine from appearing diluted. There is a very high probability that the reason they passed their drug tests is because they diluted their pee with water and masked the dilution with supplemental vitamins. 

If you know that you are going to have to take a drug test, the best things you can do to increase the likelihood of a clean screen are to stop consuming pot immediately and drink lots of water in the days leading up to your test.   

What are Sure Jell and Certo?

Sure Jell and Certo are brands of fruit pectin, an indigestible fiber. You can easily find Sure Jell or Certo in grocery stores or online. Fruit pectin used for cooking is usually kept in the baking aisle or wherever the store sells Jell-O. 

When heated, fruit pectin converts into a gel. This is why it is most commonly used as a thickener for jams and jellies. However, it can also be used medicinally to relieve constipation, improve blood sugars, lower cholesterol, and assist in weight management. 

Fruit pectin can cause bloating. Additionally, it is most commonly made from citrus and apples. People with allergies to these fruits should talk to their healthcare practitioners before consuming fruit pectin. 

Certo Sure Jell Drug Test Ingredients

This drug test method involves drinking a cocktail of these ingredients:

• Fruit pectin – this insoluble fiber is believed to enhance the body’s fiber elimination system, increasing the elimination of THC through poop. While some argue that the pectin creates a coating that blocks THC from entering urine, there is no evidence confirming this. 
• Sports drink – sports drinks like Gatorade contain electrolytes, the presence of which make a urine test seem credible. Too much fluid can wash urine of electrolytes and other minerals, alerting lab technicians to potential urine tampering. 
• Creatine monohydrate – this is a mineral that is present in normal urine. Taking it along with your detox will keep normal amounts in your flushed urine. 
• Multivitamin – This multivitamin will keep mineral levels normal in your urine. 
• Vitamin B2 (riboflavin) – this vitamin assists the liver in the detoxification process. 
• Vitamin B12 – a side effect of taking this vitamin is brightly yellow urine. While normally this may cause the urine to look abnormal, it can help to restore the color of urine that has been highly diluted by the copious amounts of water required by the detox. 

For best results, cannabis consumers should abstain from weed as soon as they find out a drug test is imminent. It is also important to drink lots of water in the immediate days preceding the urine test. 

Does Certo Detox Drug Metabolites?

Typically, yes! That’s why it is such a popular detox method for marijuana users trying to pass a urinalysis. As you know, THC is the psychoactive compound in cannabis that’s famed for getting you high. It is one of over 100 identified compounds in weed. THC-COOH is the name of its metabolite so when you consume marijuana or any THC product, your body breaks it down into THC-COOH.

These metabolites flow through your body and bloodstream. While a small amount is expelled, most gets absorbed by lipids and it ultimately gets stored as body fat. Then, it remains there until it is gradually re-released into your bloodstream when you metabolize fat for energy. Afterward, there’s a re-release and it becomes expelled via your urine, sweat, saliva, and feces. While your body naturally detoxes, the process takes weeks which is bad news for weed users facing a drug test.

This is where Certo comes in handy. Fruit pectin can speed up the detox process and it is effective for users of marijuana. It is important to note that Certo’s detoxing capabilities are not scientifically proven.