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Diazepam

Follow one dose of diazepam from the moment it enters the body until the last of it leaves.

DiazepamactiveNordazepammain active metaboliteTemazepamvia CYP3A4OxazepamactiveGlucuronidesinactiveUrine

The clock, on a log scale

Each bar runs from the dose to about five half-lives, roughly when 97% of that molecule has been converted or cleared. The scale is logarithmic so minutes and days fit on one line.

  1. 30–90 minpeak

    Dose enters the body

    IV onset 1–5 minoral peak 30–90 min

    Injected, diazepam acts in one to five minutes. By mouth, blood levels peak between 30 and 90 minutes.1

  2. hoursliver

    Diazepam → nordazepam and temazepam

    CYP2C19CYP3A4 → temazepamCYP2B6 → nordazepamall three active

    The liver breaks diazepam down mainly through CYP2C19 and CYP3A4. CYP3A4 makes temazepam, and CYP2B6 is a minor route to nordazepam (desmethyldiazepam), the main active metabolite. Temazepam and oxazepam are minor active metabolites.1

    Other drugs change the clock: cimetidine, omeprazole and fluvoxamine slow diazepam's breakdown and prolong its action. Rifampin, phenytoin, carbamazepine and phenobarbital speed it up.1
  3. 1–2 daysdiazepam half-life

    Half the diazepam is gone

    30–56 h (range 20–100)

    Diazepam's half-life is generally 30–56 hours, with a range of 20–100 hours.1 It lasts longer in older people,1 and hepatitis or cirrhosis halves the rate it is cleared.1

    It builds up: daily doses quickly build to high levels in the body, mainly in fat tissue.1 TripSit rates benzodiazepines with alcohol or opioids as Dangerous.3
  4. up to ~8 daysnordazepam half-life

    Nordazepam → oxazepam

    36–200 hoxazepam is active

    Nordazepam's half-life is between 36 and 200 hours and varies widely between people. It is turned into oxazepam, which is also active.2

  5. weeksexit

    Out through the kidneys

    urine, as glucuronides

    The metabolites are joined to glucuronide and leave mainly in urine. Little diazepam leaves unchanged.1

Sources

  1. Wikipedia, Diazepam (pharmacokinetics, interactions and infobox), CC BY-SA
  2. Wikipedia, Nordazepam, CC BY-SA
  3. TripSit combination chart (combos.json, read 2026-10-24)

Half-lives vary between people, doses and routes. This page explains what the body does with a drug. It is not dosing advice.