Things you must know about a Home Pregnancy Test

Most of us are not clear about the working of a home pregnancy test. Let us try and understand this test in detail. The human chorionic gonadotropin hormone, which is present only in the urine of a woman, is identified by the home pregnancy test. This hormone is seen in the human blood stream only after the fertilized egg gets implanted in the wall of the uterus for its growth and development. The hormone makes its first appearance six days after the fertilization has taken place post which it magnifies in quantity by doubling every 2 days.

For higher accuracy, the home pregnancy test should be taken 14 days after the fertilized egg has implanted itself in the uterus. The first period after sexual contact is also most likely to occur around this time. However, not many tests will guarantee an accurate answer in such a short span of time. To solve this problem research has come up with the right time to take a home pregnancy test as a week after the date at which your period is expected.

Don't fall prey to pharmaceutical companies who claim that their home pregnancy test shows accurate results immediately after a woman has missed her period. Such claims are mere attempts to increase the sales of their products. Studies made on the topic suggest otherwise. Also humans are not alike and hGC levels vary from woman to woman. The top 18 home pregnancy test brands were considered for a study which showed that only one of them was accurate in most cases. Other brands of home pregnancy test had an accuracy of a mere 16%. Thus as mentioned earlier, a woman must wait for a week after the period should have come to get an accurate answer on her home pregnancy test.

Scientists have yet to discover a 100% accurate home pregnancy test that can confirm a woman's pregnancy on the day immediately after the period has been missed. From among the lot studied, even the best home pregnancy test picked only a very slight hormone trace in the urine. Thus even in best cases, the home pregnancy test would only indicate that a woman can be pregnant.

To be certain that a home pregnancy test is being used properly, a woman must see to the following things:

1. Check the expiry date of the home pregnancy test. Proceed only if the home pregnancy test is still valid.
2. Ensure that the home pregnancy test has not gotten in contact with any kind of moistness or water. Use another home pregnancy test if suspicious about the one you have.
3. Read the instructions correctly and carefully. Certain home pregnancy tests may expect you to pee directly on them while others may require only a drop of urine to be placed at a certain spot.