There is nothing more exciting than becoming a mother. Just like every other important thing in one’s life, planning for motherhood also requires planning. One of the most confusing aspects of becoming a mother is taking the test.
When there is a doubt about pregnancy, the first thought that crosses their mind is when is the best time to take the pregnancy test.
Depending upon the time of the test, it can have varying effects on the person. An earlier test can prove to be negative even if you are pregnant.
And with a late pregnancy test, you are delaying your joy.
So, let’s ask the most important question: when should I take a pregnancy test?
According to studies, the best time to take a pregnancy test is after seven days once you have missed your period. This will give your body ample time to produce the hormone, Human Chorionic Gonadotrophin, which can be found in urine. Your body produces the hormone only if you have become pregnant.
The one-week window is to also prevent the test from turning false negative, which means that your test might be negative even if you are pregnant.
When is the Best Time to Take a Pregnancy Test: Morning or Night?
When you think about taking your pregnancy test, the first question that comes to mind is “when should the person take a pregnancy test? Morning or night”.
Let’s get right to it. But we would like to clear the air first.
You can take your pregnancy test both in the morning and at night. However, the best time to take the test is always in the morning.
When you are pregnant with your baby, your body is going to produce a hormone called human chorionic gonadotropin or hCG, and it can be found in your urine. So, if you are doing the test in the morning the chances are high that the urine will have significant amounts of the hormone.
The concentration of the urine is going to be high from the whole night when you were sleeping. Hence, the amount of the hormone present in the urine will also be high. This improves the chances of your test returning accurately.
On the other hand, if you take the test at night, the concentration of the urine and the hormone will be significantly low, as you might have gone to the loo a couple of times.
Hence, the chances of the test being false negative are high. Hence, it is always best to take a pregnancy test in the morning rather than at night.
How to Test Pregnancy at Home?
Although everyone goes to a gynecologist to confirm their pregnancy, the first test taken would be at home. Most of the time, people are excited to get the results and they tend to take a home pregnancy test.
As the test is rather easy and the kit is available easily in a medical store, everyone prefers a home pregnancy test. However, it is important to know how to test pregnancy at home to ensure that it is accurate.
Now that you know the best time to take the pregnancy test, let’s dive deeper into the actual process of doing it
- Collect your urine in a cup or pee on the test kit
- Set the time for about three minutes
- Check it after three minutes to see the results
- A single line of the stick means negative, two lines mean positive.
- If there is no line, then the test did not work
One of the major things that you need to keep in mind while taking a home pregnancy test is that there is a maximum period of ten minutes for the test.
If you miss the time window and check the test result after ten minutes, your test may return a false negative or positive.
Also, you need to read the instructions on the pregnancy test kit thoroughly before going about it. This will ensure that you are doing the test in the right way.
After How Many Days Pregnancy Can Be Confirmed By Urine Test?
Most people rely on urine tests to confirm their pregnancy more often than others think. Although urine tests are the most popular pregnancy test, there are many questions regarding the same, as well.
One of the major ones is the time period to take the test. Many wonders after how many days pregnancy can be confirmed by a urine test.
As we have already explained, a urine pregnancy test looks for the presence of hCG hormone in your blood. This hormone begins to circulate in your blood only if a fertilized egg is attached to the uterus. The presence of this hormone can be traced in urine only after 5-6 days of fertilization.
Hence, it is advised that pregnancy can be confirmed after 12-14 days of conception by a urine test.
How Accurate Are Pregnancy Tests?
Urine pregnancy tests are the most widely used method to test pregnancy the world over. This is because of the ease of the test and its high rate of accuracy.
The test kit is easily available, and it is inexpensive. In addition, it can be done at home. The test can also be done in five minutes maximum.
The accuracy of the urine pregnancy test is also high. The chances of getting false negatives and positives are less with the tests. However, there are chances you might get such results.
Most of the time, it is not the drawback of the test itself but the way it is done. Hence, you do not have to worry thinking about how accurate are pregnancy tests, and you can take them as many times as you want.
How Long Does a Pregnancy Test Take?
If you are going to take a urine pregnancy test, all it can take is five minutes maximum. You will be done in five minutes with the test results.
The ease of doing the same at one’s own home is what makes the urine pregnancy test all the more popular and widely used across the world.
Hence, you do not need to stress yourself wondering how long a pregnancy test takes, either.
When Is It Too Early to Take a Pregnancy Test?
As you would have already read above, a pregnancy test looks for the presence of the hormone, hCG, in one’s urine. The presence of the hormone tells that you have a fertilized egg attached to your uterus. This confirms that you are pregnant.
This usually takes 12-14 days after you conceive. Hence it is advised that you take the test after 12-14 days to see if you are pregnant.
Any time before that might be too early as your urine may not have enough hCG to detect. And it will leave the test false negative even if you are pregnant.
Can A Pregnancy Test Be Positive At 2 Weeks?
Getting a positive result for your pregnancy means that your body must have detectable levels of hCG in the urine. Until that happens, your result might turn negative.
Hence, you need to wait for at least a week after you have missed your period. Or you need to wait after 1-2 weeks after you have had sex to get the most accurate result.
What Is the Best Time to Take a Blood Pregnancy Test?
If you want to know if you are pregnant and do not want to wait for weeks, you can give a blood test. And the test can be done as early as 11-14 days after your menstruation. Unlike a urine test, blood pregnancy tests are extremely accurate and can detect even the lowest amounts of hCG in one’s blood.
The blood sample taken will be sent to a laboratory and the results may take a couple of days to arrive. There are two types of blood pregnancy tests as well.
- Quantitative Blood Pregnancy Test: This test checks for the amount of hCG present in the blood and it can tell how the pregnancy has progressed.
- Qualitative Blood Pregnancy Test: This test only looks for the presence of hCG, and it can only confirm your pregnancy and not any other details of pregnancy.