Easy Pregnancy Tests at Home

Healthpind Staff
Reviewed by Dr Singh, J.P. MBBS, MD, DNB

Do you have sex recently and now missed a period? Right now, the most common question striking your mind would be to know if you are pregnant.

The good news is that a simple pregnancy test can help you to know the answer with certainty. You can do the test by yourself at home following specific instructions.

Where can you get the pregnancy test kit?

The urine pregnancy test is the most common among pregnancy test kits. You can buy the test kit at a pharmacy without a doctor’s prescription or at supermarkets, and you may also purchase the urine pregnancy test online.

When can you do easy pregnancy tests at home?

You may perform a pregnancy test from the first day after the missing period. If you are not sure about the due date of the next period, perform the test at least 21 days after having unprotected sexual intercourse.

A pregnancy test can be done on a urine sample collected at any time of the day, not necessarily in the morning.

The principle on which pregnancy test works?

If you are pregnant, there is an increase in the hormone Human Chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) in your body. A pregnancy test kit detects the surge of this hormone in your urine. A positive test result is undoubtedly correct. However, a negative result is not so reliable for various reasons.

Use the following ways to collect the urine sample per the pregnancy kit instructions.

Take your urine sample in a cup and dip the test stick in it for 5 to 10 seconds.
You may also use an eyedropper to put a small amount of urine on the pit of the test strip.
Put the test strip in the way of the passing midstream of urine for 5 to 10 seconds.

You have to read the instructions on the test kit properly. They may vary according to different test kits. The dipstick may have an area that depicts a ‘Plus’ or ‘Minus’ sign, ‘single’ or ‘two’ lines, or the written words “pregnant” or “not pregnant.” Most commonly, the urine pregnancy kit is as follows:

Use any of the following ways to collect the urine sample as per instructions on the pregnancy kit.

Take your urine sample in a cup and dip the test stick in it for 5 to 10 seconds.
You may also use an eyedropper to put a small amount of urine on the pit of the test strip.
Put the test strip in the way of the passing midstream of urine for 5 to 10 seconds.

Reference