When should a pregnancy test be taken?

A pregnancy is something very serious for both women and for their men, therefore they would like to know about it as early as possible. Fortunately, they don’t have to wait for the classic pregnancy signs anymore to find out if they have conceived, because they now have two accurate alternatives: blood pregnancy tests, which can only be taken in a clinic, or(even better) – urine pregnancy tests, which can be taken home. It is said that a urine test is a better choice, not because it would be a more accurate one (most of them having an accuracy of 98-99% compared to the blood ones which have an accuracy of almost 100%), but because they are cheaper and they also offer them the possibility to find out if they are pregnant or not in the privacy of their own homes.

Although home pregnancy tests have some very detailed using instructions, there is still a very frequent question: “When should a pregnancy test be taken in order to get an accurate result?”. The answer is very simple if you want to get the most accurate result:

• you can follow the doctors’ recommendation and take it 2 weeks after the moment you think you have conceived, or
• you can follow the test’s directions and take it the day you have missed your period – this if you have had a missed period (there are also some more sensitive tests which insure you an accurate result if you take it even 3-4 days before your period)

But if you are wondering: “When should a pregnancy test be taken?” and you are expecting to find out the earliest moment you can take it so it can give you an accurate result, the answer is not as simple as the previous one. Firstly, for a better understanding, you should know the working principle of home pregnancy tests: the detection of the presence and levels of hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) in a woman’s body(in her urine), hormone which appears only if she is pregnant. This hormone is produced by the placenta after at least 6 days after ovulation (from biological causes), so it’s useless to take a pregnancy test in this period, because as you don’t have any hCG in your body, your test will be a negative one – even if you are pregnant.

So, the answer to the question “When should a pregnancy test be taken?” could be the 7′th day after the possible conception – for the earliest moment; but don’t take this as a rule, because your body may be different and can react differently. However, for the most accurate result, you can take it 2 weeks after the moment you think you have conceived (as the doctors say) or the day you have missed your period (as the tests’ directions instruct you to).

Related posts:

1. Preganancy tests results
2. How to test for pregnancy?
3. When can a pregnancy test give an accurate result?
4. When can you get an accurate pregnancy test?
5. Pregnancy test before missed period