Pregnancy tests

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You may have had sex without any kind of protection and want to know if you're pregnant. So how do you really know for sure if you're pregnant?

There are certain signs of pregnancy that you can look out for, but many women don't suffer from all or any of them, so the best way to tell if you're pregnant is to do a home pregnancy test.

How do pregnancy tests work?

Pregnancy tests look for a special hormone in the urine or blood called hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) that is only there when a woman is pregnant.

hCG is only made in your body after a fertilized egg implants itself in the uterus and this usually happens around 6 days after conception - however, this can vary from woman to woman. The further along your pregnancy you are, the higher the level of hCG in your body.

How soon can you take a pregnancy test?

Home pregnancy tests claim that they can tell if you're pregnant on the day you expect your period and it's possible to tell even a couple of days before your period, but this is not usually the case. It's not always possible to be that specific about the date of your period, and levels of hCG vary greatly from woman to woman.

Women all have different menstrual cycles and so everyone ovulates at a different time. This will affect when your period is due. You may also have conceived later in your cycle than average, which will affect how much hCG is in your body.

Although you may not want to wait, the best way to be sure is give it at least a week after your period is due.