When should you take a pregnancy test? A lot of women will take the test first thing in the morning. However, can you take a pregnancy test at night?
Yes. The only issue is that the test might be inaccurate.
Positive Tests Are Highly Accurate
Morning, noon or night, a test that is positive will be highly accurate. Using hormones found in the urine that are only produced when a woman is pregnant, pregnancy tests have a very low error rate when it comes to false-positive tests.
The specific hormone that is detected is hCG (Human chorionic gonadotropin). The hCG hormone is produced by the placenta after implantation has occurred.
Can it happen? Yes.
A test can be a false-positive, but statistically, tests are seldom false.
Negative Tests Aren’t Always Accurate
Negative tests aren’t always accurate. Why? The body needs to produce the hCG that will be detected by the test.
If, for some reason, you’re early in the pregnancy stage or your body isn’t producing the hormone properly, the test can be wrong. There also needs to be a specific level of the hormone in your urine when conducting the test, so your body may have too little of the hormone to trigger a positive test.
Taking a Pregnancy Test at Night
Women can take a pregnancy test at night, but the main issue is, again, the pregnancy hormone. Urinating frequently is a sign of pregnancy, but a woman will also be voiding her body of the hormone needed to trigger an accurate test result.
If the test is positive, you’re likely pregnant. If the test is negative, it could be that you’ve urinated often and the hormone levels found in your urine are not high enough to properly trigger a positive test.
Doctors recommend that a woman take a morning pregnancy test if the nightly test is false. Urine dilution also occurs.
Drinking tea, coffee and virtually every other beverage will dilute the urine in the body. So, it’s not optimal to take the test at night simply because there are too many variables that can cause the test to be negative when a woman is really pregnant.
Why is Morning Best?
While a person sleeps, urine will fill the bladder. For a woman that’s pregnant, hormones will fill the bladder and be easily detected on a test.
This is the only difference between a morning and night test; the body is allowed to accumulate undiluted urine to be tested.
The Optimal Test Time
Doctors state that the absolute best time to take a pregnancy test is the first day after missing a period. If a test is taken any earlier, the body may not have had the chance to produce the pregnancy hormone, so the test will be a false-negative.
Studies show that tests taken one day after a late period have an accuracy rate of 99%. Can you take a pregnancy test at night?
Yes, but the accuracy levels will vary. It’s always best to wait until the morning to take the test and consult with a doctor if the test is positive.