You may find that your period comes late. Besides, you also feel that there is something different with your body. If you experience this, you may think that you are pregnant.
To ensure it, you have to test it and the fastest way for testing whether you are pregnant or not is to check it by using pregnancy test strips.
However, after you check it with some pregnancy test strips, you may find that it shows negative. When it happens, don’t believe it directly because a pregnancy test strip can give a wrong result. You may be actually pregnant, but the strip shows negative.
So, why can it happen? There are several factors why a pregnancy test strip shows negative even though you are actually pregnant.
Read also: Early Signs of Pregnancy that You May Not be Aware of
Well, you are able to read below about 7 reasons why the result of a pregnancy test strip is negative even though you are actually pregnant.
1. Premature Testing
You are pregnant, but in the pregnancy test strip that you use, it shows negative. It can happen because of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (hCG) which does not appear in your urine. This condition is usually called a false-negative.
However, it is important for you to note that not all women who have been pregnant will have the same hCG in their urine so that you have to wait until the right time to test your pregnancy again at home. By waiting, hopefully your hCG level in your urine can be read by the pregnancy test strips.
After a week of the first testing, you can test again by using a pregnancy test strip.
2. Drinking Water Too Much
Did you know that if you drink too much water it can dilute your hCG level in your urine? As a result, it is difficult to detect whether you are pregnant or not by using a pregnancy test strip.
To be able to get an accurate result, you are able to drink less water for several hours before testing with a pregnancy test strip. And then, you can test after you wake up before you drink water and pee.
3. The Sensitivity Levels of The Test Strips
For your information, the sensitivity levels of test strips vary. Some of them are very sensitive so that they have the ability to detect a very low hCG level until 10mIU/ mL, but some of them can only detect hCG with 50 mIU/ mL level or above.
Let’s say that the pregnancy test strip that you use has a low sensitivity level, you may get a less accurate result.
4. Expired Pregnancy Test Trips
It is important for you to note that pregnancy test strips have expiration dates. Usually, it can be used around 2 to 3 years after it is produced and if you use it after it expires, you will not get an accurate result. So, when you buy a pregnancy test strip, you have to check its expiration date.
5. Too Little Urine Excreted
Before you check your urine with a pregnancy test strip, you have to prepare a clean container for accommodating your urine. Do not use a dirty or wet container because it can affect the test result.
6. The Test Trip is Left Open for a Long Time and Not Used Directly
After you open a test strip, you have to use it immediately. It is because if you leave it open for a long time, then the result may not be accurate.
So, you have to prepare everything first before you test so that after you open it from the package, you can use it immediately.
7. You May Be Included 10 Percent of Women Who Have hCG Level Below Normal
Another reason why the test strip shows negative even though you are actually pregnant is because you have a hCG level below normal. Why can it happen? It can happen because of an unhealthy lifestyle. So, the thing that you can do is to exercise to improve your health and your body metabolism.
Low hCG can also happen because of an ectopic pregnancy. What is it? It is a condition of abnormal pregnancy where the embryo does not attach to the uterus but instead attaches to another place such as the fallopian tube.
Gestational age can also become the reason why your hCG is low. Generally, the hCG level of a pregnant mom will increase and then decrease slowly when the gestational age is at 10 weeks. After the hCG level decreases, then the hCG level in your body will be stable.
That’s all some reasons why you get a negative result from a test strip even though you are pregnant. So, if you want to get an accurate result, you are able to go to a doctor.
