If you are using a form of birth control and also suspect that you may be pregnant, you may wonder if birth control has an effect on the results of a pregnancy test. The concern of women is that the hormones found in birth control pills may give either a false negative or false positive on a home pregnancy test. You do not have cause to feel concern since birth control does not affect the outcome of a pregnancy test.
Function
Home pregnancy tests work by detecting the presence of the hormone HCG, or human chorionic gonadotropin in your urine. A lab blood test can also be used to detect HCG in the body. This hormone is only detected in women who are pregnant. The HCG hormone is made when the sperm fertilizes the egg and is released as early as six days after implantation. However, since the hormone is released much later in many women, it is recommended that a pregnancy test is taken as early as the first day of a missed period.
Significance
Birth control methods, including pills, patches, shots and IUD, use a combination of hormones to prevent pregnancy from occurring. Although these birth control methods are all highly effective, none of the methods is fail proof. For example, missing a dose of your birth control pill can result in pregnancy, as can taking antibiotics on the pill. If you have missed your period while on birth control, you should still take a pregnancy test.
Effects
Birth control has no effect on the results of a pregnancy test, since it does not contain HCG. This is the only hormone measured during a pregnancy test. If you are pregnant and still on birth control, the pregnancy test should show a positive result. If you are not pregnant and on birth control, you should see a negative result.
Considerations
Although birth control does not alter a pregnancy test results, certain fertility drugs can. Ask your doctor if your fertility treatment includes the HCG hormone since this can cause false positive tests
Warning
Although birth control does not affect the outcome of a pregnancy test, it does not mean the tests are 100 percent accurate. You may have a faulty test, take the test too early or be on a medication that has HCG as an active ingredient.
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