Chemical Pregnancies and Early Miscarriages

One of the most common reasons for a positive result one day followed by a negative result the following day is due to a chemical pregnancy, which is commonly known as an early miscarriage.

According to Baby Centre, early miscarriages are miscarriages that occur within the first trimester of pregnancy and is predicted that as many as 25% of all pregnancies end in a miscarriage. Early miscarriages are an extremely common occurrence and may explain why historically, there has been a tradition of not announcing a pending birth until after the first trimester.

The signs of an early miscarriage are simply heavier periods and some women can go through their cycle without a clue that they have miscarried.

Overly Sensitive Pregnancy Tests

Home pregnancy tests work by testing a woman’s Human Chorionic Gonadotropin or hCG levels. This hormone is one of the first to increase during pregnancy. Many women who have been trying to get pregnant for a long period of time have access to high-end technology and testing methods which are able to pick up the slightest increase in the level of the hormone.

If you are testing shortly after conception, the level of hCG in your system will be very low. Testing at different times of the day or drinking too much liquid before testing can produce a negative pregnancy test result when the hCG levels are extremely low.

False Negative Pregnancy Test

Another reason why the second test may have a negative result is that the home pregnancy test may have been faulty and not worked properly. While this is not typically the case, it can occur on rare occasions.

Instead of taking a pregnancy test as soon as possible, it is better to wait until your cycle has run its course. Waiting until a period has been missed is much more accurate than taking a pregnancy test shortly after conception.