Testing Saliva For Ovulation

Our bodies constantly speak to us without using words. By learning to read and understand the different clues and signals the body sends out, we are better able to know how our own body responds to life. When it comes to getting pregnant, there are definite clues the body sends out to alert us to timing for ovulation, menses, and many other functions.

Saliva Monitors: Ferns Growing in My Mouth?

We know that the basic means of determining ovulation - under normal conditions - is taking the basal body temperature and checking cervical mucus. A relatively new method on the market today is salivary ferning. It is done with the use of a monitor or mini microscope that tests saliva for predicting peak fertility or ovulation. Increased estrogen levels cause mucus membranes to excrete more salt when you are coming into the fertile stage of your menstrual cycle. The saliva fertility monitor measures the changes in the electrolytes in your saliva when the saliva is put on a slide and put into the monitor. Fern-like patters (hence the name ferning) appear when ovulation is about to begin. Our bodies are truly amazing.

The monitors are non-electronic devices with a lens, like a little microscope, that you put a little drop of saliva on and then view in the monitor. Just wait until the saliva dries and then focus the lens and view the dry saliva. If you are ovulating or about to ovulate, a crystal-like pattern that looks like a fern can be seen. This is when conception is most likely. If you're not ovulating, then the pattern is simply dots and lines, indicating there is no ovulation. If you're getting close to ovulation, in the transition stage, then you'll have a mix of dots, lines and some small fern-like crystals appearing. Ovulation will likely occur within three or four days from this point.

Safe, Easy to Use, and an Accurate Ovulation Test

These types of monitors are safe and affordable, and an accurate aid in determining ovulation. They are a boon to women who have irregular periods and are great for any woman who is trying to conceive. They do not require any handling of urine nor do they depend upon BBT or LH surges. You can predict ovulation with a saliva monitor up to five days prior to ovulation and you can test any time and any place because the unit is tiny, about the size of a tube of lipstick. When used as directed, these monitors are said to be 98% accurate for predicting ovulation.

Like All Ovulation Checking - Consistency is Important

In order to obtain the best results from using a saliva monitor, it is recommended that testing is done on a daily basis with the results recorded on a fertility chart or calendar. Test first thing in the morning before eating, drinking or brushing your teeth. Any of those activities will skew the results. If you can't test early in the morning, wait until at least two hours after a meal before trying the monitor for a test.

The saliva monitor can be used in conjunction with BBT and cervical mucus checks to verify, almost to the exact moment, when you are ovulating. It's getting easier all of the time to pinpoint ovulation.