Pregnancy Stick You Spit On, Instead Of Pee On, Now Available Over The Counter

Women across the United Kingdom and Ireland can now opt for SaliStick pregnancy kits, the world’s first over-the-counter test that uses spit to test for conception instead of the usual pee.

According to the firm, the innovative iteration of a test kit works by having the user pool saliva in their mouth before inserting the collection foam at the immersion end of the wand to rotate for at least 90 seconds.

Once the indicator changes color, the collection foam can be connected to the analytical unit to determine results within five to 15 minutes. Clinical trials showed that the test was 95% accurate, a slightly lower number than standard urine tests.

For those willing to overlook the error of margin, the SaliStick is certainly a new way of testing for pregnancy that’s “cleaner, more straightforward, and easier.” Research showed that 68% of women would choose a saliva-based test over a urine test.

How exactly can spit be used to determine if one is carrying a child? Well, this is all due to the same hormone detected by other pregnancy tests: human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG).

The body produces this hormone very early into pregnancy and works on the principle of lateral flow—similar to that of a COVID-19 test—which is why users see two lines indicating a positive as well.

In the future, could other urine tests be turned into simpler test kits that only require saliva to work? Possibly, though, there may be some who’d rather opt for actual bloodwork to be 100% sure.

Shoppers can head over to Superdrug pharmacies to pick up a kit. 

[via Interesting Engineering and IFLScience, images via Salignostics]