Can Alcohol Affect A Pregnancy Test?

Precap
Can alcohol affect a pregnancy test? No, alcohol doesn’t affect a pregnancy test results. Smoking and party drugs don’t affect PT. Fertility drugs which interfere with hCG production can affect a pregnancy test. Alcohol, smoking, and drugs adversely affect pregnancy course and baby’s health.

Alcohol is becoming mainstream. Almost 1 in 10 women consume alcohol in the USA. Be it for recreational purposes or a stress buster; more women are adopting alcohol. Sadly, even pregnant women don’t abstain from it.

Someone might have even told you that alcohol is, in fact, good for health. The latest study published on August 23, 2018, in The Lancet states that ‘no level of alcohol consumption improves health’.1

While we know that alcohol is bad for pregnant women, confusion prevails over alcohol’s impact on a pregnancy test. So in this article, we will answer, can alcohol affect a pregnancy test?

Did you know? The permissible limit of alcohol for women trying to conceive is only 1-2 units a week. This is a very negligible dose.

So here we have got the myth busters about drugs, alcohol, smoking and pregnancy tests.

Please note we strongly recommend that you stop these habits for the coming nine months for the safety of the baby. It is their right to be brought on this earth in the healthiest state. No excuse ever can be enough to justify doing wrong to an innocent. And drugs and alcohol adversely affect a baby’s health.

How does a pregnancy test work?

  1. A pregnancy test works on the simple principle of antigen-antibody reaction.
  2. It is not as complicated as it may sound. The antigen is a foreign particle and antibodies are detector particles.
  3. In this case, the foreign particles are your urine components.
  4. Once you are pregnant, your body produces the hormone hCG which comes along with your urine.
  5. The pregnancy test kit has hCG detector particles which detect only this particular hormone in your urine.
  6. Once they come in contact with each other, they give a colored reaction, and that appears as the test line you see.
Can Alcohol Affect A Pregnancy Test
Can Alcohol Affect A Pregnancy Test

Can alcohol affect a pregnancy test?

Now coming to the main subject of the article can alcohol interfere with a pregnancy test.

No, it cannot. Alcohol doesn’t affect a pregnancy test because the pregnancy test doesn’t have the detector particles for detecting alcohol.

Also, there are least chances that alcohol starts coming in your urine intact.

However, there is a problem with alcohol which indirectly may affect a pregnancy test.

  1. Alcohol depresses the brain, and hence you gradually lose control of your voluntary muscles.
  2. Therefore, you won’t be able to control your pee and will rush to the loo frequently.
  3. So your sample of urine will get diluted with very little hCG for the pregnancy test to detect.
  4. For taking a pregnancy test, you need a concentrated sample of urine.
  5. So yes in this manner alcohol does interfere with a pregnancy test.

Can smoking affect a pregnancy test?

  1. Smoking has no edible component. Yes, a part of the volatile stuff and smoke goes within you, and it does affect a lot of things.
  2. But here we are limiting our discussion only to pregnancy tests. In this case, again it won’t affect a pregnancy test. The pregnancy test is specific to hCG hormone.
  3. It is essential to mention here that smoking damages your fertility. One should stop smoking before trying to get pregnant.
  4. The withdrawal symptoms are horrible, and most of the times the person is not able to hold the urge.
  5. This is why doctors advise that as soon as you decide to become a mom you should refrain from such drugs and other intoxicating elements.

Can drugs affect a pregnancy test?

  1. No even drugs have their action centers in brain and muscle mass of the body. They cannot affect pregnancy test results.
  2. Drugs are the worst culprits for giving rise to abnormal pregnancies and leading to miscarriages.
  3. One should refrain from taking drugs whether or not trying to get pregnant. They are addictive, and the withdrawal symptoms are worse than the ones after taking drugs.

Can fertility drugs affect a pregnancy test?

Fertility drugs may affect a pregnancy test.

  1. Fertility drugs are combinations of various female hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and others.
  2. They can stimulate the production of hCG or other chemicals with a similar structure.
  3. Thus, the pregnancy test won’t be able to distinguish the source of hCG and will give a false pregnancy test.

So fertility drugs may interfere with pregnancy tests. This is primarily because a pregnancy test cannot detect the source of hCG. That is why it is recommendable that you always get a pregnancy blood test by a doctor.

Can alcohol affect my pregnancy?

After having discussed whether alcohol can affect pregnancy test, it is crucial to talk about this. While alcohol, drugs, and smoking might not interfere with your pregnancy test, they harm a pregnancy.

Alcoholism of the pregnant mother can cause fetal alcohol syndrome.

Complications due to alcohol consumption during pregnancy include premature labor, low birth weight, and mental retardation.

However, as mentioned above it is imperative to know that the dose of a substance decides its effects. If you only had a moderate amount of alcohol in the early pregnancy, it won’t cause any harm. This is because the body can metabolize a moderate amount of alcohol. The liver can detoxify toxins up to a certain limit.

The reason alcohol is later restricted for pregnant females is that pregnancy isn’t easy. As the trimesters pass by things get difficult. If you have had the history of using such intoxicants to relieve stress you might resort to higher doses. It is plainly a precaution!

You must see your doctor if you come to know that you are pregnant and discuss your drinking habits.

Can drugs affect my pregnancy?

Drugs during pregnancy are dangerous. Drugs such as DES can cause infertility in your offspring. It is the reason why so many women have to go to infertility clinics for no mistake on their part. Drugs during pregnancy can lead to severe abnormalities and complications.

Can smoking affect my pregnancy?

Smoking is even worse for any woman trying to become pregnant. Smoking can potentially harm females to make them infertile. A woman who wants to be a mother has to stop smoking right from the time she decides to get pregnant. Smoking can equally harm the male partner and his fertility. Smoking during pregnancy causes motor and nervous disabilities in the child.

It is a mother’s first duty to give her baby the best she can. No, we are not preaching you to sacrifice yourself. But think it this way that the baby is wholly dependent on you. 

What you eat goes inside the baby, the air your breath reaches him, and everything goes through you. 

You have control over a life. And as a woman who better understands care and support. It is easy to fall for drugs and alcohol but getting out is very difficult. You are wise enough to make the right decisions for yourself and your baby.

Footnotes

  1. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(18)31571-X/fulltext#article

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