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buy kits online as well as over-the-counter at most drugstores and
supermarkets (they're usually near the pregnancy tests).
How do ovulation kits function?
There are two kinds of ovulation kits:
1) Urine-based OPKs test your urine for an increase in luteinizing
hormone (LH). This usually happens within a day and a half before
ovulation. There is always a small amount of LH present in your
blood and urine, but the level will go up by about two to five times in
the days before ovulation. A test stick usually shows a positive result
about 24 to 36 hours before your egg is released, so plan to have sex
(or be inseminated) during that window if you want to maximize
your chances of getting pregnant.
2) Salivary ferning kits help you tell when ovulation is imminent by
showing changes in your saliva. As your estrogen levels rise in the days
before ovulation, the salt content of your saliva increases. If you put a
drop of saliva on a glass slide, the salt may dry and crystallize into a
fern-like pattern that you may be able to see with a pocket-size portable
microscope. The ferning pattern should indicate that you'll ovulate in
