The Weird and Wonderful History of Pregnancy Tests

Most women you speak to these days will tell you the exact day they realised they were pregnant.

For me, it was a sudden outburst at my husband for burning my toast which triggered the “oh sh*t, I’m pregnant” realisation.

I had been having these emotional attacks for a week or so, and besides being completely out of character, they were also caused by an insane craving to eat nothing but toast and eggs “” so burnt toast was NOT an option.

Of course, like many women who come to this realisation on their own, I had to get proof before I would allow reality to sink in.

A quick trip to the shops and a little pee on the tip of plastic stick was the easiest way to confirm my suspicions, and sure enough, the two little blue lines appeared to confirm what my body was already screaming at me: “You’re pregnant, you idiot”.

I’m not sure if it was because I was impatient, or just HAD to know for sure, but my entire emotional state was reliant on that little plastic test and those two blue lines.

I’m sure I’m not alone here either … actually I know I am not.

Friends of mine keep packets of pregnancy tests in their cupboards, impatiently feeling the need to check their urine for traces of a pending baby before the little cell has even had a chance to travel down and nestle in the womb.

Confirmation of pregnancy is just so easy these days, which makes home pregnancy tests all the more valuable to us women. We rely on these tests more than we like to admit, especially if you’re a woman who is having trouble conceiving.

However, finding out you were pregnant through peeing on a plastic stick is only a relatively new source of confirming pregnancy for women, well, it’s been around for some 45 years, but it’s still new in my books.

Here is a little history of pregnancy tests, from ancient times to the 20^th century!

Ancient Egyptians

The ancient Egyptians used to have a woman urinate on bags of wheat and bags of barley. If wheat sprouted, it was a girl. If barley did, it was a boy. If neither did, there was no pregnancy.

Ancient Greeks

The Greeks figured that they could check by applying perfumed linen to the genitals. The mouth and nose, they said, would take on the odor of the perfume if the woman was pregnant. It sounds pretty gross, huh.

Medieval doctors

These smart fellows focused their attention on a woman’s urine by mixing it with things to predict pregnancy. They found a needle would rust red or black if the woman was pregnant.

Next Page: Pregnancy Test in 1900s

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