During a woman’s cycle, the most fertile time is at ovulation, when an egg is released from the ovary and makes its way via the fallopian tube to the uterus. In most women, ovulation takes place mid-cycle. This means that, if your cycle is normally 28 days, you will be most fertile around the 14th day. Some women, however, will ovulate closer to the beginning of their cycle, on the 12th day, for example, and others will ovulate closer to the end of their cycle. Knowing just when you ovulate will help you better plan your pregnancy.

Predicting Ovulation
The easiest way for a woman to become pregnant is to become expert at predicting precisely when ovulation occurs. Ovulation is a six to eight-day process culminating in the release of an egg from the ovary. During this process, a number of changes will take place within the body. Learning to recognize these changes will help you to pinpoint the time you are most likely to conceive.

The major predictors of ovulation are:

• an increase in body temperature, coinciding with the release of an egg.
• a change in consistency of the cervical mucus. At the beginning of the cycle, this mucus will be scant, thick, and often opaque in nature. When ovulation draws near, it will become thinner, much like egg-white, and very stretchy. This thinner mucus provides the perfect environment to facilitate the easy passage of sperm into the cervix and uterus. During ovulation, the thin, stretchy mucus is produced copiously.
• a feeling of bloating, often accompanied by breast tenderness, spotting, increased sexual desire, or pain in the lower abdomen known as mittelschmerz.
• an increase in the amount of salt in the saliva, caused by rising estrogen levels. While this is not visible, it can be easily measured using a special hand-held microscope, such as that included in the Luna™ Fertility Kit.

If you want to become pregnant, you should first learn to recognize your most fertile days. Ejaculated sperm can remain alive for up to three days, so intercourse taking place up to three days before or three days after ovulation can result in pregnancy. (Please note that sperm can, on rare occasions, remain alive for up to six days, making pregnancy a possibility for 12 days or so mid-cycle. If you do not want to risk pregnancy, you should use an alternative means of birth control during this time.)

Once you have learned to recognize your “special days,” you will know when you are most likely to conceive a baby. Congratulations!

Testing Your Fertility
with the help of Mother Nature

The Luna™ Fertility Kit contains a home test that allows you to determine the best time for conception. A drop of saliva is placed on a special magnifying viewfinder and allowed to dry. By interpreting the patterns that form, a woman can determine the various stages of her ovulation cycle.

The testing device takes up slightly more room than a lipstick and can be used anywhere there is natural or clear light. To determine your likelihood of conceiving, simply place a sample of your saliva on a clean slide, allow it to dry, and hold it up to the light. The crystal patterns formed by the dry saliva will reveal if you are fertile at that time.

Using the device consistently at home, you will be able to track your pattern of ovulation easily and conveniently. Used correctly, the test is 97 percent accurate in determining the time of ovulation.

The kit also contains two pregnancy tests, a digital thermometer, a monthly tracking chart with pencil, complete instructions and a carrying case. Available now from the pharmacy department at London Drugs

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