According to studies, couples who use urine tests to monitor their fertility are more likely to become pregnant.
Women who identified their most fertile days had a monthly conception rate of up to 28%.
Those who engaged in sexual activity at will had an 18% chance of becoming pregnant each month.
However, the researchers from the London-based Cochrane research center emphasized that only urine tests were supported by evidence.
The verdict is still out on cycle-tracking apps, which millions of women around the world have downloaded.
Dr. Tatjana Gibbons, who conducted the study, emphasized the need for additional research into any detrimental impacts of scheduled sex, such as an increase in relationship stress.
Increasing numbers of couples attempting to conceive are employing fertility awareness-based strategies, which involve using ovulation data to time sexual activity, according to experts.
These can be derived from period-tracking apps — which forecast when the ovary is most likely to produce an egg — as well as monitoring cervical discharge, cramps, and period dates, as well as assessing the temperature.
Couples can also spend over £100 on urine-testing gadgets to determine when ovulation occurs.
These tests require women to urinate on a stick, which is then placed into a digital monitor and confirms ovulation.
The tests detect an increase in luteinizing hormone in the urine, which is caused by the discharge of an ovary.
The analysis examined six trials including a total of 2,374 women seeking spontaneous conception.
The team sought to assess the effect of scheduled sexual activity on live birth rates, pregnancy rates, time to pregnancy, and quality of life.
In addition, they aimed to identify any negative effects of timed relationships, such as stress generated by a lack of spontaneity and performance pressure.
The findings, which will be presented today at the annual conference of the European Society for Human Reproduction and Embryology in Milan, indicate that timed sex based on the results of urinary ovulation tests gave the best results.
The researchers were unable to determine if timing intercourse by any approach resulted in a difference in the rates of live births and pregnancies.
According to the researchers, this information was only accessible to 160 women across two trials, and the evidence was of poor quality.
While there appeared to be benefits for couples attempting to conceive for less than a year, there were insufficient data to tell if timed sex increased the chances of people with fertility issues who had been trying for longer.
Dr. Gibbons of the Nuffield Department of Women’s and Reproductive Health at the University of Oxford stated, ‘This update demonstrates an advantage of timed intercourse utilizing urine ovulation detection.
Before doctors can encourage this technique, however, additional information is needed on the detrimental consequences of timed intercourse and its usefulness in other groups, such as those with unexplained infertility.
Future research should also evaluate the utilization of approaches based on fertility awareness by couples attempting to conceive.
HOW DO OVULATION TESTS FOR URINE WORK?
Urine tests for ovulation function by assessing luteinizing hormone levels.
This hormone surges approximately one to one and a half days before ovulation.
Additionally, some tests assess the hormone estrone-3-glucuronide.
It accumulates in urine around the time of ovulation and thins and lubricates cervical mucus.
Couples can use the tests, which are approximately 90% accurate, to help them plan a pregnancy.
How the tests are utilized varies by manufacturer. However, they need a woman to either place a few drops of urine on the test, hold it in her urine stream – similar to a pregnancy test – or dip the test in a cup of urine.
The test can then be read by seeing colored lines or by inserting the gadget into a monitor.
Typically, results are available within five minutes.
