5 Helpful Tips for Peekaboo Gender Testing at Home Successfully

Determining your baby’s gender with an at-home test can be an exciting experience. While many parents find it a fun way to connect and plan for their little one’s arrival, it’s essential to approach at-home gender testing seriously to achieve the most accurate results. Here, you will find many helpful tips for successful at-home gender testing with Peekaboo.

5 Tips for Successful Peekaboo Testing

1. No Guys Allowed

Since the Peekaboo test looks for male DNA to determine gender, it’s essential not to contaminate your sample or the contents of this test with any male DNA before, during, or after sample collection. This includes your partner and any male children.

Even seemingly harmless sources of male DNA, like male dog or cat hair, can pose a contamination risk. Shed fur, dander, and even saliva from male pets can harbor DNA. If this pet DNA inadvertently mixes with the test sample, it can lead to a false positive result, mistakenly indicating the presence of human male DNA.

2. Proper Handwashing is Paramount 

Wash your hands thoroughly and allow them to air dry. Thoroughly washing hands before testing is vital for several reasons. Firstly, a person’s hands come into contact with a wide array of substances daily, including: 

• Oils
• Lotions
• Soaps
• Dust
• Dirt
• And More
  

Any residual substances on the hands can potentially contaminate the sample, leading to inaccurate results. Additionally, traces of male DNA (from touching surfaces, other people, or pets) could be present on unwashed hands. 

When you turn off the water, make sure not to touch the faucet handle with your hands. It likely has male DNA on it. Instead, use your elbow or ask a female friend for help.

Letting your hands air dry is equally as important as washing them. Using shared towels might introduce new contaminants or even reintroduce the same contaminants you just washed away back to the skin’s surface. 

3. Ensure Your Testing Space is Sanitized

Ensuring that the testing location – including any tools or surfaces – are free from contaminants significantly increases the chances for an accurate and reliable test outcome. Choose a flat surface to collect your sample, and before you start the collection process, clean the surface with household cleaner or soapy water. 

Much like how professional labs need clean and sterile environments for their testing to work best, home tests yield better results when a comparable degree of cleanliness and caution is considered. 

4. Stay Hydrated

Drink a glass of water 20 minutes before collection. Proper hydration is crucial when preparing for a blood draw, especially when using a lancet or click-style collection device. Hydration optimizes blood volume in vessels, leading to improved blood flow and more efficient sample collection. 

Conversely, dehydration can lead to vasoconstriction, where blood vessels narrow, reducing the blood flow in vessels close to the skin’s surface. Dehydration can also thicken a person’s blood, further complicating the sampling process. 

5. Female Helpers are Welcome

For some women who are needle and/or blood-averse, taking an at-home early gender test can be nerve-wracking. If you are anxious about the process, having a female friend or family member present can be reassuring. Feel free to allow a female friend, mother, or sister to step in and assist if needed. 

Not only can this help relieve some stress, but with other females present, there is no increased risk of sample contamination – as long as they also take the time to sanitize their hands properly.

Additionally, pregnant women with female partners can both participate in the testing process. For those with male partners, while direct physical involvement in the testing process is cause for contamination, technology offers a solution. A video call can help bridge the gap and allow them to share the exciting experience.

Peekaboo Lancet Collection Tips

Facilitating Blood Flow 

When preparing for the Peekaboo Lancet test, swing your arm in gentle circles beforehand. This motion helps to stimulate blood circulation. It encourages the blood to flow, reducing the likelihood of pricking your finger multiple times. 

In addition, opening and closing the hand in a repetitive manner before the finger 

prick further promotes blood flow. Both of these steps are simple but can be crucial.

Choosing the Best Spot on Your Finger

For an optimal experience, it’s advisable to prick the side of your fingertip rather than the pad or middle of the finger. The sides of the fingers have more blood vessels and tend to be less sensitive than the pads. Avoid pricking directly under the nail or too close to it, as this can be more painful.

Peekaboo Click Collection Tips

Standing Upright and Staying Relaxed

When using the Peekaboo Click test, remember to stand up straight and keep your arm relaxed. An upright posture ensures that your arm’s natural blood flow is optimized, promoting better circulation. By standing straight, you also allow gravity to assist in the collection process.

Keeping the arm relaxed can also be helpful when gender testing at home. Much like what you are told when donating blood, keeping the muscles in the arm relaxed reduces the likelihood of blood vessel constriction.

Remaining Patient

You may notice that for the first few minutes of the collection process, no blood has been collected in the device. There’s no need to worry. In many cases, it takes a few minutes before blood from the arm begins to flow freely into the collection device. Be patient and refrain from pressing or squeezing around the collection site, as this can disrupt the natural flow and potentially cause bruising.