Pregnancy Test Reviews

OV-Watch Fertility Predictor

The OV-Watch fertility monitor detects the chemical surge of chloride ions on the skin in order to predict ovulation. It was developed by Pheromone Sciences (now called Sernova Corporation), and is marketed by HealthWatchSystems of Florida.

According to Sernova:

The monitor set a new benchmark in family planning and provides a more reliable and user-friendly approach to natural, cycle-based fertility status measurement. [It] is a non-invasive method of predicting ovulation and the fertile window of women through the measurements of sweat ion changes on the surface of the skin.

It is a small wristwatch-like device, containing an interactive microprocessor combined with a biochemical sensor allowing it to produce data that predicts the fertility status of the user (not-fertile, fertile or ovulating). The computed results can then be viewed on the LCD screen of the device and/or the user can be alerted via optional audio signals.

A dedicated OV-Watch website is here, and it includes links to more than 60 success stories from couples who became pregnant after using the watch.

The Los Angeles Daily News wrote (no longer online):

"Honey, my watch says it's time to ... make a baby." You could be speaking - or hearing - those words, if only you had the OV-Watch fertility predictor, which looks like a normal runner's-type digital watch but instead tells women the six days per month during which they're primed for pregnancy.

Forget those nasty urine sticks - which, in case you didn't know, get covered with urine - or the ultra-traditional temperature-taking method. Those methods can miss the critical four-day period before ovulation, also known as prime time for making babies, according to device-maker HealthWatchSystems.

How does it work? The OV-Watch uses a patented biosensor, which detects chloride ions in a woman's sweat. (You do sweat, don't you? Trust me, you do).

Studies have shown that these tell-tale ions surge three days prior to the estrogen surge, four days prior to the luteinizing hormone surge (which is detected in urine tests) and five days prior to ovulation, collectively known as prime fertility time.

In fact, according to research done at Duke University, 66 percent more pregnancies occur, on a monthly basis, for women using the OV-Watch as compared to those relying on the old-fashioned urine sticks.

The catch? It may look like a Timex, but the OV-Watch costs $189, which includes a three-month supply of ion sensors. But considering the price of fertility treatment at a doctor's office, that's small change. And you can be sure the guy in your life will be intrigued by a digital watch that says, "It's time to do it."

KGO-TV in San Francisco featured the device, and said:

If you're trying to get pregnant, it could be a handy little tool. It's a wrist-watch that doubles as an ovulation predictor. The manufacturer says research indicates it's more accurate than other such devices.

Amy Stevens uses a calendar to keep track of her cycle -- something many women trying to have a baby do, but for Amy and her husband, getting pregnant was an 18-month long ordeal.

...Eldon Schriock, M.D., Pacific Fertility Center: "One of the most common mistakes this may prevent is people tend to try to hit the day of ovulation and they end up having sex too late."

...The price tag of nearly $200 for the watch and a three months supply of sensors may seem steep, but not to Amy Stevens. After four months of wearing the watch, she's now pregnant.

Amy Stevens: "The best investment I ever made."

Complete Fertility wrote:

If you want convenience and never a mess, then the OVWatch is your monitor. It even works while you sleep! Just strap on the OVWatch at night and when you wake the next day, read your fertility result as if checking the time. The OVWatch works by detecting changes in the chemical composition of your perspiration. As with ovulation scopes, an increase in the estrogens cause changes in both the composition of saliva and sweat. The OVWatch takes computer readings every 30 minutes while you sleep to detect a jump in the amount of chloride ions in your skin. Also tells you which cycle day you are on. Requires that you change the biosensor each cycle.

The Babies Online website features a couple of consumer reviews, including this:

It was off by four days the last month I used it. It does seem an accurate predictor MOST months but not any more accurate than temperature taking or Ovulation Predictor Kit.

You may prefer this method though, but it's not a miracle worker. After four months of use I'm still not pregnant, but it verified what I already thought were my cycles fertile days.

Not cheap, even if you borrow the watch, the sensors are $30/pop.

However, it did work the first month for my friend, we will call her Fertile Myrtle.

* Get the Latest Price on the OV-Watch Fertility Predictor.
  

October 24th, 2006
Updated: November 10th, 2007 
 

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