STOP! Have you thought about the five foremost questions you need to ask before buying a home testing kit?  Read about test accuracy  and what can ruin a test result, which tests are legally  required  in a certain type court case, what are the downsides of home drug tests, and more.

As the Internet empowers consumers to take charge of their  health  and their  environment , the burden of  knowledge  and  accountability  has also shifted from doctors and legislators to the individual.  There is a tremendous  diversity  of diagnostic tests that can be purchased online and used in the privacy of one's own home.  This puts very  impressive  tool in the hands of the consumer.  But, as they saying goes, "With great power comes great responsibility."

Home testing kits that are available online can be both medical or non-medical in nature.

In the medical  type , there are standard diagnostic tests for diabetes, high cholesterol, pregnancy, hormone levels, fertility and paternity.  There are also tests for specific diseases such as STD's (sexually transmitted diseases) including HIV test kits.

Tests on the non-medical side include environment testing for pesticides, radon, mold, herbicides and many other pollutants.  Water testing kits are especially popular.

Before you pay money for  one of these tests, you  ought   to ask yourself some  important   questions.

1. Why do I want to buy an online home testing kit?  One of the main reasons people buy these kinds of tests online is for privacy.  Although not an issue for environmental testing, many people feel that there is a stigma attached to certain medical conditions.  Sexually transmitted diseases and tests for pregnancy and paternity are  regularly  considered very private affairs.  Of course, many people purchase home drug tests online for the same reasons.  However, please  avail yourself of  home diagnostic tests for medical reasons as a first step or a last resort.  Always follow up with  trained  medical staff.

2.  Do I have the skills to follow the test  directions  accurately?  This is a tricky one to answer unless you have the test kit in front of you, but here are some guidelines.  I call it the Ikea test.  Are you the  type  of  individual  who follows detailed  directions  well?  If not, home testing may not be for you.  If you don't do the tests exactly right, you might contaminate the sample and get a false positive or a false negative result.  Either way, you will have wasted your money, leaving you falsely reassured, or worried for no reason.  Take away?  If all your Ikea projects all have parts left over, forget about home testing.  Leave it to the professionals.

3.  What are the ethical implications of this test?  Another potential minefield here, but one you need to think about.  Some of the most popular home test kits on the market are for illegal or illicit drug testing.  You can now buy home drug tests for marijuana, cocaine, meth, heroin and other opiates.  There are even tests for legal substances such as alcohol, nicotine (tobacco) and caffeine.

The ethical  matter  arises because if you are taking any of these drugs, you don't  need  a test to  validate  it. So that leaves two possibilities.  One: you want to test someone else such as a son, daughter, or spouse.  Or two: you  intend  to test yourself so you can pass a drug screen by your employer  or your parents.

With the first, you obviously have a right to protect your children from the harm of illegal drugs.  However, many of these tests have an invasive quality that may make it difficult to collect the sample from an unwilling participant.  The most accurate form of drug testing is hair analysis but you need a sample of hair taken from near the skin.  Other tests use urine or saliva sampling.  There are spray tests that can indicate the presence of a drug but the link to actual usage is obviously weaker.

In the second case, you have to ask yourself if  possibly  it's time to  look for  further counseling for substance abuse. If you're risking your employment or academic future to get high, that's a pretty steep  cost  to pay - on top of the expense  of the tests themselves.  But if you're  worried  that second hand smoke might show up on the drug screen,  these  low-priced  tests may be worth the price for peace of mind.  Just don't inhale!

4Are there any legal aspects to to  reflect on?   With a lawyer on  nearly  every corner, you  want  to be  wary  that you are not infringing on the rights of others when you  make use of  these home diagnostic kits.  In a few very particular cases, the type of home kit you use can have legal implications.  Paternity testing is a case in point.  Only  a few  paternity tests are  acceptable  in court.  Make  sure  you use the right ones.  For more information, you can always check out our website.
5. Are the tests accurate?  This is  difficult  for you to  adjudicate  without having an independant lab at your disposal.  Most medical home testing kits have very high accuracy if they have been approved by the FDA.  The CLIA Waived tests are a special FDA  type  of tests that are designated as  safe,  accurate and  easy  to  make use of.   Many of these tests have better than 99% accuracy WHEN PERFORMED CORRECTLY.  If you do not  respect  the test procedures carefully, the results will not be accurate not matter how good the test is. 

Summary:  Home testing kits for either medical or non-medical tests can be a viable and  economical  choice  to no testing at all.  However,  if you have the option of getting a professional to do the testing for you,  particularly  for medical concerns, do that first.  In cases where privacy is a  key  concern, home testing provides an  excellent  option  for the empowered consumer.  Used  prudently,  with concern for  accurate  procedure, these tests can  bestow  peace of mind, or act as the  foundation  for  extra  testing.  Always  take into account  however,  that no test is  wholly  accurate.  several  tests may be  required  to  authenticate  any result.

For MORE TOTALLY FREE INFORMATION on all home testing kits, and links to our recommended suppliers, please visit Home-Testing-Kits.net