Tracking ovulatory cycles is one of the most important things women can do in order to increase their chance of conceiving and have a greater overall understanding of their fertility. However, health conditions such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) and irregular hormone levels may impact the ease and accuracy of most fertility trackers, leaving women with insufficient information to accurately predict and track their ovulation pattern.
Thankfully, Mira has introduced one of the best fertility trackers that takes all factors into account, including hormone values, in order to provide women with the most accurate results possible in regards to their fertility and ability to conceive.
In this article, we’ll review the Mira Fertility Tracker and discuss the key features that set it apart from other popular brands. We’ll also include actual customer reviews along with a comparison against other leading brands in respect to pricing and overall quality.
TL;DR: What is the Mira Fertility Tracker?
- The Mira Fertility Tracker is superior when it comes to analyzing and tracking hormones for fertility.
- Mira provides actual hormone numbers and is ideal for women who struggle with irregular periods, PCOS, and infertility
- Its tracking device is pocket-sized yet contains the power of a hospital-laboratory.
- Mira accurately measures luteinizing hormone (LH) and estrogen metabolites in your urine providing you with true fertility hormone levels.
- The tracker can be synced to its app which downloads the data and uses AI to accurately predict ovulation.
Pros and Cons of Mira Fertility Tracker
Pros
- Convenient and shipped right to your doorstep in a discreet box
- Available on direct website and Amazon
- Tracker is able to sync with app to upload data and analyze results
- The app tracks LH and estrogen levels, calculates ovulation predictions, and provides other details about your menstrual cycle, BBT, cervical mucus, and more!
- Studies for both the LH and estrogen tests have shown accuracy to greater than 99% when compared to in-hospital laboratory testing.
Cons
- Some users have reported issues with recent updates to the app
- The device requires about 15 minutes to read a testing wand, which is not optimal for testing on-the-go.
- Initial bundle starts well over $100.
- 90-day money-back-guarantee is only available if no LH surge was detected in your cycle while using it properly (refunds for other returns are on a case-by-case basis)
Mira Fertility
Mira is focused on empowering women with knowledge of their quantitative hormone levels because women are individuals with unique ovulatory patterns.
The company was recognized by the Consumer Electronics Show as the “Best Startup of CES in 2018”. Later that September, Mira launched its product at the TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2018, where it was also a finalist highlight.
Tracking Ovulation
In general, ovulation occurs sometime during the end of a period but before the start of a subsequent menstrual cycle. The ovulatory cycle begins with a surge, or rise, in estrogen levels, specifically estradiol, resulting in elevated estrogen levels for several days.
Estradiol is responsible for endometrial thickening and stimulation of other hormones such as LH and follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH). While FSH stimulates follicle growth in the ovaries essentially ripening the egg, LH is responsible for releasing the egg from the ovary.
One basic method of tracking ovulation is the calendar method. This requires you to know the average number of days in your menstrual cycle and the start of your last cycle.
Many apps and websites offer this estimate but unfortunately, an irregular cycle will not produce an accurate prediction. Another method is observing cervical mucus throughout your cycle.
As you near ovulation, your cervix produces thicker and stickier mucus, which is more habitable for sperm. However, mucus thickening and excretion can be altered by medications, stress, illness, and other factors.
Basal body temperature (BBT) is another basic method used to predict ovulation. This requires you to test your basal body temperature – preferably rectal or vaginal, but oral temperature will suffice – at a specific time each day.
As ovulation occurs, the body’s temperature rises but this slight rise is easily overshadowed by illness, alcohol, smoking, irregular sleep patterns, stress, etc.
Predicting ovulatory cycles becomes more accurate with LH urine test strips or OPKs. Similar to a pregnancy test, these strips offer lines and smiles to indicate your LH is detectable in your urine.
These rudimentary symbols appear faint with low levels and dark with high levels, which you may then transfer to your tracking app of choice. Unfortunately, women with irregular cycles and PCOS may still miss their LH surge simply because their levels and ovulatory window vary.
Getting Pregnant with PCOS
With an estimated 70-80% infertility rate, trying to conceive (TTC) with a PCOS diagnosis is not impossible, but it is significantly harder. With PCOS, imbalanced hormones cause irregular development of the egg, which often affects the release of the egg from the ovary; more often than not, an egg is not released, which is called an anovulatory cycle.
In addition to this, hormone imbalances may cause more than one peak in a cycle leading to inaccurate tracking while using OPKs and resulting in a missed fertile window. Knowing your actual hormone levels and how they fluctuate gives you a more predictable ovulatory cycle – Mira gives you this.
Additionally, when TTC with PCOS, your doctor may place you on a medication called clomiphene (more commonly known as Clomid). This medication will increase the number of follicles your ovaries produce to increase the chance of producing and releasing an egg.
Timing is everything when TTC and unfortunately, PCOS alone increases the difficulty of predicting an accurate ovulatory cycle, but again, the Mira Fertility Tracker gives you control by providing you with quantitative hormone levels.
Mira Fertility Tracker
So how does the device work? The egg-shaped device comes in a protective case and will fit in the palm of your hand.
The testing wands come individually wrapped and although do not fit in the case, they are small and discreet enough to stash in a purse or bag. The tracker itself syncs with your phone using Bluetooth capability and “beeps” when it is connected.
Once connected to the app, the tracker syncs, records, and explains your LH and estrogen levels.
How Does Mira Work?
Mira uses fluorescent immunoassay testing in a palm-sized smart tracking device; basically, it is a hospital-grade, point-of-care testing analyzer for your own home use. Using it is simple.
Collect your morning urine in one of the provided urine cups. Dip the testing wand into the urine for 10 seconds.
Put the wand into the tracker and wait 15-16 minutes for it to read and analyze your result. Using the algorithm, the app will tell you when to test based on your hormone levels and menstrual cycle.
Mira Fertility App
The app itself is free and does not require a subscription. The app has been available for Apple users since 2018 but was available for Android users since late 2019.
For IOS users, the name of the app is Mira Fertility & Cycle Tracker; if you are an Android user, the app is called Mira Fertility & Ovulation Tracker.
After logging in and syncing your Mira Tracker, you will be asked several questions to get you started. The home screen will tell you when you should test.
Although the important part of the app is the testing and predicting algorithm, it offers many features to track on your calendar. These tracking features include sex, pregnancy, mucus, temperature, weight, mood, symptoms, and a note section.
Additionally, the Mira Insights blog is available on the app to empower you with information about hormones, PCOS, fertility, pregnancy, and more.
When Can I Start Using Mira?
The great thing about Mira is you do not need an exact last period to get started tracking; even an estimated date will do. It is important to note, you should test the same time each day and drinking water within 2 hours prior to testing is not suggested.
As with many urine tests, drinking water may dilute the substrates tested in your urine resulting in an inaccurate reading. However, if you have recently miscarried, the company suggests waiting until after your first period.
Mira Fertility Reviews
Overall, Mira Fertility Tracker is loved by many women. Success stories of women with PCOS and fertility struggles flood various review sites.
Some women who have used other methods of ovulation tracking with no success have found themselves pregnant after simply two cycles of testing with Mira. Additionally, women are empowered by knowing their actual hormone levels and not a qualitative marking on a stick.
Unfortunately, the flaws of Mira appear not to be with the device but rather with the app. According to reviews on Google Play for the Android app, Mira Fertility & Ovulation Tracker app has been “glitchy” and “buggy” with it receiving a 2.3-star rating out of 5.
However, the company provides feedback to users and indicates they are continually updating the app. The IOS app has a rating of 3.1 stars out of 5 but has far fewer ratings.
Mira vs Competitors
Competitors of Mira are few and far between because nothing provides quantitative hormone levels like it. Mira is truly groundbreaking.
The ClearBlue Fertility Monitor with Touchscreen analyzes LH and estrogen urine strips to determine hormone levels; however, these levels are qualitative and shown to users on the screen with the words low, medium, and high, which is insufficient for women with abnormal hormone levels.
Along with this, it is affected by Clomid, hormone replacement therapy, and drugs that affect hormones such as tetracycline. Short ovulatory cycles may be undetected and therefore completely missed, which means another month of waiting.
Additionally, with its inability to be used with many medications, this is simply not an option if you are on any of those medications or anticipate requiring them. With the initial expense being well over $100 and more with additional testing strips, you may find this option completely unusable if put on hormone therapy.
Another fertility tracking method is OvuSense, which uses real-time overnight vaginal temperature readings to more accurately predict when ovulation is occurring. This requires a paid monthly subscription for data downloads.
Similar to Mira, it is HSA/FSA eligible and is shipped in discreet packaging. However, similar to BBT tracking, medication, alcohol, and irregular sleep patterns all affect the data.
Some medications may affect temperature readings as well. Additionally, it may not be used if bleeding; so if you spot or have irregular bleeding patterns, this device is not for you.
Mira Fertility Pricing
Mira Fertility Plus Starter Kit, which includes 10 estrogen and LH wands, is $199. However, Mira Fertility is dedicated to helping women – all women.
What does this mean for you? They have made the device more affordable with a payment plan through Sezzle for US and Canadian customers with a 25% down payment and interest-free, 25% biweekly payments.
Additionally, you may reschedule a payment for no fee. This will not affect your credit score. Replacement testing wands are sold in boxes of 20 as Mira Fertility wands (LH only) for $45 and Mira Fertility Plus Wands (LH and estrogen) for $65.
Is Mira HSA/FSA Eligible?
Mira is HSA/FSA eligible for most plans. If you have a card with sufficient funds for your HSA/FSA, simply use it like a credit card during checkout.
Does Mira Fertility Tracker Work?
Mira Fertility Tracker does work and the company stands by this with a 90-day money-back guarantee if an LH surge is not detected within 90 days with proper use of the product.
Take-Home Message
Although the product is new and the app has some flaws, the Mira Fertility Tracker is the best option for tracking your quantitative hormone levels at home. Without providing true, numeric hormone levels, you may be misled and may miss a month of TTC.
Mira takes the guesswork out of comparing faint lines to darker lines by measuring accurate hormone levels. Additionally, knowing not only your LH levels but also your estrogen levels provides a more accurate prediction especially when used in conjunction with their ovulatory algorithm.
Mira may be expensive but with coupon codes and HSA/FSA eligibility, the cost becomes reasonable especially when considering the capabilities of the device itself. Mira Fertility Tracker helps women achieve their fertility dreams by equipping them with knowledge from unparalleled technology.
So do you need Mira? If you want the best in fertility tracking, yes, you need Mira.
