{"id":312,"date":"2024-07-09T14:49:08","date_gmt":"2024-07-09T18:49:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/?p=312"},"modified":"2024-07-18T11:32:51","modified_gmt":"2024-07-18T15:32:51","slug":"free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/","title":{"rendered":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips<\/h1>\n

By Ella Talley<\/h2>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/h1>\n

Have you ever heard the term \u201cpeeing on a stick?\u201d Often, this phrase is used in reference to the required procedure for many types of drug and pregnancy tests. However, before urine testing was adapted for these purposes, it was first developed as a way of measuring glucose for diabetes. Helen M. Free, along with her husband Alfred, were pivotal in the creation of a sensitive test that could determine the level of glucose in diabetes patients using a simple “dip and read” test stick. They revolutionized how medical analysis could be conducted in the comfort of our own home, as well as how results could be drawn more efficiently in hospital settings. Mrs. Free not only aided in this revolutionary invention, but also served as a role model for other female chemists, becoming president of the American Chemical Society and making contributions in both science education and outreach.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/h1>\n

Helen M. Free<\/a>, born in 1923, came from humble beginnings, raised by a single working father after her mother\u2019s death when she was young. Originally majoring in Latin and English in college, she soon switched to chemistry, a predominately male field despite the declining male workforce during World War II. After graduating, she accepted a job in quality control at Miles Laboratories (now part of Bayer) located in Elkhart, IN, whose main consumer product was Alka-Selzer’s tablets. While quality control was not her passion, she soon had the opportunity to join Alfred Free and his biochemistry research group<\/a>, where she thrived. Within a couple of years, the two were married, becoming lifelong partners in their lab\u2019s revolutionary research.<\/p>\n

Before the invention of the Frees\u2019 dip and read test stick, there was the tablet. The Free lab first produced a tablet that would change color according to the glucose amount found in dilute urine. With further calls for a more convenient and more sensitive test, the dipstick was born. It was a urine test strip that would turn a specific color upon the detection of a particular substance\u2014in Free’s case, glucose. The Frees not only tested their strip with various biological indicators of other diseases, but they also developed the ability to include more than one test on a single strip. This invention radically changed how medical testing could be conducted\u2014both in a hospital setting and, for the first time, at home.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/h1>\n

Free and her husband continued their research until 1982, when they both retired. Even after retirement, Mrs. Free contributed tirelessly to both consultant work and various roles in the American Chemical Society (ACS). She became chair of the National Chemistry Week task force, raised public awareness in the field of chemistry, and served as the third elected female president of the ACS in 1993. Today, she is established as one of the most highly regarded chemists, with two published books, multiple ACS awards, and induction into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.<\/a><\/p>\n

Next time you take any sort of at-home test, whether it a urine test or even a COVID-19 nasal swab, remember that an extraordinary woman by the name Helen M. Free gave you that freedom\u2014to conduct medical testing quickly and conveniently from the comfort of your own home.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips By Ella Talley Have you ever heard the term \u201cpeeing on a stick?\u201d Often, this phrase is used in reference to the required procedure for many types of drug and pregnancy tests. However, before urine testing was adapted for these purposes, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-312","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-featured","category-sci-blogs"],"yoast_head":"\nFree to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"\u00a0\u00a0Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips By Ella Talley Have you ever heard the term \u201cpeeing on a stick?\u201d Often, this phrase is used in reference to the required procedure for many types of drug and pregnancy tests. However, before urine testing was adapted for these purposes, […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"enact\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"enact\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"enact\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3\"},\"headline\":\"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\"},\"wordCount\":567,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Featured\",\"Sci-Blogs\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\",\"name\":\"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/\",\"name\":\"Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3\",\"name\":\"enact\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b0d0a098425b4b9f0d4d25ba9327fe8c410f10f84ae02084ebcf64287daf9f5c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b0d0a098425b4b9f0d4d25ba9327fe8c410f10f84ae02084ebcf64287daf9f5c?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"enact\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/author\/enact\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)","og_description":"\u00a0\u00a0Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips By Ella Talley Have you ever heard the term \u201cpeeing on a stick?\u201d Often, this phrase is used in reference to the required procedure for many types of drug and pregnancy tests. However, before urine testing was adapted for these purposes, […]","og_url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/","og_site_name":"Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)","article_published_time":"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"enact","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"enact","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/"},"author":{"name":"enact","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3"},"headline":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips","datePublished":"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00","dateModified":"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/"},"wordCount":567,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg","articleSection":["Featured","Sci-Blogs"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/","url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/","name":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips - Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg","datePublished":"2024-07-09T18:49:08+00:00","dateModified":"2024-07-18T15:32:51+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/22\/2024\/07\/Helen-Free.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/free-to-pee-helen-frees-role-in-revolutionizing-medical-testing-through-urine-test-strips\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Free to Pee: Helen Free\u2019s Role in Revolutionizing Medical Testing through Urine Test Strips"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/","name":"Early Navigation through Advanced Chemical Topics (EN+ACT)","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/19785478d5372a1fdb916d3a0b6687a3","name":"enact","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b0d0a098425b4b9f0d4d25ba9327fe8c410f10f84ae02084ebcf64287daf9f5c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/b0d0a098425b4b9f0d4d25ba9327fe8c410f10f84ae02084ebcf64287daf9f5c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"enact"},"url":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/author\/enact\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/312","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/60"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=312"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/312\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bsu.edu\/enact\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}