topic Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits in Community Chat

Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

gellen — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:07:27 GMT

Has anyone ever tried any of these kits? Based on what you alread knew; did you find them accurate at all? Can you recommend any particular website? there are lots out there now for this sort of thing. I thought it might be a fun gift for a friend for whom impossible to find a nice gift Thanks. Gail

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

SilleeMee — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:16:55 GMT

I used Ancestry. I'm part Asian and I don't recommend them if you are looking for Asian background differentiation. Not sure if any of the other DNA kits do, however.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

World Traveler — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:27:03 GMT

@gellen Yes!

I tried three different ones, just to check for accuracy: Ancestry.com (because it seems to be the most common to choose), National Geographic (based on its reputation on research), and 23andMe (because it offers health information, if you pay for that part of it in addition to the DNA).

They basically agreed (probably use the same lab to test DNA); however, what I liked about 23andMe and the health information was that there were things it said that very few people know about me. And even though it uses the word "probably" a lot, it was always accurate when it gave me information about my "probable" hair color, my "probable" eye color, etc. That was interesting to me because my sister has totally different natural hair color, polar opposites on the color spectrum. And many more things I found useful and shared with my doctor.

If you only want to do one and can afford it, I recommend 23andMe.

I have given Ancestry.com as a gift at Christmas and the recipient was so, so very thankful. The person is African American and found it interesting that their DNA takes them back to Nigeria specifically, not just Africa. They are reading up on that country now and just loves learning about their ancestry.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Tuppermore — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:40:57 GMT

I am 65 and adopted. Back in 1953, all adoptions were closed. I really didn't care. I'm happy, have 4 children, 10 grandchildren, and a great husband that I have been married to for 46 years. However, my children had a burning desire to know. I received an Ancestry. com kit and a 23 & Me kit for Christmas. I received the results about a week ago. They were pretty much the same. The only differences went back about 6 generations. The people groups were slightly vague, but the areas of the world were similar.

23 & Me provided a great deal of health information which I did appreciate. I have no risk factors based on my DNA. The information regarding lifestyle choices that affect health based on my DNA were quite accurate. I drink more caffeine than I should, I carry more weight, and I do not sleep deeply. My husband and I had a good laugh about those characteristics. They fit me to a tee. I hope this is helpful.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Dominosmom — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:49:05 GMT

Hubby got 23&me for Christmas. Waiting on results. Takes about 6 weeks.This should be fun.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

dragonflyveb — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:49:28 GMT

I tested with Ancestry DNA and 23 and me. I thought I was strictly Northern European, but it turned out I have some English mixed in. That explains my fondness for scones! I haven't gotten my 23 and me back yet. I did the health along with the ancestry testing.

if you Google "best DNA tests," there are articles that compare the companies. It depends on what you are looking for.

Just a tip, you can get some of the kits from Amazon, and you don't have to pay the $10 shipping if you order direct from the companies.

Dragonfly

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

drizzellla — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:54:28 GMT

My husband used National Geographic. He was so disappointed with the results. They were quite general. In fact he took the results to our annual family reunion. Everyone that read it laughed and said, this could be just about anyone.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

chrystaltree — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 12:56:38 GMT

No. I don't have much trust in for profit companies and genetic screeing. I'd do it if it cost $40, for the fun of it. I know my family history on both sides, going back to the 1700's so the curiosity factor isn't there for me.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Caffeina — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 13:26:56 GMT

This might help, I remember seeing it when it aired.

https://www.today.com/video/are-home-dna-kits-really-accurate-jeff-rossen-investigates-1107520067532

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Dar321 — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 13:41:00 GMT

I just sent one in for My Heritage. Husband got it for me for my birthday. Waiting on results. Now I want to do the 23&me!

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Yardlie — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 14:30:47 GMT

@World Traveler ... I used 23andme also. Like you, I paid for the health information part. The "probably" (of course) means "more likely than not." It usually gives you a percentage that you are more likely than not to have a specific characteristic. It told me that I probably did not have freckles or red hair. I am a highly freckled redhead (Scotch-Irish). That part was inaccurate. Many other parts were right on. I also submitted my data (anonymously) to Promethease.com, and for something like $5 they send you a ton of additional information about your health. They do it so that they have a huge database for research purposes. Not all of that information was accurate. Again, they estimate your chances of having or carrying a feature or gene. They told me that I most likely would develop breast cancer due to the BRCA 1 gene. My doctor had run a more specific test for just that gene, and it came back negative for my developing breast cancer.

Also, with 23andme (as you probably) already know, they continue to send you new health information as they do more research. My two sisters had Ancestry done, and their results were almost identical to mine.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

ALRATIBA — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 14:38:16 GMT

We've used Family Tree DNA for all our testing.

Back in 2005, my local genealogy society hosted a Genetic Genealogy Seminar featuring that company. So - we had our first mtDNA and Y-DNA testing done by them in 2005.

Subsequently, we did upgrades to the initial testing and just a few months ago added Family Finder testing.

I don't know how one would gauge the accuracy of DNA testing. It is what it is. We already knew where our ancestors came from going back several hundred years. What we were interested in our "ancient ancestry."

At first glance we were surprised with the results ... but when you stop for a moment and recall the movement of people out of Africa ... into Europe and then across Europe .. it all makes sense. By looking at the mix - you can start to work out your own particular family's journey.

Two books worth reading are The Seven Daughters of Eve by Bryan Sykes (Oxford Univ.) and The Journey of Man by Spencer Wells.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Ainhisg — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 14:44:14 GMT

For those of you who have used 23andme--I looked on Amazon and there are two kits...a $79 kit and a $159 kit. Which one should I get?

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Sooner — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 14:52:14 GMT

Is anyone but me NOT enthusiastic about finding unknown family members?

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

quietly7 — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 15:06:07 GMT

I've been doing genealogy research for fifteen years, and my Ancestry DNA test results correlated well with what I already knew about my family history. I also gifted Ancestry DNA kits to eight other family members, and their results were accurate, too.

In addition to confirming family histories, DNA results can also dispel them.

My father-in-law was told that his grandmother's family were actually Russian Jews, despite the fact that they had baptismal and marriage certificates from the Catholic Church. We tested both him and my husband, and they had zero percent European Jewish ancestry.

My mother-in-law (deceased) often spoke of her Native American heritage; her grandmother was thought to be Cherokee. My husband and his sister, as well as some of their cousins, tested, and all came back without any Native American ancestry. It is possible there was Native American DNA at one time and it “diluted out”.

I think these kits make a very unique gift and may spark an interest in finding out more about one’s family history.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

dragonflyveb — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 16:09:28 GMT

@Ainhisg

I did the full 23andme testing. Waiting on results. I was just curious to see how accurate it would be.

one thing to be careful of is who can access your data, such as insurance or long term care companies. I think there are some limitations, but just be aware. Read the privacy notices. For example, 23&me has an option for chances of developing Parkinson's or Alzheimer's. You just never know what will be asked in the future on medical or insurance forms.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

SXMGirl — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 16:16:23 GMT

I did both Ancestry and My Heritage, results of which were almost identical and quite surprising. Because of the surprise, I am now planning on trying 23andme for the health aspects. As far as finding relatives, none of the matches were more than 1.1 percent, so I have no worries that anyone will be contacting me.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

Suziepeach — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 17:54:22 GMT

We are waiting for our results from Ancestry.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

NycVixen — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 18:01:48 GMT

I highly recommend 23andme. My ancestry and health reports were very detailed. I learned things about my ancestry that I never knew and connected with a family member. My friend did Ancestry.com and he was very disappointed since he got hardly no detailed information. He was amazed at my report and so was my father. Now, he wants to do 23andme as well.

Re: Ancestry.com and other DNA test kits

NycVixen — Sat, 17 Mar 2018 18:10:46 GMT

@quietly7wrote:

I've been doing genealogy research for fifteen years, and my Ancestry DNA test results correlated well with what I already knew about my family history. I also gifted Ancestry DNA kits to eight other family members, and their results were accurate, too.

In addition to confirming family histories, DNA results can also dispel them.

My father-in-law was told that his grandmother's family were actually Russian Jews, despite the fact that they had baptismal and marriage certificates from the Catholic Church. We tested both him and my husband, and they had zero percent European Jewish ancestry.

My mother-in-law (deceased) often spoke of her Native American heritage; her grandmother was thought to be Cherokee. My husband and his sister, as well as some of their cousins, tested, and all came back without any Native American ancestry. It is possible there was Native American DNA at one time and it “diluted out”.

I think these kits make a very unique gift and may spark an interest in finding out more about one’s family history.

In my case, 23andme confirmed my suspicions regarding Native American heritage from my grandfather. I still have a significant amount though it's not obvious looking at me whatsoever since I'm mostly European. Therefore, I don't think it would of diluted out from parent to child but from great great grandparents perhaps.