topic Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice in Community Chat

DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

bonnielu — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 13:34:20 GMT

I just finished reading a loooong chart of comparisons. Very confusing to me. I want to test first up my hubby. He may have an interesting background that was hidden for years. He has no other family members except a sister who is not interested. If there is anyone out there that has had any of the tests could you please post.

1. cost 2. is the cost per person or per family members 3. does testing show mother and fathers side if you are a male... or a female. In other words which is more valid. 4. best comprehensive testing agency 5. access to information 6. privacy 7. are we a target 8. does it show medical information as in diseases that run in the family.

I know so many questions. But I am one curious person. Hubby can pass and has been accepted by many minority communities all lthinking he is one of them. Crazy but true.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

tedEbear — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 14:08:33 GMT

bonnielu- I have heard that there is just a $99.00 fee. That one is National Geographic. You could look online for the different tests costs and all the info you need to make an informed decision. I had to chortle a bit at your last paragraph, because my thought was" what, a gerbil?" I don't normally think gerbil about anything. You might ask your Doctor if he has any recommendations for a lab.

My DGD is cacausion/Asian/ and passes for the human race. Good Luck on your testing. Let us know what the tests show.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

athenian — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 14:48:54 GMT

I've done both Ancestry and Nat'l Geo. Both $99, but Ancestry has frequent sales for $79. Nat'l Geo was useless to me since it could give no info closer than 8000 years ago because there were not enough matches to my genotype. I am very ordinary english, irish, welsh extraction. Your data does help in their project to trace human migration through DNA. Ancestry gave bread and butter info about where I'm from, which is all I wanted.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

SXMGirl — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 14:53:21 GMT

I have given thought to having this done and for some reason am leaning toward 23and me, just because of reviews.

If you are concerned about what genetic diseases are common to your ancestry, then I think this is a start. While I have always thought that I was French/Italian, my family doctor says that my serious thyroid issues are/were found heavily in the Black Forest of Germany. This just makes me curious, which is the only reason that I would probably do the testing.

Some people do this to try and connect with other unknown family--not sure how that even works.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Moonchilde — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 17:53:33 GMT

There have been several threads on this subject that are full of the information you want. Search for "DNA" in the forum search bar and the threads come up. I think the most recent info is in the "Ancestry DNA" and "DNA kit" threads.

These kits are good for ethnicity and helpful in genealogy, but if you're hoping if they will tell you that you have the specific genes that cause this or that disease, that's not what Ancestry, 123andme and FTDNA are designed to do. The most health info that is provided, of the 3, is from 123andme and it's not much and rather vague.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

athenian — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 18:28:05 GMT

@SXMGirl My family also has thyroid issues. This is on what we call the German side, but they are from the Palatinate on the border between France and Germany. That area was French or German depending on who won the last war. Perhaps it is the same for your family.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

SXMGirl — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 19:06:56 GMT

Thanks, athenian, for the info.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

morganjen — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 19:39:17 GMT

23andMe is available at a sale price on Gilt now:

https://www.gilt.com/city/national/offer/23andmemay2016?utm_medium=affiliate&PID=4845231&utm_campaign=GC%3AAffiliate&utm_source=CJ&AID=12003826&utm_content=4845231&pkey=gcaffiliates

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Anniecamp — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 19:44:36 GMT

Does anybody know the difference in what the testing of male or female is?

I remember one of the threads mentioning it, but don't know why it would make a difference. Something about if you're looking for lineage of your father, it's best to have a male tested.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

scotnovel — Fri, 24 Jun 2016 20:46:19 GMT

Ancestry has a FAQ page that might answer your questions better than getting things here second hand. Other sites that do the DNA testing likely also have something similar.

https://dna.ancestry.com/en/legal/us/faq

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Tinkrbl44 — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 00:29:39 GMT

@bonnielu wrote:
I just finished reading a loooong chart of comparisons. Very confusing to me. I want to test first up my hubby. He may have an interesting background that was hidden for years. He has no other family members except a sister who is not interested. If there is anyone out there that has had any of the tests could you please post.

1. cost 2. is the cost per person or per family members 3. does testing show mother and fathers side if you are a male... or a female. In other words which is more valid. 4. best comprehensive testing agency 5. access to information 6. privacy 7. are we a target 8. does it show medical information as in diseases that run in the family.

I know so many questions. But I am one curious person. Hubby can pass and has been accepted by many minority communities all lthinking he is one of them. Crazy but true.

@bonnielu

Are you a target for what?

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Yardlie — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 15:11:26 GMT

@bonnielu, I just did the 23andme test, but have not yet received my results. It will probably be the end of July before I receive them. I recently saw a video on You Tube where the lady did both tests and compared the results. She received two pages of results from the Ancestry site (the $99 one). She received 16 pages of results from 23andme. It is double the cost (although someone posted that there is a special), but I think it is worth it for the medical information you receive. I think the Ancestry tests are cheek swabs. The 23andme test is a saliva test...you spit into a vial. I could not find the video again to post it, but I will look more tomorrow. Right now, we have company.

There is a site where you can send your "raw data" once you receive the results, and they will analyze it...literally instantly. You send the results to promethease.com/ondemand. For $5, they will send you back a lot of medical information. One person said they received the results in 10 minutes. So...you might want to do the less expensive Ancestry one and then send the results to promethease. I don't know how accurate promethease is, but it looks like a legitimate site. The person who sent their results there seemed very satisfied. For $5, I will send my 23andme results there just to compare the results and see how accurate they are.

I'm not concerned about the security of the whole thing. They do not release your information to 3rd parties. They use it for research, and I am more than happy to participate in medical research. Someone once mentioned they were concerned that insurance companies could discriminate against you if they find out your results. Well, that just can't happen with the new insurance laws.

Have fun doing whichever test you choose!

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Plaid Pants2 — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 15:14:24 GMT

With the Ancestry you spit in to a vial.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Yardlie — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 15:27:44 GMT

@Plaid Pants2 wrote:
With the Ancestry you spit in to a vial.

Interesting. That must be with the more expensive $99 test. My sister did the less expensive Ancestry test (for $50 with a Groupon coupon). It was just a cheek swab, and all she received was the results broken down into four ethnicities...European, Subsaharan African, Asian, and the fourth ethnic group was (I think) Indian.

Even that was fascinating, as we had 5% African in us...don't know where that came from. I am a very fair-skinned redhead. We had done our family tree, and there was no sign of that...but family trees do not take always take into consideration adoptions, fostered children who just used their foster families last name, "illegitimate" children, things like people who used to have slaves being intimate with them, and nowadays, there are sperm donors.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

ROMARY — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 15:48:14 GMT

One of the N/P's and her husband had it done..........she was surprised that she's related to a certain nationality. I don't recall which one, though. Also, we know folks who actually spent extensive time in their heritage country and found a very interesting background (to say the least), going way, way, way back. They did a lot of research there, asking around, reading birth records, etc.( Probably something similar to 'Who Do You Think You Are' episodes. As I've said before, the Brooke Shields episode was very enlightening. She finally figured out exactly why she had an extreme wish to study French at Princeton, etc., from what she's said.)

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

cosmic1 — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 16:03:28 GMT

If you can afford it, I would recommed yhat your husband do the Y testing on Family tree Dna. This will show his halogroup and the male line of descent in addition to where his ancestors may have originated. He may find relatives as well. The female version of that is the mitochondrial Dna test that they have. You will see your haplogroup which is passed from mother to daughter in every generation.

If you just want the autosomal analysis, then ancestry is a good one. Of all the sites, if you join, they have the best tree building tools.

Good luck. It is really interesting once you get into it.

Re: DNA testing for genetic genealogy Help Advice

Yardlie — Sat, 25 Jun 2016 19:20:38 GMT

@bonnielu ... You can watch the following video on You Tube. However, she has the two tests mixed up. She writes a correction down below the video. The Ancestry test was the less expensive one, and she received a 2-page report. The 23andme test was twice as expensive, but she received a 16 page report. Have fun checking out your ethnicity! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dq7sg2RzM0I