Re: Ancestry DNA testing

CelticCrafter · ‎03-09-2010

Has anyone been watching Long Lost Family on TLC?

It's really just an hour long commercial for the Ancestry DNA testing and that's how they are finding the biological family.

Stray · ‎04-20-2013

@Moonchilde wrote:
I had mine done through ancestry dot com. I would stick to ancestry or Nat Geo. 23 and me was stopped from advertising/soliciting customers several years ago for false advertising and got in trouble with the govt. They have just started in again, with a different pitch to skirt the govt issues and more careful what they promise. Their ads have targeted wanting to know about potential diseases, while ancestry and nat geo are about your ancestors/ethnicity etc.

I would steer clear of any service that mentions anything medical - those would be the ones most likely to do something untoward with the results.

You can get "deals" from time to time. I paid $99 for the ancestry testing. Nat Geo charges more. My results matched 98% with what I already knew about my ancestry, so I'm pretty sure they are accurate.

@Moonchilde- I had mine done 2 years ago and it was quite accurate. I had questions re my paternal heritage but the maternal side was quite accurate. I haven't had any solicitations or issues. I think it was $79.

Stray · ‎04-20-2013

@Plaid Pants2 wrote:
I did Ancestry several years ago, because I was interested in my heritage.

My co worker did 23&Me. They will tell you if you are prone to developing certain diseases. That was giving the company too much access to my genetic information.

My co worker didn't care.

Ancestry did the medical portion at one time, stating which diseases you were prone to based on heritage...like Tay-Sachs or Sickle Cell etc but it was illegal in some states and it was discontinued as it is considered "medical advice/treatment"

Stray · ‎04-20-2013

My friend had an expected result. Ancestry notified her of someone with a very close match to her DNA. They contacted the other party for permission and they spoke and met. Turns out her mother had a child when she was very young and put her up for adoption and no one knew. My friend was thrilled and met with her. Her sister was a teacher and really nice. So she approached her Mom wth the news who was furious and did not want to speak to or meet her daughter. She felt the child had a better life than she could offer....but, the woman did not have a happy life and was under care for depression and her seemingly nice adoptive parents were not so nice...she was very happy about finding her mother but crushed when she wanted no further contact with her. So sometimes be careful what you wish for.....

Stray · ‎04-20-2013

@151949 wrote:
You do not even have to try hard to go on the internet and get anyone's personal information like address,phone # and the like.All you need is their name.Anyone who thinks they are securely anonymous is only fooling themselves.

@151949- not to mention the info gathered though our phones and PCs, IPad....far more scary than my DNA to me.

Kalli · ‎03-11-2010

I've never sent for DNA testing. But I do have lots of info because my relatives have researched my family tree and there's info back over 100 years. Three of my grandparents were Irish and all the way back as far as we know, all Irish names. They came from 2 different counties in Ireland.

Mom's mom was first generation in USA from Austria. There's a very good chance many of her relatives who stayed behind were killed during the holocaust.

Moonchilde · ‎05-23-2010

@chickenbutt wrote:
@goldensrbest wrote:
I just today got my results back, no way could this be correct, my dads mom was half american indian, for sure, no doubt, and i showed no american indian at all.

That's distressing. Does the place you used take DNA or just try to track your lineage otherwise?

If it's that far off (I don't know which one), it doesn't seem right that they take your money and then give you some random results.

The testing is *matrilineal*, meaning it's not going to show DNA information on the father's side of the family. If no material was submitted from father, brother, etc. then it would not show up. If father or brother's DNA was tested, it would be there.

Also, I believe with some companies (been a long time since I checked this), Native American genetic testing is a separate test.

My paternal great grandmother was 1/2 Cherokee and it did not show up in my DNA either. But I have no male relatives to test for DNA. I thought it would have shown up in my mother's DNA, but maybe not; I don't totally understand it all. Or perhaps Ancestry just doesn't offer that testing in their inexpensive DNA test. There are several DNA tests for different things, it's not just one test.

Life without Mexican food is no life at all

sfnative · ‎03-10-2010

@151949 wrote:
All the ancestry DNA tells you is what country your DNA is from. How on earth could that information be used against you on the internet? You people are seriously paranoid.I had my DNA tested years ago to see if I had the breast cancer gene,and I assume that information has been on a computer out there somewhere for about 20 years now.Some how no one used it for any nefarious purpose as yet.

@151949

I tend to agree with you. As a former employee of a military branch of the DoD, let me tell you thay've got my blood big time. Every time a call went out for O neg, which I am, I went to give a pint. However, they also drew 7 tubes in addition to the pint of O neg. Why? Lots of research going on. Who knows where my DNA is? I really don't care. I believe strongly in research and was glad to be able to give my O neg, which would be shipped off of far reaches of the world, where our injured and ill men and women needed it.

goldensrbest · ‎03-10-2010

@Moonchilde wrote:
@chickenbutt wrote:
@goldensrbest wrote:
I just today got my results back, no way could this be correct, my dads mom was half american indian, for sure, no doubt, and i showed no american indian at all.

That's distressing. Does the place you used take DNA or just try to track your lineage otherwise?

If it's that far off (I don't know which one), it doesn't seem right that they take your money and then give you some random results.

The testing is *matrilineal*, meaning it's not going to show DNA information on the father's side of the family. If no material was submitted from father, brother, etc. then it would not show up. If father or brother's DNA was tested, it would be there.

Also, I believe with some companies (been a long time since I checked this), Native American genetic testing is a separate test.

My paternal great grandmother was 1/2 Cherokee and it did not show up in my DNA either. But I have no male relatives to test for DNA. I thought it would have shown up in my mother's DNA, but maybe not; I don't totally understand it all. Or perhaps Ancestry just doesn't offer that testing in their inexpensive DNA test. There are several DNA tests for different things, it's not just one test.

I had no idea, where did you learn this? I thought it would show from both sides, would like to learn more about this.

When you lose some one you L~O~V~E, that Memory of them, becomes a TREASURE.

151949 · ‎03-09-2010

@sfnative wrote:
@151949 wrote:
All the ancestry DNA tells you is what country your DNA is from. How on earth could that information be used against you on the internet? You people are seriously paranoid.I had my DNA tested years ago to see if I had the breast cancer gene,and I assume that information has been on a computer out there somewhere for about 20 years now.Some how no one used it for any nefarious purpose as yet.
@151949

I tend to agree with you. As a former employee of a military branch of the DoD, let me tell you thay've got my blood big time. Every time a call went out for O neg, which I am, I went to give a pint. However, they also drew 7 tubes in addition to the pint of O neg. Why? Lots of research going on. Who knows where my DNA is? I really don't care. I believe strongly in research and was glad to be able to give my O neg, which would be shipped off of far reaches of the world, where our injured and ill men and women needed it.

@sfnative Thank you so much. Those of us who have loved ones in uniform appreciate that there are citizens back here who are more than willing to do whatever they can to watch out for our boys and girls.