Community Chat

[SilleeMee]

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@HULAGIRL wrote:

No way will I send my DNA off to some private company.......I have no idea what they might do with that information. 

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@HULAGIRL,

What do you think they might do with that information? 

[Mrsq2022]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

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@HULAGIRL wrote:

No way will I send my DNA off to some private company.......I have no idea what they might do with that information. 

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@HULAGIRL,

What do you think they might do with that information? 

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I can't speak for Silleemee but I think the a concern is that the information could be used against you by health insurance companies.  For example, they find the BCRA gene and the information makes its way to database and your premiums to sky high...or you get declined cancer treatment coverage for a pre-existing condition or something tragic.

I suppose if your DNA isn't destroyed but rather, sold it could be "planted" in crime scenes to exonerate a criminal.  There is certainly a potential nefarious use for DNA there.

 I don't believe that any of the data collected now is being used in this way and I would like to have this testing done.  However, it is good "information" and it does have the potential for misuse if it isn't secure.  I stumbled across this article as well (old article but still relevant). 

I still would like to do the 23andme testing

http://www.newsweek.com/2014/08/01/whos-keeping-your-data-safe-dna-banks-261136.html

[SilleeMee]

@Mrsq2022,

Thanks for sharing that info and the news article. My beliefs are pretty simple...whatever agency is using my dna or any other factual info about my being, I'm okay with it as long as it's not criminal. Morality oth, comes with a price...unfortunately. 

[Yardlie]

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@Adamlambert wrote:

I know mine from grandparents.  What exactly does this information do for you? I don't get it.  

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We thought we knew ours also from my grandparents on my maternal side. Sort of knew where my paternal grandparents came from, but it ended up that we were super surprised...probably on both sides, which is why I am doing a more comprehensive test.

 It's partly just fun, but you can learn a lot about your medical information also...especially if you send your raw data in to promethease (dot) com/ondemand. For $5.00 you can learn much more about your medical information. Do they use that information in medical research? Probably, but I don't care. They do not sell it to third parties or use your name. I'm happy to contribute to the advancement of science.

Some people (like me) want that information, and others do not feel they need the information...whatever floats your boat, I guess.

[Yardlie]

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@Moonchilde wrote:

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@HiLo wrote:

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@MaggieMack wrote:

I did 23andMe and the results were in line with what I expected. Mostly. I expected more "Native Amercan," but understand that NA is hard to determine due to the roots of the tribes who migrated from Asia. There are tests out there to determine actual NA ancestry, but I didn't follow through. The percentages I received were enough to confirm the family stories about the actual parentage of one of my grandparents.

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We can't understand why ours showed no Native American.  It's not as much as some but then a woman I know who is actually 1/4 Native American, didn't have any of hers show.

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From the 23andme forums, I learned that the only way there is to define Native American DNA is by compiling data and making comparisons with living Native Americans. All DNA testing companies are only as good as their data base. The three top companies have data bases in the millions of people.

When you test with 23and me, for example, they ask if you are Native American, among other questions. The companies then compare the DNA of everyone who identifies as NA, and they start to see similarities. Carry the process on with enough people and you have your data base. Person 37,327 comes along, and they can see that his or her DNA matches closely with certain markers present in the majority of NA DNA, ergo there is a varying percent likelihood (depending on how many markers correlate) of that person being NA.

It's not precise to amount, tribe, etc. also - each of us carries half the DNA of each parent, meaning if we are tested, ALL of mom's or dad's DNA did not make it to us; half didn't.  Divide that by grandparents and great-grandparents, and the NA DNA might not have "made it" to you. Mine did not. I have a NA maternal great-grandmother, but her DNA didn't make it to me; not surprising, since she was my only NA relative, and three generations back.

Also - depends on which side of the family the NA is in and what sex you are. Females can only have certain DNA testing, males have additional testing available. If you don't have a brother, father, grandfather or uncle to test, you aren't getting the *entire* picture.

DNA testing has limitations, and people have misconceptions of what it can tell you. I would suggest people go to the 23andme site and read all their FAQ about testing, how it works and what you can/can't find out, male and female.  For ethnicity, as opposed to medicine, there are limits; the two areas of science are looking for different things. One can be tested for precisely and the other can't.

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@Moonchilde, the site I am having do my testing is 23andme. As mentioned earlier, one of my sisters did the $50 Ancestry site. All she got was our ethnicity broken down into 4 ethnic groups...which is why I am biting the bullet and using 23and me. However, we were literally shocked by our Ancestry.

As the sites tell you, sometimes there are surprises because there were adoptions along the way. Some of these "adoptions" were not even legal adoptions...people just fostered children who lost their parents. Those children often took the name of the family who fostered them. My paternal grandmother was one of those children.

Also, as everyone knows, there might have been illegitimate children in the mix and nobody knew it. Generations ago, men were known to have intimate relationships with slaves...and nobody knew it.  Who knows what other ways other people's genes might have got into the family mix?

At this point, genetics is a young science. However, it is fascinating. If we were to repeat the test in five or ten years, we might come up with a lot of new information. I probably won't do it again; however, the cost will probably go down over the years as more companies start up. Right now (for me), it is fun and also fascinating to learn something about my ethnicity.

[Yardlie]

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@Mrsq2022 wrote:

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I still would like to do the 23andme testing

http://www.newsweek.com/2014/08/01/whos-keeping-your-data-safe-dna-banks-261136.html

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@Mrsq2022, this thread is getting rather long, so in case you have not seen my earlier response, I will repeat this part. I am doing the 23andme testing. However, I don't really think you have to pay the $199. Ancestry also has a more comprehensive test for $99. Then, you can turn around and send your "raw data" (whatever that is) into promethease (dot) com/ondemand. For $5, they will send you your comprehensive medical information. I didn't learn about this until after I ordered the 23andme kit. I haven't even received my kit yet...should be coming in a couple days.

I wonder if QVC could link up with one of these sites and get a special price for us to do the testing? I'm sure a lot of people would do it.

[SilleeMee]

@Yardlie,

That's a really good idea about getting the Q to offer a dna test kit...whatever one. Maybe you should put it in the "Suggestion Box" . I would think it would be a top-seller. jmho

[Yardlie]

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@SilleeMee wrote:

@Yardlie,

That's a really good idea about getting the Q to offer a dna test kit...whatever one. Maybe you should put it in the "Suggestion Box" . I would think it would be a top-seller. jmho

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@SilleeMee, thanks for the suggestion. I did put it into the Suggestion Box.

[SilleeMee]

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@Brinklii wrote:

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@SilleeMee wrote:

@Yardlie,

That's a really good idea about getting the Q to offer a dna test kit...whatever one. Maybe you should put it in the "Suggestion Box" . I would think it would be a top-seller. jmho

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@SilleeMee, thanks for the suggestion. I did put it into the Suggestion Box.

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@Yardlie,

Suggestion for a suggestion...way to go!

[RainCityWoman]

I just got a thing from Ancestry.com giving me a special price of $79 for signing up for membership.