At-Home Genetic Testing: What Can You Learn?

How to do genetic testing at home? There are a number of providers who can ship a testing kit to your home. These companies analyze the genetic composition of your DNA based on a sample of blood or saliva that you collect at home and send to the vendor’s laboratory. They then perform a range of tests on your collected sample, indicating such things as your genetic composition, susceptibility to diseases, sensitivity to various chemical compounds, and more. To find out more about how at-home genetic testing works, read the comprehensive article we prepared for you below!

What Is At-Home Genetic Testing?

In recent years, at-home genetic testing kits have garnered a lot of attention. Undoubtedly, such innovations result directly from the technological leaps forward we observe in the world of medicine. Genetic testing isn’t the only example – the availability of at-home STD testing or private mental health monitoring options indicates a general positive shift in the seriousness with which we approach health-related topics.

Coming back to at-home genetic testing, depending on the service you use, you can gain a wide range of insights into your genetic composition. Such testing kits can tell you about the following:

• Your ancestry and ethnic background
• Susceptibility to genetic diseases and conditions like chronic kidney disease or cancer
• Insights into nutritional needs and allergies
• Genetic markers for rare diseases
• How your body might respond to certain medications

How Private Is At-Home Genetic Testing?

In the information age, data privacy on the Internet remains a key concern for many, and perhaps no data is more private or worth keeping in confidence than your DNA composition. This leads many to question the credibility of companies offering genetic testing kits and pose the question: how private is at-home genetic testing really?

Unfortunately, the answer isn’t very straightforward. Each of these companies operates under its own stipulated privacy policies, which, at least on the surface level, claim to guarantee full data protection. Based on their level of popularity, you can infer that customers generally tend to trust them.

Still, some privacy experts believe the best way to prevent your data from getting into the wrong hands is to not share it with anyone in the first place.

How Does At-Home Genetic Testing Work?

The way at-home genetic testing works is really simple in principle, without many differences from other tests you’ve likely already done dozens of times in your life.

To perform an at-home genetic test, all you need to do is either take a sample of your saliva and deposit it in the supplied test tube or use a cotton swab and rub it on the inside of your mouth. Some variants also use a finger-pricking device to draw a few drops of blood for analysis as well.

After successfully collecting and preparing the sample, you then send it to your provider’s private laboratory. Your genetic material is then analyzed, and the results are delivered within a few days.

What At-Home Genetic Testing Is Best?

Nowadays, many services offer genetic testing at home to the general public. If you’re certain you want to conduct such a test, gaining an overview of the available options is essential to making an informed decision.

But which at-home genetic test is best? The answer will come down to what you want to discover by doing the test. We break down a few of these services below, along with recommended use cases tailored to your desires:

AncestryDNA – Best for Exploring Your Ancestry

AncestryDNA excels at providing you with a detailed breakdown of your ethnic background. Additionally, they have access to a robust genomic database that compares your DNA structure to inhabitants from over 700,000 different locations, allowing you to reconnect with distant relatives you never knew existed.

23andMe – Best for a Comprehensive Picture

23andMe is an FDA-approved service that clues you in on not just your heritage but also provides insight into your genetic susceptibility to various diseases and your carrier status for certain conditions.

Color Health – Best for Susceptibility to Genetic Conditions

Color prides itself on being the number-one service for early cancer detection and management. They also cover a range of other health conditions and verify if your genetic composition puts you in a high-risk group.

Nutrigenomix – Best for Nutritional Optimization

If you’re struggling with your dietary and nutritional choices and/or suffer from non-specific gastric issues, Nutrigenomix offers genetic testing to identify substances and chemicals you may be allergic to. Carrying out the test offers you insight into ways you can improve your diet by removing irritants or adding ingredients that will be beneficial to your goals and overall gut health.

The Takeaway

At-home genetic testing works by collecting genetic material from the patient and subjecting it to analysis. The information obtained in the lab is then sent back and can include actionable insights for the patient to introduce health-positive changes in their life. Some tests are designed to identify carrier status or serve as an early detection method for serious conditions like cancer.

Undoubtedly, increasing accessibility to this kind of intricate technology empowers patients to take proactive steps to improve their health. One such step could also involve checking your liver and kidney health with the Ribbon Test Kit. If you want to set yourself on the right path, order one today.

You may also read: Screening at Home: How to Monitor Children's Health