23andMe's DNA testing was always fun. Now it is more useful as well.
As anyone who follows this blog knows, I had my DNA tested awhile back by a company called 23andMe. I wrote about what I learned and didn’t learn from their testing in a bunch of blog entries.
In my mind 23andMe has always been a sort of recreational genetics testing company. You can find out about your earwax, whether you are likely to have blue eyes or be lactose intolerant and lots of other minor sorts of traits. This is stuff you probably already know but for geeks it is pretty cool to see them written out in their DNA.
The company always offered some health data too but it wasn’t that strong. For example, they could tell you if you carried the most common DNA difference that could lead to cystic fibrosis (CF) but not about the less common ones. In fact, I gave them an incomplete for their carrier testing a few months back.
Since then, the company has gone away from being a place where you get your DNA tested for coolness’ sake to one with a focus on health and/or ancestry. With this change has come a much-improved product for people interested in what their DNA tells them about their carrier status for a variety of genetic diseases.