My 23 and Me Test Didn’t Tell Me Much, but It’s Still Cool.
Is a DNA test worth the money?
For Christmas two years ago, my family bought me a 23 and Me testing kit.
23 and Me is a DNA test kit that allows you to find other relatives with the same DNA, health risks, and your exact geographic heritage.
My mother doesn’t know her father, so there is a lot of mystery there. It would be neat to see my cousins from around the globe as well.
As soon as I got the box opened, I signed up with an account on the website and spat into the tube. I then sent it off to a lab where they would dissect my DNA. If my DNA is ever used for cloning purposes, I am sorry. The world doesn’t need another version of me.
I was excited to see if I was my father’s child — as he has taken the test. What a plot twist if he secretly wasn’t my father.
My next question was: are my sister and me, biological siblings. I always had doubts. Seriously, my sister and I look nothing alike.
After two very long weeks, I got results. I am European. Big surprise, because I am entirely white. I have an increased risk for Celiac Disease and Alzheimer’s Disease, and I have 1400 relatives.
Fascinating
Here is what it looked like:
I’m British, who would have thought. With a last name like Kovinich, you’re almost guaranteed to be Russian. I’m not FYI, but it’s a common misconception.
I have thought my whole life that I am Serbian, but it seems I am more French and German than Balkan. Interesting enough, but I want more.
Who knows how accurate this is. I spat twice in a tube, and this testing revealed that I am 17.1% Greek and Balkan. I have a hard time believing this is real.
I went in to see my DNA connections (people that share the same DNA as myself) because the real thrill was finding out if my father was — my father.
I will share a photo of us where you can decide before seeing the results.
This couldn’t have been considered a Khloe Kardashian scandal, but I was hopeful for a little drama.
I realize that I am his twin, and we nearly look identical, but could I be the mailman’s daughter.
An authentic plot twist in my life could be unfolding from the depths of two small samples of my saliva.
Here are the results:
Although I wasn’t the mailman’s daughter, there was a feeling of security that the system could identify him as my dad. Tata as we call him.
I started to have a bit of trust in the test. Maybe there was some truth in it.
This test may have been more accurate than I had initially thought. Could there be some truth to the percentage of French and German ancestry I have in my DNA?
Since I am not the mailman’s daughter, I decided to search and see if maybe my sister was.
There are so many signs that we are not related, including that we look nothing alike.
Maybe we aren’t biological siblings, after all. I will share a photo of us, and I will let you decide for yourself.
To my surprise, we happen to be siblings. Shocking none the less. Although I was hoping if I weren’t the mailman’s daughter, maybe she would be.
What a scandal that would be.
Here are the results:
I have solved the mystery. Neither myself nor my sister is the mailman’s daughter. Sadness rushed over me as I truly started to feel like Nancy Drew.
I think it’s quite interesting that just via a bit of my spit, 23 and Me can identify my father and my sister as relatives. A bit creepy, but still compelling.
I decided to dig deeper to see how far the DNA test could go.
How close to a percent did it detect my origins?
Here are the results:
Although I am sure you could care less about my DNA, I thought it would be interesting for you to see what it looks like once you get your results back.
The system is intriguing; it breaks down precisely to the percent which country and city your ancestors resided. This was interesting as I had no idea there was a 2.2% Portuguese heritage in my family tree.
My mother had no idea where she originates. There was not much history from her ancestors. It was great to be able to see bits of her within my DNA that would have never been specified otherwise.
Once I had gone knee-deep looking at my ancestry and our origins, I thought I would look at how many people I am connected with via DNA. If it can pick up that my father and sister have both taken the test, can it identify a 7th cousin?
Seeing that I had 1400 relatives felt like a warm hug. It broadened my view from both sides. People I had no idea could be relatives, now are closer than before.
One of my childhood friend’s mother is a relative. There is only 0.45% DNA match, but enough for me to tease him that we are cousins.
There are so many people I share DNA with, and it solidifies the idea of 6 degrees of separation.
Finally, I took a look at any health concerns I should be aware of. Shockingly 23 and Me can see any health issues I have solely based on my DNA, which freaked me out, but again very neat.
I will let out a massive sigh of relief, knowing that my health risks are with my eyes and mind.
My grandmother suffered with Alzheimer’s Disease, and really, it made her an even more interesting person. You never knew what would come out of her mouth.
As for Celiac Disease, I had the thought that gluten has never sat well with me. But if you pass me the box of doughnuts, I am like a fat kid in a candy store.
There is a list of over 30 different health risks that you can have as well as be a carrier for. This can be helpful for people wanting to have children. You can see if you carry any major diseases that are passed through DNA.
Final Thoughts
Would I purchase this kit for myself? The short answer is no.
However, I did purchase this for my mother for Mother’s Day. Obviously, to make sure I am not the mailwoman’s daughter.
The kit offers a lot of insight into your background and your origins. I think that there is a bit of an opportunity for arguments if there is a dirty secret that has been hanging in the closet within your family.
Regardless it is fun to see who you’re related to. It’s not something you look at every day; you may only take a peek once and never look again. I often get notifications that I have new relatives and never get around to looking.
The kit is a bit invasive, and I don’t know if everyone would like to send their spit via mail to a lab, but for me, it was interesting to get the results.
For $200, I am not sure it’s worth it unless you do not know your heritage.
The choice is yours, spit in a tube, and find your origin. You never know, you may be one of the first to be cloned.
I have yet to try any other DNA kits, but I will leave links to other kits similar to this one.
DNA Kit for your dog:
I have no affiliation with 23 and Me or any other DNA kit. This article is for entertainment purposes only. This is a review only from my usage of the kit. Any mention of medical issues should be consulted with your doctor. 23 and Me should not be used as a source for medical diagnosis. Not all tests are accurate. Please contact 23 and Me for more details.
