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23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

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Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#11

Post by qball »

throwyawaaaa wrote: post #6

I work in genomics. My lab, many of my friends and acquaintances work in genomics or had to dabble with it for at least one of their projects. You would think we would all be fascinated by this stuff, getting to know your own DNA and everything. Yet I don't know a single person who would even consider using 23andMe's service. To me this is all an elaborate scam. Why on earth would you pay them to give them your data…

>Doesn't mean it won't be misused.

To add to this, though genetic information may be protected against defining a pre-existing medical condition for insurance purposes today, there's zero guarantee that that law protecting you will still exist in the future, or extend to your descendants (which can be assumed to carry roughly half of your genetic material).

Once you've given this data away without any guarantee that it'll be destroyed at the end (if such a thing is even possible), you can't take it back, and you could potentially be screwing over those who didn't make that choice.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#12

Post by thaumasiotes »

russellbeattie wrote: post #5

The sociological effects of DNA matching sites are going to be interesting to watch. I personally found out a year or so ago that my dad wasn't my biological father. At the age of 45, that's an, um, interesting secret to suddenly discover. Now, imagine what happens in a society with strict laws/rules/mores about this sort of thing? Well, we won't have to imagine for long. I'm quite sure my experience is a lot more co…

> I'm quite sure my experience is a lot more common than most people realize, and I think much of the world isn't ready for it.

Nonpaternity is quite rare overall, and still unusual even when the putative father has so little paternity confidence that he demands a paternity test.

https://www.gnxp.com/WordPress/2018/12/04/how-paternity-test...

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#13

Post by emilburzo »

throwyawaaaa wrote: post #6

I work in genomics. My lab, many of my friends and acquaintances work in genomics or had to dabble with it for at least one of their projects. You would think we would all be fascinated by this stuff, getting to know your own DNA and everything. Yet I don't know a single person who would even consider using 23andMe's service. To me this is all an elaborate scam. Why on earth would you pay them to give them your data…

Allow me to offer a different perspective: I've used 23andme and it was one of the best decisions ever.

Not so much for the Ancestry part, which was also interesting and explained my above-average cold tolerance, but for the health stuff.

Granted, being from Europe they don't directly offer health services, but you can get the raw data and upload it to various sites for interpretation -- ranging from really accessible to follow-the-rabbit-hole style.

I've accepted from the start that everything is uncertain, or just a possibility, but it was still very useful, because I knew what to look for and thus able to validate easily if true or not.

Some things that were in the reports I already knew, some I suspected, some I had no idea and would have never guessed -- this last group had the most impact.

Some examples: allergies, motion sickness, needing above average amounts of vitamin C.

All very easy to test, but with an amazing quality of life improvement gained as a result of just changing some simple things.

So yes, a US company has my personal DNA data, maybe they will take care of my privacy, maybe not, but the quality of life gains were worth it, for me.

What other alternative would people like me have, from countries where there is no access to good doctors, of finding stuff like that, had there not been 23andme? Especially since I didn't even know what I was looking for.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#14

Post by kkarakk »

spacehome wrote: post #3

You share (about) 1/128 of your genes with a third cousin. The chance of any (particular) recessive trait being passed on from both parents as a result of the inbreeding is a whopping 1 in 65,536.

it says in the article that their second kid was autistic.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#15

Post by raverbashing »

kkarakk wrote: post #14
spacehome wrote: post #3

You share (about) 1/128 of your genes with a third cousin. The chance of any (particular) recessive trait being passed on from both parents as a result of the inbreeding is a whopping 1 in 65,536.

it says in the article that their second kid was autistic.

Given that its causes are still not fully understood I think blaming it on a 3rd degree connection is a bit of a stretch

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#16

Post by cgrand-net »

According to "An Association Between the Kinship and Fertility of Human Couple" (http://science.sciencemag.org/content/319/5864/813.long), third (or fourth) cousins have optimal reproductive success. Reproductive success is not just the number of children (because 1st or 2nd cousins couples tend to have more children but with associated health and/or reproductive problems), but the whole descendance.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#17

Post by baddox »

throwyawaaaa wrote: post #6

I work in genomics. My lab, many of my friends and acquaintances work in genomics or had to dabble with it for at least one of their projects. You would think we would all be fascinated by this stuff, getting to know your own DNA and everything. Yet I don't know a single person who would even consider using 23andMe's service. To me this is all an elaborate scam. Why on earth would you pay them to give them your data…

I paid for 23andMe. I did it mostly out of curiosity, to see if there was anything in their genealogy report that would surprise me (there wasn't). I was also interested in their medical risk reports, although I admit to having very little knowledge about how reliable or extensive those reports are.

The thing is, I actually agree with all your concerns about privacy, but I guess I just disagree about the magnitude of the concerns. Of course there are risks of being targeted for ads, or treated differently by health insurance providers. I can't really justify my stance, but I guess I'm just less worried about the possible downside than I was interested about the possible upside.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#18

Post by [deleted] »

reacharavindh wrote: post #7

Two thoughts came rushing to my mind after reading this. Disclaimer: I have not researched the scientific background of these thoughts. They are mere thoughts. It made me uncomfortable to read about the autistic child at the end of the story. Was Autism more probable because of the closer genetic relationship of parents? I was raised in southern India, and some of our families have a fascinating astrological traditio…

[deleted]

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#19

Post by baddox »

Third cousins sounds like a non-issue to me, and it sounds like the author and spouse generally agree. I've never knowingly met any second cousins or any other descendants of my great-grandparents (who are not also in my grandparents' lineage).

I wonder if there are any estimates on how common unaware third-cousin marriages are.

Re: 23andMe Informed Me My Husband and I Are Related

#20

Post by alfonsodev »

emilburzo wrote: post #13
throwyawaaaa wrote: post #6

I work in genomics. My lab, many of my friends and acquaintances work in genomics or had to dabble with it for at least one of their projects. You would think we would all be fascinated by this stuff, getting to know your own DNA and everything. Yet I don't know a single person who would even consider using 23andMe's service. To me this is all an elaborate scam. Why on earth would you pay them to give them your data…

Allow me to offer a different perspective: I've used 23andme and it was one of the best decisions ever. Not so much for the Ancestry part, which was also interesting and explained my above-average cold tolerance, but for the health stuff. Granted, being from Europe they don't directly offer health services, but you can get the raw data and upload it to various sites for interpretation -- ranging from really accessibl…

What sites did you use ? I used promethease site, but it was way too much information, and the filters felt complicated. Is there any other site that makes a better job filtering what is more important for you specifically ? Any recommendation ?
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