Aggregated News
Confused by the barrage of ads from companies wanting to dissect your personal tastes/family history/longevity/health based on a simple sample of your DNA?
You’re not alone. Depending on which company is vying for your attention, you might be tempted to learn more about your ancestors, your diet, your workout regimen, the best position for your child to play in sports, even which wine you prefer.
NBC 5 Investigates ordered up a random set of the tests, submitting one reporter’s DNA for analysis.
That one reporter --- was me.
What I learned is that my ancestors almost certainly came from Ireland, or Scotland. Or maybe western Europe. Possibly Scandinavia. And that today, my genetic markers come back to Kuwait. And Peru. Even Qatar and Afghanistan.
Wait, what? I have relatives in Afghanistan?
Maybe not. Depending which test you take, you need to look closely what it’s offering.
Take the granddaddy of them all, Ancestry.com. Their report told me my ancestors were most likely (36 percent) from Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Coming in second (32 percent), was Scandinavia. Third was western Europe...