Princeton,NJ/ 360prwire/ December 7/
DNA Testing is becoming increasingly widely used as a way of learning about our ancestry and heritage as well as being a way to discover vital information about our health and propensity to disease. We explore the full range of benefits that DNA testing offers below.
How Do I Take A Home DNA Test?
If you’ve opted to take a home DNA test, then most will be sent to you in the post and will contain everything you need, including easy-to-follow instructions. Home testing usually involves collecting a saliva sample or a sample of cells from the inside of the cheeks and then sending this to a lab for analysis, following which you will be sent the results.
Ancestry Insights
DNA tests can offer valuable insights into your genealogy and heritage, which can be profoundly useful in building your family tree or in searching for living relatives. Testing kits, such as this one, can give you information on the migratory journeys that your ancestors undertook thousands of years ago, as well as your more recent family history, and links into a vast database, enabling you to trace family members or uncover your familial relationship with important historical figures.
For those interested in piecing together their family history or in exploring their genealogy, DNA testing can offer invaluable assistance.
Hereditary Diseases And Predisposition
If you have a family member who has a hereditary condition, such as cystic fibrosis, polycystic kidney disease, or an inherited heart problem, then finding out the likelihood of your developing the same disease could be very important to you.
In many cases, finding out early that you have such a condition may enable you to make the lifestyle changes necessary to have the best chance of enjoying a long and healthy life. For example, should you have a parent with polycystic kidney disease, and, upon getting tested, you discover that you have inherited the condition, there are several simple steps that you can take to reduce the chance of your kidneys struggling later in life, such as cutting out caffeine and taking steps to lower blood pressure.
Finding out whether or not you have a predisposition to certain conditions can help you to avoid serious medical issues further down the line by arming you with the knowledge you need to act early, research, and seek prompt medical intervention.
Testing before Pregnancy
If you and your partner are considering trying to get pregnant, then you may wish to have a DNA test to check whether either of you is carrying the gene for an inherited condition that could potentially be passed down to future children. If this proves to be the case, then you may want to consider genetic counselling, to help you decide on whether or not to try for a baby in light of this information – in some cases, couples choose to use donated eggs or to avoid the risk of their child inheriting a genetic disease.
In other cases, simply knowing that the risk exists allows for additional testing during pregnancy and for the parents to familiarize themselves with all the facets of the condition to make informed decisions every step of the way. Pre-pregnancy DNA screening is usually done with a simple blood test taken from both parents.
Health And Wellness Reports
One of the most important ways that a DNA test can help you to avoid health problems is due to its capacity to provide you with a holistic health and wellness report. Information is offered on your metabolism and the likelihood of your having (or developing) food intolerances or allergies, as well as how your body is likely to react to different forms of exercise.
Nutrigenetics – the connection between your DNA and your body’s processing of nutrients – can give you an idea, too, of the type of diet that will best deliver overall good health. For example, a DNA test could suggest that your metabolism is particularly sensitive to saturated fat, and therefore minimizing this in your diet could make a significant impact on your wellbeing.
It’s also possible to obtain fitness reports from a simple DNA test. You may, as a result, discover that your body’s fat loss response to cardio-based exercise is likely to be high in comparison to other forms of exercise. Similarly, your test may highlight that you could be at an enhanced risk of developing low levels of Vitamin B6 – this could be vital information, as it would allow you to take early action by booking an appointment with a doctor to check your levels of this vitamin, and then making changes to your diet or adding supplements if it’s found to be low.
The Takeaway
DNA tests are increasingly being regarded as a standard tool that can deliver a full picture of your health, including your propensity to develop a range of conditions. Not only does this knowledge allow you to plan for the future but, crucially, it enables you to take steps immediately, with regards to lifestyle changes, that will give you the best chance of living a long, healthy, and happy life.
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