Last week 23AndMe had a sale during which their $499-kit for DNA/genetics analysis was just $99 for a day! Naturally, I jumped on this. I'd been considering the analysis for a long time.
I received the package a few days ago:
One thing that I was fascinated by is their attention to privacy and detail with this kit. For example, the lab doesn't receive your name or personal information. The barcode on the sample tube (which you fill with your saliva after not eating or drinking for 30-minutes) is referenced back to you outside of the processing center directly with 23AndMe's website. It is impossible for anyone except 23AndMe themselves to know whose saliva belongs to whom. That's great!
I will say that their consent disclosure is a bit eyeopening, as you may learn about disease you're prone to or conditions (such as hairloss) in advance of what's to come. However, I feel pretty healthy and am very health-conscious… and bad news on the test may not remain correct as new gene information is uncovered. So, who cares!
It's not “guessing”, but new discoveries are made over time, and 23AndMe will always update your profile with new information about yourself when it becomes available.
In addition to all of this, you get to learn about your ancestry. Pretty cool. Can't wait to see the results, and receive more in the future as new discoveries are made. (They said 6-8 weeks for processing, and then they keep updating their site with new discoveries and statistics thereafter.)