#geneticmaterial

Excited to learn about my peeps via my little vial of saliva and @23andme . Is this what we do as we approach the half-century mark, instead of collecting stamps? #dna #genetics #genealogy #whereamifrom #ancestors #geneticmaterial (at Pasadena, California)

And the flip side of the dark side of those 1million data points for 23andme - reminds me of Henrietta Lacks whose genetic material was used to create huge things in science and whose family and heirs were never credited or given financial benefits from it. When your genetic information is given to a company, what can they do with it? What can they create with it? Also, will it harm you if insurance providers or potential jobs can see your genetic background? 23andme's privacy information does include a portion about how your information could be used against you. So an insurance provider can see your genetically inclined for certain cancers; does this lead to them tripling your rate or refusing you insurance. Also, just because 23andme says you are genetically inclined to something does NOT mean you will get said disease or condition -- and this harks back to why the FDA is involved - if this is used as a diagnostic, it must be regulated and controlled because the information given could be faulty or not understood by practitioners which could lead to unnecessary surgeries. I am seriously rethinking how much I wanted to do this to myself due to the Lacks tie in and concerns about my data...