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Ethnicity DNA Testing

jbla64jbla64 Posts: 138
edited March 2017 in Parenting and Life
(I'm not sure if this has been discussed on here before, and I can't figure out how to search through old posts on mobile, so my apologies if this has already been asked.)

I would love to do one of those AncestryDNA tests or like a 23andMe test with my daughter so I can look at her ethnic background and see where her ancestors are from. (I did not use NWCryo and have VERY limited information on this guy. Just a general summary of appearance, that he has no major health conditions, and that he may or may not be Jewish?? That's literally it.) Some of the DNA tests also give really useful health trait information. It's just for my own curiosity, but also for her if she wants to know when she's older.

However I've noticed that with a lot of these tests, they match you with potential relatives who have also taken the test. Dad is anonymous and I want it to stay that way, so I am definitely not interested in this feature. (Obviously if genealogical testing is something she wants when she's an adult, she can certainly pursue that. But I am not into that right now.)

Does anyone here know of any DNA testing kits that provide the ethnic or geographic background information but does NOT match you with random internet strangers or publish your results? The last thing I want is for some random schmuck to be able to look at her information or to get a message on Ancestry that he has a possible grandchild/niece/cousin/whatever somewhere out there.

Comments

  • RedHeatherRedHeather Posts: 600 ✭✭
    edited November -1
    I used 23andMe, and you have to set up a profile for the DNA relatives feature. So, if you're not interested, you can just never set it up. I'm sure it's similar for other companies as well. You don't mention how old your child is, but one thing to keep in mind with Ancestry and 23andMe is that they use a spit sample, so the child would need to be old enough to spit repeatedly into a tube. FamilyTreeDNA uses a cheek swab, so that's probably what I'll use for my daughter (who is currently 16 months old). I'm going to wait a bit, though, because apparently you have to rub the swab for a full minute, and I don't foresee my toddler being too cooperative with that.

    In general, I think 23andMe is better for health info, whereas Ancestry seems to be more specific regarding heritage (i.e. 23andMe combines French and German as one category). There's also a service called Promethease that allows you to upload your raw data from the genetic test, and it will cross-reference it with the Genome-Wide Association Studies catalog and link to any articles that mention a marker that you have.
  • sara291sara291 Posts: 1,042
    edited November -1
    I've studied a lot with genealogy and myself and both my children have tested at all 3 major sites. Ancestry is going to be the best starting out. You can keep your results private but selecting the options. It will show others very little if you want such as Anonymous and then amount of DNA shared or cM's depending on the site you use. You can also delete your test from Ancestry at any time. I don't know if you have from 23&me or FTDNA since I haven't looked. I LOVE doing these tests and have done Ancestry and 23&me on a 2-yr old who was almost 3. Any younger would be hard. FTDNA is just a swab so any age is fine
  • jbla64jbla64 Posts: 138
    edited November -1
    Thanks, guys!
    I really like that for 23andMe you have to set up a profile to share your results, which I didn't realize before. But I watched a few YouTube videos and the results you get seem to be pretty vague.

    I like that on Ancestry you can see specific countries of origin. It genuinely does seem to be the best one out there for what I'm looking for I just hate that you can't opt out of the DNA match part. Maybe I'll just have her do it, print the results, then delete them from the database.

    I'll have to wait until she's a little older though because the amount of spit they need is CRAZY! There is no way I could get her to fill that tube lol
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