23 and Me

In March I received a little box in the mail which contained a vial which I was to fill up with my spit so the DNA in my saliva could by analyzed. I think my Dad was interested in learning more about our family's ancestry. I have never had my spit analyzed before. Yesterday I got the reports. Some things that they predicted I know whether they are right or not, and they certainly didn't get everything right, but they got some things right. Here's a summary of the report I got:

1. My ring finger was probably longer than my index finger - nope.

2. My big toe is likely longer than my second toe - nope (although I'm not like my Dad's mom - her second toe was considerably longer than her big toe)

3. I am likely to have wet earwax - yes (91% of people with European ancestry have wet earwax so their odds of being wrong were slim)

4. My ancestry is supposedly 62% British and Irish, 13%

French and German, 2% Scandinavian, and the rest was "broadly Northwestern European."

5. My maternal haplogroup is J1c1. I have no idea what that means.

6. They got it right that I have a lot of freckles on my body. Ian is the only one of my kids who has a lot of freckles. Just one more proof that Ian has more "Harton" DNA in him than my other two do.

7. They got it right that I don't have the photic sneeze reflex (sneezing when exposed to bright sunlight). Never heard of that one before.

8. They got it right that I have straight, dark brown hair.

9. They said there was a 71% likelihood I have detached earlobes, but mine are actually attached.

10. There is a 52% likelihood I have blue eyes, but actually I have green eyes. They did say it was only 2% chance I had brown eyes.

May 1 (day three of being out of their eggs)

11. I am not likely to have a cleft chin, unibrow, widow's peak, or cheek dimples - correct.

12. They said I am 61% likely to prefer salty snacks to sweet ones. Well in reality I like some of both kinds, but I would say if I had to pick one I'd pick sweet over salty.

13. They said I likely consume 9mg more caffeine per day than average. They are totally wrong with this one as the only caffeinated beverage I ever consume is hot chocolate, and that doesn't have much caffeine, and I

May3 (day five out of their eggs)

don't drink it very often. I don't drink soda, coffee, or tea.

14. I don't have the sprinter/power fast-twitch muscle type. I will concur I've never been a fast runner.

15. I likely have more movement during sleep - yes.

16. I'm not lactose intolerant - true.

17. Predisposed to weigh more than average - sadly it's true.

18. I am less likely a deep sleeper (don't have strong delta waves)  - I have no idea.

19. I am likely to be able to smell the asparagus metabolite in my urine. I have no idea. I rarely eat any asparagus. Who wants to smell their urine anyhow???

There you have it. This is what they learned by analyzing my spit.