Should You Be Giving Your DNA to Consumer Health Companies?

KQED's Forum

KQED

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.6 • 656 Ratings

🗓️ 25 October 2024

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

It’s been nearly twenty years since 23andMe, the consumer health company was founded. Since then, other companies have emerged, and in exchange for a tube of spit, a puff of breath, or a drop of blood, consumers can now not only find their ancestry and long-lost relatives, but learn what to eat that day or discover food sensitivities and propensity for diseases. But are these tests effective and what are the pitfalls of using a company you found on Instagram to test whether you’re likely to suffer from Alzheimer’s or cancer? And when those companies cease to exist, as troubled 23andMe might, what happens to all that health data? It’s one thing to share your email address or mobile number, and an entirely different proposition to share your genome. We’ll talk to experts about the world of consumer DNA-testing and how to protect yourself and your genome. Guests: Kristen V. Brown, staff writer, Atlantic Magazine Hank Greely, law professor; founding director, Center for Law and the Biosciences, Stanford University Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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1:05.3	It's been nearly 20 years since 23 and me, the Consumer Genetic Testing Company was founded.
1:11.1	Since then, other companies have emerged, and in exchange for a tube of spit, a puff of breath,
1:16.6	or a drop of blood, people can now not only find their ancestry and long-lost relatives,
1:22.4	but learn what to eat that day or discover food sensitivities or propensity for diseases.
1:29.6	But what if 23 and Me, or a company company like it goes out of business? What happens to, you know, your genome? Given all we've learned
	...

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