Are DNA Tests a Waste of Money?

Which? is an independent consumer testing service in England. Now the company has written an article with strong claiming that DNA testing services are a waste of money. I'm not ready to believe these claims, but it sure makes for interesting reading!

The article states:

The magazine submitted the same two DNA samples - one male and one female - to four web-based DNA testing companies.

The companies - Ancestory.co.uk, DNA Solutions, Oxford Ancestors and 23andMe - claim they can use the DNA to reveal someone’s ancestry and chart their heritage.

But the services – which cost between £75 and £510 - provided little more than a piece of paper mapping their origin.

You can read the entire article at: http://www.which.co.uk/news/2008/07/we-reveal-online-dna-tests-are-waste-of-money-150686.jsp

Note from Dick Eastman: Yes, they spelled it "Ancestory.co.uk" in the article.

My thanks to Carol Brassfield for telling me about this interesting article.

Comments

[Ginny T]

I submitted DNA from two different males in my family and have received a wealth of information from someone doing research on one of the families (Holder 37 markers) and found a wonderful distant cousin in the process. Also have a (Taylor 37 markers) match but cannot get the match person to respond. Your distant relative does have to submit a DNA sample but when you hit it is wonderful.

[Bob B]

The author somehow had unrealistic expectations that naturally weren't met. Thus the negative tone of their article.

In my view, the DNA test results are the item purchased and the full color wall maps are just a glitzy come-on whose value tends to be exagerated. Comparing your test results with the results of others is where the value is from a genealogical viewpoint.

[JimmyDaGeek]

I always thought that DNA testing is used for two purposes. First, primarily, to determine whether two people have a common heritage, which the article did not address. Second, to determine which population a person comes from. The second purpose can only be useful if an accurate reference exists for a given population. Otherwise, I would agree with the article.

[Melissa]

The piece is limited, brief, & does not address all the claimed benefits of genealogical DNA testing. While more regulation of the companies & DNA samples would be a welcome development, this article presents an irresponsibly brief & unnuanced slice & dice of the industry, testing accuracy & possible applications of testing results.
As a group adminstrator of a Y-DNA surname project with 15 participants I have seen test results identify clusters of different haplogroups within one surname & the results have been a helpful supplement to our extensive paper research focusing on a group of men with the same surname living in 18th century Virginia, North & South Carolina, New York, & Barbados.
This article is an example of irresponsible journalism.

[Jason Presley]

"but people need to be wary of DNA testing services"

No, people should be EDUCATED about DNA testing services. They should be WARY of drive-by journalism that neither poses a legitimate question, nor attempts, in any way, to answer said question. That "article" was shorter than most paperback novel cover blurbs. I'm left wondering where is the link to "MORE..."

[Robert Givens]

This was an excellent example of an uninformed journalist delving into something they really don't understand. Yes, the benefits of DNA testing are somewhat limited but these benefits can be of great help to genealogists.
In my case (Givens) DNA testing has shown that a group of Givens from the county in VA next to ours are not realated but a group surnamed Givens in NY are exact matches. These are great leads.
Also since the vast majority of near matches are from Ireland it is reasonable to assume that Ireland is where my family came from. In fact the head of our Givens group at FamilyTreeDNA is trying to get individuals with the surname Givens in Ireland to take a test so we can find the location of our paternity.
Who says DNA testing is worthless?

[Mike St. Clair]

After 40 years of research, I had not been successful in finding the parents and ancestry of my 3rd great grandfather St. Clair. Then a DNA test and a surname DNA organization helped me find my immigrant ancestor. It was well worth the small amount it cost, AND it connected me with a bunch of related researchers as well. I still don't know that initial parent because there are a couple of missing generations, but now I'm able to also do descendant research using that new immigrant knowledge. I've made more progress in the last year than in the prior 30 on that particular line. It wasn't a waste of my money.

[D. A. Vaughn]

"Waste of money" is a term based on one's personal values, expectations, and resources. I had read widely on the value, or lack thereof, of Y-DNA in genealogic matters and decided that I could possibly benefit from a Y-DNA test because my paternal ancestry was pretty well documented and the DNA could only provide further documentaton. And, thanks to the tax rebate, I could afford it. I found out that despite my well-established Welsh paternal line, my Y-DNA haplotype indicated Nordic orgins. In fact I was, at the time, the only person of my surname in this particular Y-DNA pool to have such a haplotype. To me, this was fascinating. It reached beyond 17th century Welsh ancestors and back to the days of Viking invasions of the British Isles. Since records of those days are virtually non-existant, I doubt I'll be able to push it back any farther, but it is, never the less, another factor to consider in my ancestry. So, I consider it to have been worth the investment, and it will give me a more distinctive criterion to identify others with similar ancestry.

D. A. Vaughn

[Hal Whitmore]

I have been involved in DNA testing for genealogical purposes for several years now and am presently the volunteer administrator of the Whitmore DNA Project, and I can attest to the fact that it can be very useful if your objectives are reasonable. I submitted my sample with two objectives: 1) To confirm or refute late 19th and early 20th century genealogical hypotheses about the relationship of three Great Migration immigrants to New England: Francis Whitmore of Cambridge, Thomas Wetmore of Middletown and Thomas Whittemore of Malden and 2) to shore up a somewhat iffy one generation in my own descent from Thomas Wetmore. With a good deal of effort and a fair amount of expense, another Wetmore descendant and I managed to find at least one other Wetmore descendant, three Whitmores and two Whittemores (one actually an Englishman). They fell easily into three distinct family groups and there was clearly no close relationship among them. (See http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~whitmore/newengland.html for a discussion.) My own perfect match with an 8th cousin once removed demonstrated that I was certainly on the right track, and I firmed up the paper trail in Salt Lake City this past February.

DNA testing can also be very disappointing for someone with reasonable expectations. I have recently had to tell someone who thought he was descended from the above Thomas Whittemore that his results are not a match for the other Whittemores in our project both of whom have good paper trails back to a common ancestor.

I suspect that anyone buying a DNA test to "reveal someone’s ancestry and chart their heritage" may very well be disappointed. And, I'd not be surprised if there are companies out there who suggest that they can do that. DNA testing is not a substitute for conventional research, but it can be a useful adjunct.

[Donna Bray]

I had two tests done: one on my father's paternal side, and one on his maternal side. Both tests were 67 markers. I was thrilled. I found relatives from both tests who had information I didn't, and I had information they didn't. I feel that the testing helped to link me to families I didn't have, as well as direct the nature of searches to future overseas clues.

This was the reason for the testing ........to further genealogy research.

Donna Bray

[Dale J Davies]

The article is a blatant beat-up, and says almost nothing useful. Of course people need to ensure anyone doing DNA testing is a reputable outfit, but additionally people need to be well-informed about exactly what is being tested: "DNA" covers a lot of ground, and jargon such as "markers" needs to be well explained. That said, but for cost, I would cheerfully get involved - looking for a "Davies" in England/Wales from the other side of the world one needs all the help one can get.
As a footnote, an academic background in history and historical linguistics certainly makes one "wary" of claims based on "DNA evidence". But with the limitations properly understood it can be a boon.

[Roger]

This is a poor piece of research by Which? that has been reported by them in a sensational style. Unfortunately, Which? is held in very high esteem in the UK and their research is seldom questioned by newspapers and news media. Consequently, this sort of thing can get widely reported without being challenged.

[Peter Bridge]

'Yes, they wrongly spelled it "Ancestory.co.uk". Maybe, but to descibe Which as an'independent consumer testing service in England' displays a rather limited knowledge of geography. Will the Irish, Scottish and Welsh please form an orderly queue at the complaints counter :-)

[Susi Pentico]

I agree this is a poorly done article. People have to know what DNA can do and can not do. I also am not very familiar with some of the
groups used for tests.
I found a match for two of my lines. NO not on a 12 marker test, it must be much closer in relationship than 10,000 years ago.
I also being totally stunned, found a Mtdna match due to both of us doing our research prior to the test and submitting it to the FTDna people whom did the test.
Neither of these tests was recent descendants, they were in the 1700's.

People need to do their homework and know what they are talking about.
Glitzy map that is your choice, duh.
Susi

[Gordon Banks]

A good example of British "tabloid journalism." The author doesn't know what he is talking about. The article is almost devoid of any information about what DNA testing is really about. Not even worth the time to read it and will surely misinform the public.

[Sandra J Smith]

The real benefit of DNA testing is gained by joining a surname project - a Y-DNA test on its own tells you very little. As administrator of the FOSKETT surname group, whenever a new result is included, I issue an updated report which identifies related families, latest news etc etc. Not only has it proved invaluable in establishing a relationship between individuals, it has also helped to disprove some assumptions previously made.
The Which article doesn't even mention this aspect, so it is flawed in its assumptions.

[Donna]

All the comments have addressed the positive side of the results I had my brother take a test to verify what we already suspected, that our group of Kile/Kyle's in the US were not related to any of the other groups. I find the negative results more helpful than positive would be, I can rule out one avenue and explore another.

[Loran Braught]

My wife and I each submitted DNA samples and payments to two DNA companies with the expectations of leaving family data for the future more than expecting great results for our research. Expecting to find new documentation for our collections were not our primary reason for jumping into the DNA databases.

This is a very new and gradually maturing resource for genealogy, so expecting to obtain your verified family book pouring back into your lap is very naive, in my opinion. When lineage societies begin to experience several disclaimers because of DNA evidence, we might see some impact from DNA, but presently it is just the reverse; the DNA leans heavily upon documented family research as still the foundation for genealogy data. However, building a huge DNA database is the most useful hope for DNA contributions to genealogy. Meantime, there are a few times when DNA has helped genealogists collect new family contacts, albeit that connections are about 200 years ago.

If there is a question about contributing to DNA it would be the selection of a company with the lowest cost and greatest reports. Comparing companies on those criteria might be worth a good article about now. Meantime, I plan to continue attending conference speakers and reading articles on the topic just as I continue to watch reports of many other topics for genealogists.

[Scott Norton]

I am the coordinator for the Norton Family DNA Project. We have a DNA signature for almost every Norton that emigrated to the colonies. Which means that we have a good chance of matching a DNA test with a particular pedigree.

I can give you a dozen examples where DNA was the only way to break past a brick wall.

Here's two:

Norton of Marion, SC
This family had confusing pedigrees and the history was mixed with another family from Virginia. DNA conclusively proved the pedigrees and separated the confused histories.

Norton of Fluvanna, VA
This is my family. We discovered we were Norden instead of Norton. Talk about breaking down a brick wall.

We are now concentrating on taking our DNA lines to their country of origin by obtaining samples and pedigrees from England and Ireland. Our goal is to identify every Norton line in the world with a DNA signature and pedigree.

www.nortonfamily.net

[Adrian B]

Most people here have a thorough understanding of DNA testing AS AN ADJUNCT to genealogical research. The problem is that most people in the real world see the advert for DNA testing and think that's going to be the answer to everything and tell them which part of the world they come from. To that extent, telling people it isn't like that is valuable.

In fact, one of the reputable FH mags in the UK ("Ancestors") did a similar survey (4 pages long) and found that the 3 tests gave different results from which they learnt very little. This review was preceded by a 5 page article which said "the real value of DNA tests lie in the comparisons" - pretty much what is said above.

One final comment - Which? is a magazine - this looks just like the blurb for a full article in a mag, not the full article itself.

[Chris]

Content-free journalism at its best! Confusing, too. When they say "the same two DNA samples - one male and one female " I'm hoping they mean one DNA sample and two tests, Y-chromosome and mDNA. Hard to tell from their article.

Dick, can you counter this article with any other critiques?

[Sue M.]

I strongly recommend that the writer of the article read the book, "Family History in the Genes," by Chris Pomery (another Brit), published 2007. He gives an exceptionally clear description of DNA testing--my testimony as a novice--and the reasonable expectations that genealogists might have when applying the results to their family research.

[Jim Beshires]

I'm sorry, but I have to agree in principle with the article. I submitted a DNA sample to a very reputable firm that advertizs in the major genealogy magazines. I paid $250.00 for the test.

I was extremely disappointed with what I got back. It said that my two highest matches were Black Ecquadorian and Han Chinese. Sorry, but I've traced my ancestry back to the 14th century, and I do not have Ecquadorian nor Han Chinese in any of my lines. It also said that out of my top 30 matches 26 of them were Hispanic. Again, no Hispanic ancestry.

I e-mailed them about my disappointment and suggested that maybe they'd mixed my sample with someone elses. They didn 't even bother to reply.

A total rip-off as far as I'm concerned.

[Dino (All Dino, All The Time)]

How many of the commenters to this article have submitted samples to two different companies, or even two samples to the same company to see if the results are consistent? Isn't this wahat a portion of this articles was about?

Of even greater concern are the privacy issues raised. Isn't it enough that, in the US, insurance companies have access to our perscription records (without our authorization)? What if they can pay for access to these test results to see what we are predisposed to? After all, some of these companies are reserving the right to keep DNA samples for 20 years.

[Margaret]

It sounds like the test ordered in both cases was the mtDNA one, which no company (to my knowledge at least) claims will pinpoint information on one's recent ancestry. Even if the male sample was used for YDNA testing, as many have already pointed out, the results are useful only for comparison to other results.

The writers of the article apparently either (1) had no clue what genealogical DNA testing was about and didn't bother to read any of the excellent explanations out there, or (2) were committed to a hatchet job from the beginning, or (3) both.