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Contact 6 tests three popular DNA kits
Contact 6 tests three popular DNA kits
MILWAUKEE — A glimpse into the past using DNA. These days more and more people are choosing to unlock their family history by taking genetic tests. There are a number of tests, but does it matter which one you buy? FOX6's Contact 6 put three popular brands to the test -- AncestryDNA, Family Tree and 23andMe.
Robert Smith, an associate professor at University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, agreed to help out Contact 6 and be the test subject.
"I'm curious because if we have the technology now to trace in that respect, I have to know," Smith said.
Robert Smith is an associate history professor at UW-Milwaukee.
Smith teaches history. So, it's interesting that he knows very little about his ancestral origins.
"I would assume from my darker skin that I have some amount of African-ness in me, but to what degree? But to what extent?" Smith wondered.
Contact 6 ordered three different tests. The AncestryDNA kit and the 23andMe kit both cost $99. The Family Tree kit usually costs $79, but Contact 6 got it on sale for $59.
For AncestryDNA and 23andMe, Smith had to fill a tube with spit.
Robert Smith fills a tube with spit to collect samples for 23andMe and AncestryDNA tests.
For the Family Tree test Smith used two swabs to scrape the inside of both cheeks.
Robert Smith swabs both sides of his mouth to collect a sample for the Family Tree DNA test.
Once the samples were collected, Contact 6 registered the tests online and mailed them.
Five weeks later, all three labs respond. Two of Smith's reports are ready. However, the AncestryDNA test had an error and needs to be redone. The company sends a free replacement kit and Smith retakes the test.
The second test from AncestryDNA took a couple months to process because it was sent in after Christmas and the lab says it was swamped.
More than two months later, it's time to share the results.
Contact 6 found the three tests were fairly consistent.
All three tests found Smith is about 73 percent African. More specifically, the tests reveal his roots are primarily west African -- about 65 percent.
AncestryDNA was the most specific.
"They broke it down as 25 percent Nigerian, 20 percent Cameroon or the Congo, 14 percent Senegal and, then, 12 percent Ivory
Coast/Ghana," Contact 6's Jenna Sachs revealed to Smith.
"That's really interesting," Smith responded.
The tests, also, found Smith 23 to 26 percent European -- primarily the British Isles.
"Some of the tests found you are about 15 percent Irish," Sachs told Smith.
"That's interesting. I didn't expect Irish," Smith said.
The tests can be explored more online.
On AncestryDNA's website, Smith learned his ancestors were likely among African slaves brought to North Carolina.
On Family Tree's website, a family finder tool correctly connected Smith to relative he knows and a
few he doesn't.
The experience only reaffirmed Smith belief that American identities are a lot more complex and connected than many people think.
"This is all very important in determining where one sits in the world," Smith said.
Contact 6 reached out to each company to ask about the tests and the experience with each one.
Ancestry gave more insight into why the retake test took so long to get back and more information about their services. The company sent the following statement.
Family Tree sent Contact 6 the following statement about their services:
23andMe sent Contact 6 the following statement about their services: