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Diet and exercise changes following direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing
Daiva Elena Nielsen1,2, Deanna Alexis Carere3, Catharine Wang4
1Division of Genetics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, EC Alumnae Building, Suite 301, 41 Avenue Louis Pasteur, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
BMC Medical Genomics
|May 4, 2017
Summary
Personal genomic testing (PGT) led to modest health behavior improvements, including increased vegetable intake and strength exercise. These changes were not linked to specific genetic results but were more pronounced in individuals with lower self-reported health.
Area of Science:
- Genomics and Health Behaviors
- Personalized Medicine
- Public Health
Background:
- Direct-to-consumer personal genomic testing (PGT) impacts on health behaviors like diet and exercise are not well understood.
- Investigating PGT's influence on lifestyle choices is crucial for understanding its utility beyond genetic predispositions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate changes in diet and exercise following personal genomic testing (PGT).
- To determine if observed health behavior changes are associated with specific genetic test results from PGT.
Main Methods:
- A web-based survey assessed diet and exercise in 1,002 participants before and 6 months after receiving PGT results from 23andMe and Pathway Genomics.
- Paired t-tests and linear regressions analyzed changes in fruit/vegetable intake and exercise frequency.
- Outcomes were stratified by baseline self-reported health (SRH) and PGT content.
Main Results:
- Significant increases observed in vegetable intake and strength exercise frequency overall.
- Participants with lower self-reported health showed significant improvements across all measured diet and exercise outcomes.
- Higher self-reported health participants showed a decrease in light exercise; genetic results were not consistently linked to behavior changes.
Conclusions:
- Personal genomic testing experience correlated with modest, generally positive shifts in diet and exercise habits.
- These observed health behavior modifications were independent of the specific genetic information provided by PGT.
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