Personalized genetic tests might not help consumers make healthier choices

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Would knowing you are at high genetic risk for developing a disease like diabetes motivate you to live a healthier life? A new study suggests it wouldn’t.

Researchers at Cambridge University provided written information about the risk factors, prevention, treatment and consequences of Type 2 diabetes to 569 healthy middle-aged men and women.

Researchers interviewed them eight weeks later and found no differences between the groups in what they ate or how active they were. Nor were there any differences in anxiety levels among the three groups. The findings appeared in PLoS Medicine.

“The consumer-direct testing companies would have you believe that genetic information is more motivating in behavior change,” said the lead author, Job G. Godino, now an epidemiologist at the University of California, San Diego. “We tested that. It isn’t.”

The GLP aggregated and excerpted this blog/article to reflect the diversity of news, opinion, and analysis. Read full, original post: Does Gene Testing Spur Healthier Habits?

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