Ethnicity and genetic ancestry can play a role in disease risk. For example, certain genetic variants are more common or have been studied more in certain populations. This means that your ethnicity and genetic ancestry may impact how relevant a particular report is for you. In addition, some reports explain your results in the context of your ethnicity. You can learn more about how your ethnicity applies to each type of report below:
Health Predispositions*
Our Health Predisposition reports provide information about how genetics may influence your chances of developing certain health conditions. Within the Health Predisposition category, there are two types of reports: Genetic Health Risk reports* and Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) reports***.
Genetic Health Risk reports
Genetic Health Risk reports test for genetic variants that individually have a big impact on the risk of developing certain health conditions. Ethnicity and genetic ancestry are relevant in these reports for several reasons.
- The variants in many of our Genetic Health Risk reports have been studied more in people of certain ethnicities or ancestries than in others. The effect of these variants on the likelihood of developing a disease is expected to be similar in people of other ethnicities, but the exact numbers are not as well understood.
- In addition, our reports do not include all possible genetic variants associated with each health condition. For example, many of our Genetic Health Risk reports test for variants that are more common in people of certain ethnicities than in others. So if you are of an ethnicity not highlighted in the report and receive a "Variant(s) not detected" result, it's especially important to remember that you could have a variant common in people of your ethnicity but that is not included in our test.
Within the How To Use This Test section of each Genetic Health Risk report, the "Ethnicity Considerations" area lists the ethnicities in which the variants included in our test are most common or have been studied the most. If your ethnicity is highlighted for a particular report, that report may provide more detailed information that is especially relevant for you.
Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) reports (Powered by 23andMe Research)
Our Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) reports within the Health Predisposition and Wellness categories are based on thousands of genetic markers (specific places in the genome where you can have different genetic variants) that all have a very small impact. These reports are different from many of your other 23andMe health reports as your result is based on a statistical model that combines the effects of all these genetic variants, rather than being based on only one or a few genetic variants that each individually have a big effect. The statistical models used to generate your result for these reports are powered by data from consented 23andMe research participants. The models also take into account your birth sex and, in most cases, your genetic ancestry to provide an estimated likelihood of developing the condition. Ethnicity and genetic ancestry can be relevant to these reports because the typical likelihood of developing a condition may be higher for people of some ancestries compared to others.
- At this time, most of our Powered by 23andMe Research reports are able to tailor a result to people of European, Hispanic/Latino, East/Southeast Asian, South Asian, Sub-Saharan African/African American, and Northern African/Central & Western Asian descent.
- For reports launched after March 2024, we are able to provide results that incorporate genetic ancestry as a continuous spectrum instead of grouping customers into specific ancestry categories. Check out this blog post to learn more.
- Finally, for some reports — like our Colorectal Cancer Polygenic Risk Score (PRS) report and our two skin cancer-related PRS reports — we do not have enough data from 23andMe research participants of certain ancestries to create a genetic prediction for them that meets our scientific standards at this time.
It's also important to keep in mind that the statistical models powering PRS reports often perform better for some ancestries than others, depending in part on how much data is available for different populations. You can learn more about the performance of each model in different genetic ancestry groups in these two white papers.
Carrier Status*
Our Carrier Status reports provide information about variants that may not affect your health, but could affect your children's health. Some of the conditions we test for in our Carrier Status reports are more common in certain ethnicities. In addition, many of the variants we test for occur more frequently in some ethnicities than in others; this means that we can detect a larger proportion of carriers in certain ethnicities. Because of this, receiving a "Variant not detected" result may be more informative for certain ethnicities than for others For more information about why some Carrier Status reports are more relevant for certain ethnicities, see this help article.
In addition, some of our Carrier Status reports provide unique content that's tailored based on your self-reported ethnicity in your account settings. For example, if the condition has been well studied and is more common in people of your ethnicity, you may receive more detailed information, such as the average carrier frequency in people of your ethnicity or your post-test carrier risk (how likely it is that you're still a carrier if you receive a "Variant(s) not detected" result).
Within the How To Use This Test section of each Carrier Status report, the "Important Ethnicities" area lists ethnicities for which our test is most relevant. Within the About [Condition Name] section of the report, the “Ethnicities most affected” area lists the ethnicities that the condition is most common in. In addition, the Test Details section of the Scientific Details page lists all ethnicities for which we know the carrier detection rate of the test (how well the test is able to detect carriers of a particular ethnicity).
Wellness and Traits
Our Wellness reports provide information about how your DNA may affect your body's response to things like diet, exercise, the environment and sleep. Traits reports provide information about the genetics behind your physical features and other qualities such as fear of heights or public speaking. Many of these reports provide information on specific genetic variants that have been studied more in certain ethnicities than in others. The effect of these variants are expected to be similar in people of other ethnicities, but the exact impact is not as well understood and there may be differences between people of different ethnicities. Other reports are based on statistical models derived from 23andMe research that combine the effects of many genetic variants. The scientific details of each report indicate which ethnicities the variants have been best studied or which ethnicities the models are most relevant for. When available, these reports provide results based on your genetic information paired with the ethnicity you report to us. It's important to remember other factors, like lifestyle and environment, also often impact the chances of having a particular trait. These other factors are not captured in the reports.
*The 23andMe PGS test includes health predisposition and carrier status reports. Health predisposition reports include both reports that meet FDA requirements for genetic health risks and reports which are based on 23andMe research and have not been reviewed by the FDA. The test uses qualitative genotyping to detect select clinically relevant variants in the genomic DNA of adults from saliva for the purpose of reporting and interpreting genetic health risks and reporting carrier status. It is not intended to diagnose any disease. Your ethnicity may affect the relevance of each report and how your genetic health risk results are interpreted. Each genetic health risk report describes if a person has variants associated with a higher risk of developing a disease, but does not describe a person’s overall risk of developing the disease. The test is not intended to tell you anything about your current state of health, or to be used to make medical decisions, including whether or not you should take a medication, how much of a medication you should take, or determine any treatment. Our carrier status reports can be used to determine carrier status, but cannot determine if you have two copies of any genetic variant. These carrier reports are not intended to tell you anything about your risk for developing a disease in the future, the health of your fetus, or your newborn child's risk of developing a particular disease later in life. For certain conditions, we provide a single report that includes information on both carrier status and genetic health risk. Results should be confirmed in a clinical setting before taking any medical action. For important information and limitations regarding each genetic health risk and carrier status report, visit 23andme.com/test-info/
**23andMe PGS Pharmacogenetics reports: The 23andMe test uses qualitative genotyping to detect 3 variants in the CYP2C19 gene, 2 variants in the DPYD gene and 1 variant in the SLCO1B1 gene in the genomic DNA of adults from saliva for the purpose of reporting and interpreting information about the processing of certain therapeutics to inform discussions with a healthcare professional. It does not describe if a person will or will not respond to a particular therapeutic and does not describe the association between detected variants and any specific therapeutic. Our CYP2C19 Pharmacogenetics report provides certain information about variants associated with metabolism of some therapeutics and provides interpretive drug information regarding the potential effect of citalopram and clopidogrel therapy. Results for SLCO1B1 and DPYD and certain CYP2C19 results should be confirmed by an independent genetic test prescribed by your own healthcare provider before taking any medical action. Warning: Test information should not be used to start, stop, or change any course of treatment and does not test for all possible variants that may affect metabolism or protein function. The PGS test is not a substitute for visits to a healthcare professional. Making changes to your current regimen can lead to harmful side effects or reduced intended benefits of your medication, therefore consult with your healthcare professional before taking any medical action. For important information and limitations regarding Pharmacogentic reports, visit 23andme.com/test-info/.
***The 23andMe PRS Reports are based on a genetic model that includes data and insights from 23andMe consented research and incorporate thousands of genetic variants to describe if a person has a certain likelihood of developing a condition, but does not describe a person’s overall likelihood. The PRS reports do not account for lifestyle or family history and have not been reviewed by the US Food and Drug Administration. The PRS reports are not intended to tell you anything about your current state of health, or to be used to make medical decisions or determine any treatment.