Break The Fitness Code

A range of easy and affordable genetic tests promise personalised health, fitness and nutritional insights tailored to your unique DNA.So can these tests really crack the fitness code? And can you harness their power?

- Mark Bailey

Swirl the cotton swab around your cheek, seal your DNA sample in the plastic tube provided, post it off to the laboratory, and await a personalised report on your deepest genetic secrets.

Thanks to consumer DNA testing kits, you can now pay to discover your genetic sensitivity to saturated fat and gift for muscle growth (DNAFit.com, £149), your ancestral ethnicity (Ancestry.co.uk, £79) or even the tastiest wines for your unique palate (Vinome.com, £46). With a single sample you can learn about your genetic risk of lung disease and Alzheimer’s while uncovering unexpected traits, from your susceptibility to mosquito bites to your earwax type (23andMe.com, £149).

Whether life-changing or playfully intriguing, personal genetic testing is big business. Over 12 million people have used these consumer DNA tests, and the market was valued at $359million (around £284 million) in 2017 and is expected to hit $928.8million (£734million) by 2023. DNAFit was ranked in the Top 10most innovative companies in data science by Fast Company magazine in 2017, while personal genome company 23andMe has been valued at $1.8 billion.

BEING HUMAN

This genetic revolution has been brewing since 14th April 2003, when scientists confirmed the completion of the Human Genome Project – a 13-year, $2.7 billion quest to sequence the three billion chemical base pairs, consisting of adenine (A), thymine (T), guanine (G) and cytosine (C), that make up the human genome. A genome is a complete set of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) which contains all the genetic instructions needed to build and maintain a living organism. The research promised a new age of personalised healthcare with more accurate diagnosis of diseases and bespoke health interventions.