AND
AND I'M
AND I'M LESLIE DRAFFIN.
DRAFFIN.
OUR
OUR GENES
OUR GENES MAKE US WHO WE ARE AND NOW THANKS TO
DIRECT-TO-
CONSUMER GENETICS
CONSUMER GENETICS
TESTING
TESTING IT'S EASIER THAN EVER TO FIND OUT A LITTLE MORE
ABOUT WHY WE ARE
THE WAY WE ARE--
BUT WHAT EXACTLY
ARE THESE KITS
TESTING FOR? WHAT
DO YOUR RESULTS
REALLY MEAN? AND IF
YOU FIND SOMETHING
BAD CAN YOU BEAT
YOUR GENES?
I TALKED TO ONE
CENTRAL TEXAS MAN
WHO'S TAKEN
SEVERAL OF THESE
TESTS -- IN HOPES OF
FINDING ANSWERS TO
HIS PAST AND
POSSIBLE CLUES INTO
HIS FUTURE --
MICHAEL
MICHAEL PILGRIM IS A FAMILY MAN-- (NAT POP)
-- A MARINE CORPS
VETERAN--
(NAT POP)
-- AND A PROUD
AGGIE---
(NAT POP)
-- HE'S ALSO--
ADOPTED-- THERE
WAS NEVER A TIME I
DIDN'T KNOW I WAS
ADOPTED MY
PARENTS TOLD ME AS
EARLY AS I COULD
UNDERSTAND"
MICHAEL LIVES IN
BELTON WITH HIS
WIFE AND THREE
DAUGHTERS-- NATS--
AND IT'S HIS GIRLS
WHO MADE HIM
RECENTLY BECOME
VERY CURIOUS ABOUT
HIS OWN PAST-- "ITS
REALLY WASSNT
UNTIL I HAD CHILDREN
OF MY OWN AND
MEDICAL ISSUES
POPPED UP AND I
WANTED
WANTED TO
WANTED TO KNOW MORE ABOUT MY SIDE" LAST YEAR MICHAEL
STARTED
RESEARCHING
STARTED RESEARCHING GENETIC TESTING
KITS ONLINE-- "I HAD
NO BACKGROUND ON
MY OWN MEDICAL
HISTORY AND I KNEW
THE BEST WAY TO
FIND OUT WAS TO
LOOK AT SOME
GENETIC TESTING"
KIMBERELY CLAWSON
-- A GENETICS
PROFESOR AT TEMPLE
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
-- SAYS GENETIC
TESTING KITS ARE
GREAT FOR PEOPLE
LIKE MICHAEL - YOUR
GEENS CONTROL
EVERYTHING IN YORU
BODY CLAWSON HAS
RESEARCHED MANY
OF THE WELL KNOWN
GENETICS
COMPANY'S-- THE
GENETIC TEST ARE
LOOKING FOR WAYS
TO HELP YOU MAYBE
CHAGNE THE
OUTCOME OF WAHTS
IN YOUR DNA SHE
SAYS MOST TEST FOR
A BROAD SET OF
GENETIC MARKERS---
LIKE THOSE THAT
MIGHT CAUSE CANCER
-- CHRONIC
ILLNESSES-- OR EVEN
MAKE YOU MORE
LIKELY TO GAIN
WEIGHT-- SO WITH
MOST GENES THERE
ISN'T A 100%
GAURANTEE THAT
YOU'LL HAVE
SOMEHING JUST
BECAUSE YOU
DISCOVER THE GENE
CLAWSON SAYS WE'RE
BORN WITH SOME
GENETIC MARKERS
WHICH WE CAN
NEVER CHANGE-- BUT
OTHERS CAN BE
ALTERED--
EXERCISING HAVING A
HEALHTY DIET WITH
LOTS OF DIFFERENT
TYPES OF FOOD CAN
CHANGE THOSE
MARKERS ON YOUR
GENOME DOCTOR LEM
TAYLOR AGREES--
HE'S AN ASSOCIATE
PROFESSOR OF
EXERCISE AND
SPORTS SCIENCE AT
UMHB-- PROBABLY
DEPENDS ON WHAT
YOU WANT TO IF WHAT
YOU WANT OT BEAT IS
COMBATING
OBSEISITY
COMBATING OBSEISITY PREVENTING
OBSEISITY PREVENTING CHRONIC DISEASE
THEN YEAH MOST
DEFIENTLY"
ACCORDING TO
ACCORDING TO
TAYLOR
TAYLOR --
TAYLOR -- POSITIVE LIFESTYLE CHANGES LIKE GOOD DIET AND
EXERCISE HELP TURN
ON GOOD GENES --
BUT YOU STILL MAY
NEVER BECOME A
PROFESSIONAL
ATHLETE NO MATTER
HOW HARD YOU HIT
THE GYM--
EVERYBODY CAN GET
BETTER MICHAEL
USED THE COMPANY--
23 AND ME-- "THEY
WERE
WERE MORE
WERE MORE ABOUT THE HEALTH THAN ANYTHING ELSE AND
THAT WAS WHAT I WAS
LOOKING FOR"
MICHAEL'S TEST DID
REVEAL CLUES THAT
MIGHT EXPLAIN SOME
OF HIS DAUGHTER'S
HEALTH PROBLEMS--
IT ALSO UNVIELED A
POTENTIAL HEALTH
RISK FOR HIM-- "ONE
OF THE THIGNS I
FOUND OUT IS I
COULD BE IN LINE FOR
PANCREATIC CANCER
AND I KNOW ITS A
CANCER THAT
USUALLY KILLS
PEOPLE BECAUSE
YOU DONT FIND OUT
UNILT ITS TOO LATE
BUT IF I KNOW I HAVE
A GENE TO
PREDISOPSE ME I CAN
TALK TO MY DOCTOR
AND WE CAN CATCH IT
SOON ENOUGH AND
DO SOMETHING
ABOUT IT" AND THAT'S
EXACTLY HOW
CLAWSON SAYS
THESE TESTS
SHOULD BE USED--
STILL -- SHE WON'T BE
GETTING ONE
ANYTIME SOON -- I
DONT WANT TO KNOW
THE GENES THAT
DONT HAVE A CURE SO
I FEEL IKE IF I HAD
TESTING DONE FOR A
PARTICULAR DISEASE
FOR ALZHEIMBERS
EVERY TIME I FORGET
MY KEYS ID THIN KIT
WAS SYMPTOMS AND I
DONT WANT TO LIVE
THAT WAY" BUT
MICHAEL SAYS HE
DOES WANT TO
KNOW WHAT THE
FUTURE HOLDS --
BECAUSE KNOWING
MORE ABOUT HIS
PAST-- MEANS HIS
DAUGHTERS NOW
KNOW MORE ABOUT
THEIR FUTURE--
"THERE IS SOMETHING
TO BE SAID ABOUT
BEING BLISSFULLY
UNAWARE BUT
KNOWLEDGE IS
POWER"
POWER"
SO
SO CAN
SO CAN YOU BEAT YOUR GENES? YES AND NO-- CLAWSON
TOLD ME IN SOME
CASES A GENE WILL
AND
AND NO--
AND NO-- CLAWSON TOLD ME IN SOME CASES A GENE WILL
BE EXPRESSED NO
MATTER WHAT-- BUT
SHE ADDS-- IT'S
ALWAYS BETTER TO
TRY THAN NOT TO
TRY-- IF YOU'RE
INTERESTED IN
GENETICS TESTING
YOU CAN FIND KITS
ONLINE RANGING
FROM 100 TO 200
DOLLARS--
DOLLARS--
MEANTIME,
MEANTIME, A WACO COUPLE IS GETTING USED TO LIFE WITH
QUADRUPLETS WHO