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I also see Dr. Kendall Stewart in Austin. I brought my initial 23andme test results and his assistant helped me get them downloaded from livewello. Dr. Stewart read the 30 pages or so of results and explained to me what was going on. This was only two weeks ago. He added two supplements, increased one and had me delete one. Will see what happens. He definitely is a believer in the 23andme testing and feels it is very helpful with his patients.

Hi @KS3505, what a tough situation you found yourself in. Reading through the responses, it is a common phenomenon found in our consultations with many Professionals. I am not a Geneticist, but did study Genetics at an honours degree level, so I am fortunate that I can somewhat understand most genetic testing. I say somewhat as much of it is presented in a hard to understand format. I have received test results that are virtually undecipherable. I think many have problems presenting information simply. Also, most genetic studies that are published are unreadable except to those few who specialise in that particular area. I struggle with them, and they rarely finish with a comment or discussion that can be helpful in applying the findings to the real world. That said, I have found 23andme extremely useful in some ways that have dramatically improved my health (CFS, hypothyroidism, anxiety). Some mutations are straightforward- If you have X mutation, Y happens, so take or do Z to alleviate of fix the problem. Many are not so easy, or there are several factors involved. The geneticists you saw behaved poorly. Unprofessional (and just plain rude) for discounting 23andme. For many years they would ... More

Hi @KS3505, what a tough situation you found yourself in. Reading through the responses, it is a common phenomenon found in our consultations with many Professionals. I am not a Geneticist, but did study Genetics at an honours degree level, so I am fortunate that I can somewhat understand most genetic testing. I say somewhat as much of it is presented in a hard to understand format. I have received test results that are virtually undecipherable. I think many have problems presenting information simply. Also, most genetic studies that are published are unreadable except to those few who specialise in that particular area. I struggle with them, and they rarely finish with a comment or discussion that can be helpful in applying the findings to the real world. That said, I have found 23andme extremely useful in some ways that have dramatically improved my health (CFS, hypothyroidism, anxiety). Some mutations are straightforward- If you have X mutation, Y happens, so take or do Z to alleviate of fix the problem. Many are not so easy, or there are several factors involved. The geneticists you saw behaved poorly. Unprofessional (and just plain rude) for discounting 23andme. For many years they would have been using similar programs to assess the data they have, they are just not available to the public, and are not on such a large scale. It is highly likely they have had themselves tested by 23andme, and i could almost guaruntee they found several of the results useful. Depending on what sort of a condition your child has (mitochondrial?, muscular? etc) you may be able to track down a specialist who does incorporate this information. Many can be found online. My suggestion at the moment is a bit left field, and may sound odd to some, is to take your child to see a Health/Energetic Kinesiologist- a good one. They are surprisingly accurate with what they uncover, and can be extremely effective in treating a variety of disorders. I really hope that you can improve your childs life. Best wishes. Less

Thank you @KS3505 for your post. I am sorry that you got that reaction from your
doctor. Just reading over the replies to what you wrote has been very helpful for
me. My own alternative doctor requested that I have this testing done, which I
did. However, when I went in to go over the results, he said, he needed further
information from another testing site on the internet. I transferred my data to
them and have not as yet been back to hear the interpretation.
The office visits are costly for me. I heard about the methylation pathways
and how they work in our bodies and move chemicals or transport enzymes from
one place to another. But he said the 23andme and the
Livewellow results weren't complete enough to
tell him what he needed to adjust my supplements. The next test would be.
I had some MTHFR testing done some 6 years ago and have a line of
supplements I take. So. I don't feel a great sense of urgency.
Why didn't he request this added test to begin with? He said he didn't
know about it 6 months ago.
It appears that these tests ... More

Thank you @KS3505 for your post. I am sorry that you got that reaction from your
doctor. Just reading over the replies to what you wrote has been very helpful for
me. My own alternative doctor requested that I have this testing done, which I
did. However, when I went in to go over the results, he said, he needed further
information from another testing site on the internet. I transferred my data to
them and have not as yet been back to hear the interpretation.
The office visits are costly for me. I heard about the methylation pathways
and how they work in our bodies and move chemicals or transport enzymes from
one place to another. But he said the 23andme and the
Livewellow results weren't complete enough to
tell him what he needed to adjust my supplements. The next test would be.
I had some MTHFR testing done some 6 years ago and have a line of
supplements I take. So. I don't feel a great sense of urgency.
Why didn't he request this added test to begin with? He said he didn't
know about it 6 months ago.
It appears that these tests are in their beginning stages and yes, we
need competent people to go over them with us. I was a big put back by
all of it, and at the same time I am attempting to keep a good outlook about
what they have to offer. I can well imagine they can help a lot in the
right medical hands and then too depending on the condition.
Good luck with this. It appears others here are also looking to
find their way through 'the medical maze'.

 Less

What are the issues that you see in your child that you would like to resolve?
You can reply to stzorfas@gmail.com as my Ph # has changed

It took me 6 years and 16 doctors to find out what was wrong with me. (toxic thyroid adenoma). I have had many doctors like the one you describe. I'm sure she wanted to do her own testing, $$$$. Don't go back. Find another one if they don't take you seriously and have that attitude.

You are not finding the right doctor! My whole family has been using Dr. Kendal Stewart out of Austin. He will interpret your results and tell you what he would recommends off your Livewello report. There is also a genetic key at www.neurobiologix.com that has what nutrition you should take per the mutations you have. It has helped us out and they have products that are easy to take if you have children (creams, lozenges). There is also a section on the Neurobiologix site that has a list of practitioners that do genetic assessment.

I had mine done also at 23 and Me....took to my appointment with a Gastroenterologist I had....she sat there and looked thru the whole main report I printed out..then she told me unfortunately everything I had going on at that point was in my DNA results....

But before I had mine done my PCP told me he would be interested in seeing my results also, so guess it depends on who you go to.

I was more fortunate. The geneticist I saw knew I was bringing in my dna info (which I obtained thru Ancestry, downloaded my raw data, analyzed by Livewello). He actually told me he spent the weekend getting familiar with how to read the info! He explained that they are trained to test for specific DNA mutations based on their experience and symptoms, that a lot of the DNA info is not yet well understood,. Also that there is a new 10 year test being conducted to determine more about this and that this is an emerging field. I was found to have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome/Hypermobility type and was referred to another of their doctors who has more experience with the raw data 6 more months to get in to see him. But they were very helpful.

My PCP was very interested - he said that in 20 years, they will be able to diagnose everything with a single drop of blood. Thanks for your post there was a lot of good info that people offered that I didn t know and will make use of this in my journey back to health. This is your child's info and you ... More

I was more fortunate. The geneticist I saw knew I was bringing in my dna info (which I obtained thru Ancestry, downloaded my raw data, analyzed by Livewello). He actually told me he spent the weekend getting familiar with how to read the info! He explained that they are trained to test for specific DNA mutations based on their experience and symptoms, that a lot of the DNA info is not yet well understood,. Also that there is a new 10 year test being conducted to determine more about this and that this is an emerging field. I was found to have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome/Hypermobility type and was referred to another of their doctors who has more experience with the raw data 6 more months to get in to see him. But they were very helpful.

My PCP was very interested - he said that in 20 years, they will be able to diagnose everything with a single drop of blood. Thanks for your post there was a lot of good info that people offered that I didn t know and will make use of this in my journey back to health. This is your child's info and you have a right to know everything about their health and to do what you want to do with it. Expect big changes in the field of medicine in future.

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That sounds like a doctor who doesn't want to do what he should. As I have figured out different things my dr., who initially thought 23andMe was a waste of time, has given me advice on what to take. My biggest thing is being prone to blood clots and I have Lyme which makes it even worse, so he prescribed Boluoke/lumbrokinase. I am also compound hetero for the big MTHFR's and he put me on a B-complex with extra B6. I found out my zinc doesn't make enough insulin and he tested my blood levels of zinc and copper before I started supplementing with zinc. I don't know if you will find someone to go over the results for you. Unfortunately interpreting these tests is a newer science and the most you will probably get is help with what you discover unless you can find a dr. very knowledgeable on DNA.

Yes, I have heard that a number of times- they test for certain genes but not necessarily the ones that result in pathological conditions. But the HLA-DQ2 and HLA-DQ8 gene responsible for Celiacs are not that hard to test for- my doctor ordered the gene testing for me when my blood tests for antibodies came back negative but I still have definite symptoms of Celiac's Disease. I came back positive for HLA-DQ8- which about 10% of Celiac cases carry. However just having the gene doesn't mean you will necessarily develop Celiac. If you don't have one of the two genes it if almost impossible to have it. If you think your daughter might have Celiac or some other condition related to the HLA-DQ2 gene then I would really recommend discussing your concerns with her doctors- and if they won't listen- find another doctor who will.

I have had mixed results. My primary care doctor immediately started me on mthfr supplements after seeing that part of my report.

A couple of my.docs have incorporated information from the detox results into treatment plan, with good results. (Formal, expensive pharmacogenetic testing has confirmed the metabolic difficulties presented by several classes of drugs - and both sets of results have explained a lot about why certain meds don't work for me or cause big side effects)

My dermatologist was interested but clueless. My.rheumie wants to see some of the reports, and I'm hoping to find an allergist familiar with rhe genetic approach.

That said, looking at one SNP at a time only tells us so much. A lot of the testing geneticists do is considerably more complex, and able to spot problems that a screening test like 23andme cannot.

One would hope that geneticists at least would take the OTC test results as a hint of where further testing is needed, but most won't.

Maybe they get too little additional info - beyond what they can draw from the extensive patient history - for it to.seem worth their time? Maybe some have been turned off by ... More

I have had mixed results. My primary care doctor immediately started me on mthfr supplements after seeing that part of my report.

A couple of my.docs have incorporated information from the detox results into treatment plan, with good results. (Formal, expensive pharmacogenetic testing has confirmed the metabolic difficulties presented by several classes of drugs - and both sets of results have explained a lot about why certain meds don't work for me or cause big side effects)

My dermatologist was interested but clueless. My.rheumie wants to see some of the reports, and I'm hoping to find an allergist familiar with rhe genetic approach.

That said, looking at one SNP at a time only tells us so much. A lot of the testing geneticists do is considerably more complex, and able to spot problems that a screening test like 23andme cannot.

One would hope that geneticists at least would take the OTC test results as a hint of where further testing is needed, but most won't.

Maybe they get too little additional info - beyond what they can draw from the extensive patient history - for it to.seem worth their time? Maybe some have been turned off by patients who thought they had some secret decoder ring that could get info from the 23andme reports that just isn't there? Who knows.

Important to.bear in mind, too, that like surgeons, many geneticists have far better technical skills than people skills. Less

My neurologist refuse to look at my data from 23andme and he works at the most famous hospital in Boston Massachusetts.

I also took my 23andme test results to the most respected Boston geneticist. He laughed at me and called me foolish for getting tested by them, claiming that everyone in the medical community knows their data is completely unreliable.

I am confused and suspicious because the same geneticist also sells genetic testing for $2,500. He made me feel guilty for not purchasing his genetic testing, claiming I could obviously afford it because I had spent more money than that on deviated septum surgery for my nose.

One of the other commenters recommended uploading our 23andme raw data into BLAST, which carries more credibility in the medical community. I guess I will try that.

You just need to find an appropriate physician. I worked with Dr. John Catanzaro of healthcoach7.com and he was great! He conducts his consultation over the Internet and it is recorded to video so you can then go back and view as well as download the recording. He spends which an hour and a half with you and then follows up wit an initial health plan, with recommendations on supplementation and diet.

Based on some previous test results he reviewed, plus my genetic markers, he was able to pinpoint two specific health issues that I am at risk for and help me take steps to prevent. I was unable to really pursue further testing because of financial constraints, but that initial consultation and follow up health plan really had a positive impact on my health. I'm still taking the supplements he recommended.

I felt that he and his team were the most efficient and professional organization I had the pleasure to work with. Highly recommended.

This did just happen to me with a new traditional MD. I brought in reports about a medication I had just started taking that said I may not metabolize it very well and he did wave me off and didn't look at the report.

After telling my naturopath that I tested with 23andme, she said she was going to do it and she did. She also asked me to email my reports to her.

I brought my reports to a new doctor and he said "I thought they were outlawed from giving this information any more". I am in southern california and would love to find doctors that can help with my gene mutations.

My doctor was very fascinated and the nurse was interested in having it done herself. My doctor took notes of the medication reactions which verified most of my current reactions anyway so it kind of proved it for me! I'm sorry your docs are ignorant in that aspect.

Sadly this is the norm rather than the exception. But don't despair! There are functional medicine doctors out there, like me, who specialize in genetic issues and underlying imbalances and will take the time to discuss how they impact your health. In case you are interested, I've written some blogs on the topic of MTHFR here - http://www.jillcarnahan.com/2013/10/05/whats-the-big-deal-about-methylation-update-of-the-popular...
You can search for a functional medicine trained doctor at www.functionalmedicine.org.
Best in healing!
Dr Jill
www.jillcarnahan.com

Being a physician who uses 23andme due to the cost factor, it is so much cheaper than doing all the individual tests through our lab, we hear our patients have the same results when they share their information with their other physicians. Just because one is a physician does not mean that they keep up with, and use, the latest technology available. Hopefully you have someone that can help with your questions, but don't rely on the doc you just say. One question to ask a prospective physician; do you use and understand genetic testing? If they respond with, yes. Then ask them if they are familiar with 23andme and LiveWello. If not, keep looking. It's your health after all.

It's so sad. I had the same experience and have learned since to stop wasting my time trying to convince them. I walked away and went searching through directories and asking for references then verified credentials. This doc helped How to Find a Qualified and Experienced Doctor: https://docs.google.com/document/d/16BrSnsxLEQ9dmAhPUoX030sJCaK2YNyzwnnRDwFF3Kg/edit?usp=sharing

Life is just too short.