Will knowing your genes change your behaviour?
IF YOU discovered that your genes made you prone to obesity, would you eat dessert as usual or rush to the gym? It's not a trick question. Whether people act on news of their genetic fate or simply ignore it is the subject of a 20-year study of 10,000 Americans.
Announced last week, the study was prompted by the recent launch of a clutch of companies offering genetic tests directly to consumers. The study will be partly funded by one of these firms - Navigenics of Redwood Shores, California.
Nevertheless, Eric Topol of the Scripps Translational Science Institute in San Diego, California, says that independent scientists will be in charge. "We have complete, independent control of the database and all publications derived from the study."
