Are you sick of even looking at the scales, let alone finding out that all those endless days without your favorite foods amounted to basically nothing? Have you tried every diet known to man and still got nowhere? The good news is that your unique genetic signature can help you obtain in-depth knowledge of your body’s inner workings and provide you with personal fitness and nutrition recommendations that will finally help you reach and maintain your ideal weight.
Although it might sound strange at first, your weight and genetics go hand in hand. Your unique genetic makeup can hold the underlying cause of your inability to lose weight or simply keep it off. The problem usually lies in the dissonance between your genes and your lifestyle. If you would like to learn more about this topic, read our dedicated post to find out how DNA testing can help you with dieting, exercising, and losing weight permanently.
Testing Procedure
On our website, we mostly talk about at-home DNA testing, so once you decide on a specific diet-related testing solution, you can expect the usual direct-to-customer model. When you place your order and provide the company with all the necessary data, your personal DNA testing kit will be shipped to your home address. After it arrives, you’ll be able to collect your DNA sample from the comfort of your home. All that’s left to do at that point is to send the secured sample back to the company and wait for the results to become available online. The average turnaround time varies between different companies, but it usually takes between 10 and 20 days.
When it comes to the kit itself, the companies usually use mouth swabs for this kind of testing. This means you won’t have to take any painful actions or waste too much time on collecting your sample. The procedure itself is completely painless, only taking a couple of minutes. The return envelopes are usually prepaid and provided within the kit itself. The only thing you should keep in mind is to let your mouth swabs dry completely before storing them in the provided container; otherwise, you’re risking cross-contamination, which can compromise the validity of your final report. Also, make sure that the swabs never come into contact with anything else but the provided container. You’ll usually receive an email notification once your final report is generated and you’ll be able to inspect it on your personal account.
Test Results
Diet-related DNA tests are designed to allow you to inspect the genetic markers involved in your weight. The test results will focus on your food intake, which will help you understand the interactions between your genetic makeup and the foods you eat but also provide you with a recommended dieting plan that’ll definitely help you reach your final goal. Most companies will also include comprehensive eating and exercise plans.
Your final report will give you some of the most important answers concerning your diet. Every area of your healthy weight loss will receive a separate genetic profile. These areas include:
- Your ability to lose weight – This part of the report will cover the “proficiency” of your body when it comes to losing weight. Some individuals may have genes that encourage weight loss while others may have unfavorable genes that make it more difficult to lose weight.
- How your body uses proteins, carbs, and fats – This portion of the results will provide you with information on your ideal macronutrient ratio. The most important factors considered include genetic makeup, age, gender, and height.
- What vitamins & nutrients your body needs the most – Granted, micronutrients and vitamins do not affect weight loss directly, but they support the bodily functions that do. One of the most important things this section of your report can reveal is whether your genes channel you toward some vitamin and mineral deficiencies and whether you should consume more foods from a particular food group.
- Strength training, cardio response, and exercise plans – When exercising for weight loss, you need to know what exercise factors influence your ability to lose weight and
justhow much you need to exercise to achieve optimal results. You will also learn about the overall response of your genetic profile to cardio exercises.
Once your final report has been generated, you can always consult a professional genetic counselor and get more information about your results. Most of the prominent DNA testing providers feature their own counseling teams, which can provide valuable professional insight and shine even more light on your unique genetic makeup. Furthermore, none of the respected companies offer just diet DNA testing, so you’ll also be able to consult their counselors on wellness, lifestyle, physical traits, and more. Note that genetic counseling usually comes with an additional fee.
Bottom Line
DNA testing is the best way of determining your body’s capacity for weight loss and physical exercise. Your genetic makeup dictates your ability to lose weight, gain muscle, endure physical strain, and process certain foods. Favorable genes can give you a significant advantage in all these areas whereas unfavorable genetics can hinder you in spite of your greatest efforts.
It is, therefore, extremely important to understand your particular DNA signature and make it work for you by adjusting your diet, exercise plan, and overall lifestyle to fit your genetic predispositions. We hope our guide helped you grasp the importance of genetics when it comes to dieting and weight loss and pointed you in the right direction concerning the optimal testing choice for your specific needs and expectations.