August 8, 2012
Are you a jetsetter? Long-distance air travel increases a person’s odds of developing a blood clot, a condition known medically as venous thromboembolism (VTE) and dubbed in the media as the “economy-class syndrome”. But choosing coach for your next vacation isn’t the problem per se. Inactivity is [...]
August 6, 2012
Changes in DNA Underlie Cancer Cancer develops when normal cells in the body grow and reproduce uncontrollably because of “mistakes” in the DNA code. DNA (a copy of which is contained in each cell) contains finely tuned instructions for cell growth and production, but as cells copy and pass on this DNA [...]
July 27, 2012
Mutations in the HFE gene cause most forms of hereditary hemochromatosis — a common genetic condition that increases a person’s risk for iron overload and can lead to liver disease, arthritis and heart problems. HFE-related hemochromatosis is recessive, meaning that you must inherit a mutated gene from [...]
July 26, 2012
Numerous factors increase a person’s risk for developing blood clots in deep veins, a condition known medically as venous thromboembolism (VTE). VTE starts with the formation of a blood clot deep in the body, usually in the legs, and occasionally escalates into a more serious condition called “pulmonary [...]
July 23, 2012
Bethann is a Health Content Scientist at 23andMe and regular contributor to the Spittoon. The following is her story about finding out she has a genetic condition that puts her at risk for iron overload. When I received my 23andMe results my initial reaction was that of relief and curiosity — only [...]
July 18, 2012
July is National Hemochromatosis Month, and 23andMe will be highlighting stories and research related to this genetic disease that can quietly lead to iron overload ultimately causing damage to the liver, kidney, heart and other organs. Triathlete and research scientist Shauna Dudley says her tastes are [...]
July 16, 2012
Janssen Healthcare Innovation, a unit of Janssen Research & Development, LLC, is sponsoring a study in rheumatoid arthritis patients that will be conducted by MediGuard.org (a subsidiary of Quintiles) and 23andMe. The study, called TogetherRA, will enroll approximately 1,000 patients who are currently [...]
July 11, 2012
Some of us may have grown up thinking that spinach is a good source of iron, but this isn't exactly true. It's been said that a report from the 1800's mistakenly claimed that the vegetable has 10 times more iron than it actually has. It's also known today that spinach contains the molecule oxalic acid, which [...]
July 9, 2012
It’s the most common genetic disorder in the United States, but Milo Sharp had never heard of it before. The disorder, hemochromatosis, causes iron overload. Undiagnosed it can lead to a build up of iron in the body, particularly in the liver. This, in turn, can lead to serious health problems. In the [...]
July 3, 2012
With Nick Eriksson Social norms and preferences aside, it turns out that breast size matters -- but not quite in the way you think. 23andMe’s latest research paper, published in the journal BMC Medical Genetics, shows that genetic factors influence whether women have double As or double Ds. This might [...]
