Internet giant Yahoo Japan will start selling genetic testing kits to the general public, according to Japan Times.
Called ‘GeneLife2012’, the medical test is designed to allow anyone to test themselves for genetic predispositions to various diseases.
Users just have to swab their insides of their mouth for saliva, let the sample sit for about 10 minutes, and send the sample to Genesis Healthcare for analysis—the genetic analysis specialist that developed the test kit.
The kit can test for up to 68 genes and can find out genetic predispositions to certain ailments, such as allergies, gout, diabetes, stroke and obesity.
Genesis Healthcare would advise lifestyle changes to reduce the risk of the diseases the users are susceptible to.
Tests results would take about two months to process, and Yahoo Japan would have no access to the data.
GeneLife2012 kits will be priced at ¥29,800 (about US$371) and will go on sale in December.
[via Japan Times]