By Rhiannon Mills, Sky News Correspondent
A controversial personal DNA test that screens people for diseases such as cancer and Parkinson's has gone on sale in the UK.
It costs £125 and works by testing users' saliva with a kit that is then posted back to a lab to be screened.
But the company behind it, 23andMe, has been banned from marketing the tests in the US, following questions over accuracy.
The 23andMe Personal Genome Service (PGS) claims to offer access to more than 100 pieces of genetic information about a person's health, ancestry and family traits.
Four to six weeks after sending off the saliva sample, users receive an email telling them they can log in online to get the results. People have previously been able to get the test sent over from the US.
However, the Food and Drug Administration agency in America put a ban on the test being marketed because of concerns about the potential health consequences of giving people this information.
23andMe, which has been part-funded by Google, say the tool tests for genes that may reveal risk factors for conditions such as blood clotting, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's, and is not designed to specifically diagnose illnesses.
Chief executive Anne Wojcicki told Sky News: "It's a little bit like your cholesterol. If I tell you that you have high cholesterol levels then you can take proactive measures to try and prevent a heart attack.
"Nothing is 100%, but if I tell you that you're higher risk for something you might be able to take better measures to be proactive. That could be going to the doctor, changing your behaviour and just being more aware."
As well as the health checks, the saliva is also assessed for information including peoples' caffeine consumption, type of ear wax or the risk of baldness.
Manufacturers also say the test can show how people respond to medication - which could help their doctors. And it includes a "full genetic ancestry report" allowing people to trace their family's genetic roots.
The UK's medicines regulating body, the MHRA, has said in a statement: "Products used in personal genome services are regulated by MHRA to meet minimum standards.
"People who use these products should ensure that they are CE marked and remember that no test is 100% reliable so think carefully before using personal genome services."
Marcy Darnovsky from the Center of Genetics and Society in California said the test is good "for diagnosing rare genetic disorders in babies and children, and it is good for detecting the few genetic variations that cause a few inherited kinds of cancer".
"But it needs to be used with a doctor who can explain to you what the results mean.
"If you're a healthy person and want to know your chances of getting one of the common killer diseases, most cancers, heart disease anything like that, this kind of genetic testing is really useless."
The service is formally launched in the UK today, but the tests will still be carried out in the US. Around 10,000 customers have already paid to have the kit delivered to Britain from America.
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