How do you use DNA at home?

You typically use DNA at home for ancestry testing or health risk assessments through DNA collection kits.

Here's how you might use a DNA collection kit at home, based on a common cheek swab method:

1. Collection: Rub the swab on the inside of your cheeks for about ten seconds to collect cells.
2. Application: Open the collection card to reveal the pink paper. Press your swab firmly onto the pink section of your labeled collection card for 5 seconds.
3. Repeat: Turn the swab and press it again for 5 seconds.

These kits are then mailed to a lab for analysis, and the results are typically available online. The DNA extracted from the cheek swab is used to identify genetic markers, which are then compared to large databases to estimate ancestry or predict certain health risks.