Frequently Asked Questions

Yes — protecting your genetic data is a top priority. We take privacy seriously and follow industry best practices to keep your information safe.

All genetic data is transmitted using secure, encrypted connections and processed on servers with strict access controls. Our applications run on Amazon Web Services (AWS), a cloud platform trusted by healthcare and life sciences companies for its strong security infrastructure. You can learn more about AWS security protocols here. We’re committed to handling your data with care, transparency, and respect for your privacy.

Our genetics laboratory, based in Houston, Texas, is Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (“CLIA”) certified. Medicaire and Medicaid Services regulates lab testing in the United States to ensure quality.

We honor user requests to permanently delete genetic data after testing.

No. We never share your data with a third party and do not use the data you provide for any reason other than to deliver you nutrition & health insights.

Yes, we offer DNA Test Kits and sequencing for patients in the US & Canada. All that is needed to send a sample is a cheek swab.

Yes! Gene Food testing qualifies for FSA/HSA eligibility, which means you can use these accounts to purchase our DNA Test Kits or Raw Data Uploads. If your HSA/FSA card doesn’t go through at checkout (some cards have extra restrictions), don’t worry — you can still pay with a regular card and we’ll send you an itemized receipt you can submit for reimbursement. Note that we recommend consulting with your individual tax advisor before moving forward to confirm eligibility.

Gene Food uses raw data files from providers like 23andme and Ancestry to create the reports. Accessing raw data is easy, both providers offer instructions. 23andme users, click here for instructions. Ancestry users can visit this page for instructions. At the end of the process, you should have either a zip or txt file to share through our encrypted form.

Yes, we offer discounts for larger test kit orders. The Family package allows families to all get tested together and the Bulk package is designed for healthcare practitioners to carry inventory for patients in their offices. Although premium upgrades are never required, we will honor the bulk price for your upgrades as well. For example, if a Family buys 4 kits and wants to upgrade all of the kits, we will honor the discount rate for the upgraded reports.

Each sequencing service provides your raw DNA in a slightly different format, so we can’t know for sure without actually seeing the file. Some providers exclude certain SNPs that are vital to our calculations, so we evaluate on a case by case basis. Please get in touch with us prior to your purchase to discuss. In the event we cannot process your data we will issue a full refund.

Yes, the nutrition plans offer macronutrient recommendations, but also a “system of eating” designed to make the plans easy to follow. Each nutrition plan comes complete with a 2 week meal plan and detailed shopping list to get you started on your new diet.

Please use the contact form on our Contact page to get in touch; somebody will email you shortly to assist.

You certainly can! Families often like to use Gene Food together, and the results can either be nested under one account or sent separately to each family member. If you buy multiple kitsm ,they can be registered to the family members you would like to have tested.

The products are similar. Whether you test through the Gene Food lab in Houston, or use data from a genotyping service like 23andme, we use raw data to score customers into one of twenty diet plans listed on our website. The advantage of ordering a test kit through Gene Food is even more coverage for the genes we use to calculate your score. From version to version, providers like 23andme can change the genes they include in raw data. For example, V5 of 23andme leaves out some histamine metabolism genes we use to calculate histamine scores. The Gene Food test kits evaluate almost all the genes we regard as important based on the latest scientific research. As such, the Gene Food testing process offers some “bonus genes” that allow us to take into account even more data when scoring customers. However, this does not mean the 23andme results are not accurate. We won’t formulate a score unless there is a minimum number of genes included in the raw data file we receive.

For 23andme and Ancestry plans:

Our nutrition plans based on Ancestry and 23andme raw data are digital products that cannot be returned once accessed. As a result, we offer refunds for these plans only prior to logging in and accessing the nutrition plan. If you haven’t yet logged in and would like to request a refund, please use the Website Contact Form and we will respond within 24 hours.

For test kits:

Returns are accepted for unopened kits. Notify us of the refund request through our Website Contact Form. Unopened kits sent back to Gene Food within 14 days of receipt will receive a partial refund of 75%.

In order to receive a 75% refund on your kit purchased from Gene Food, test kits are required to be sent back unopened, undamaged and unused in original, sealed packaging.

If the kit has been opened but not used or processed, or if you notify us of your request for a refund prior to receiving your nutrition plan results, customers are eligible for a refund of 50% of the price paid for the test kit. Please note: in the case of test kits, we cannot offer a refund after the nutrition plan has been issued and results have been sent.

Yes, we offer custom nutrition plan discounts for bulk orders. Typically, these arrangements are reserved for physicians and nutrition professionals who use the product in their practice, but we can also accommodate gyms, large groups, or even families. Send us an email through our Contact Form and tell us about your group.

Everyone is welcome to order a nutrition plan! We trust in our product and believe it has value for a diverse range of people. However, nutrition has become a controversial topic in our society as of late. If you already love the diet you’re on, the custom nutrition plan might not be a fit for you as there is a chance our recommendations could diverge from your current dietary philosophy.

Maybe. The Gene Food algorithm evaluates customers for wheat sensitivity, lactose intolerance, and trouble clearing histamine. All of these issues can contribute to digestive problems. However, there are lifestyle factors that contribute to digestive issues as well. For example, when a digestive problem has been caused by repeated use of antibiotics, it’s less likely nutrigenetic testing will offer a solution.

In a word, no. The custom nutrition plan is not a diagnostic tool and does not offer medical advice. The goal of the plans are to provide a life long foundation for approaching nutrition decisions with the hope that the information provided will improve health and wellbeing over the long term, but the genetic data we review will not pick up on or address chronic medical conditions.