DNA Test – A Cultural Anxiety

Anybody who has watched day-time TV shows knows that paternity DNA tests are becoming a regular feature. This so called ‘trailer trash TV’ is thought by some to be the equivalent of bear-baiting – cruel and irresponsible. But DNA tests and DNA testing offered by reputable DNA firms can professionally and discreetly help thousands of families put deep rooted anxieties to rest, giving definitive answers to difficult questions.

DNA Testing Resolves Paternal Discrepancy

It seems the stereotype of infidelity – the cheating husband who runs off with his secretary and ruins his family’s life – still persists, but the problem of infertility is far more far reaching. The demand for DNA tests and DNA testing from both sexes reveals the underlying fear for men: that when a woman strays, men can never really know if the child is his without the certainty of DNA testing. On the daytime TV shows, paternity DNA testing is often aimed at men unwilling to take responsibility for their children – forcing them to legally take responsibility. But paternal discrepancy can impact on all kinds of families across the social spectrum. In fact, it’s thought to be more common than many men realise – some of whom could be unknowingly bringing up another man’s child. There have been countless stories in the press where DNA tests have revealed at a later date that paternity is false, resulting in emotional and financial trauma. If there is any doubt that paternity could be disputed, DNA testing is strongly recommended early on in the child’s life or at their birth.

Popularity and Awareness Of DNA Tests On The Rise

Celebrity cases such as Anna Nicole Smith and Mel ‘Scary Spice’ Brown have helped raise the awareness of DNA testing in paternity disputes. It’s thought that around one in 25 men thought to be the biological father of a child is in fact not the real father. An article in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health in 2005 showed that in the ten years between 1991 and 2001, the number of people seeking DNA tests for paternity doubled in America. As public interest in determining paternity using DNA tests and DNA testing increases, it’s hoped that this figure will drop dramatically; ensuring fewer families have to suffer the emotional and financial fallout.