Greg Morago, Contributor

When it comes to a baby, how do you prove who the father is?

Short of calling a television talk show, which seems to specialise in paternity tests, you now can do some of the DNA legwork yourself. And it's as easy as going to your nearest pharmacy.

Sorenson Genomics, a company based in Salt Lake City, recently began selling over-the-counter paternity test kits at Rite Aid and Meijer drugstores in California, and plans to make them widely available in the next several months.

The company's Identigene paternity test kit - the mother takes cheek swabs of herself, the child and the alleged father and sends them to a laboratory that delivers results in a week - is an example of genetic testing moving into the hands of the consumer.

It's also part of an overall trend of DIY (do-it-yourself) diagnostic tests that analyse blood, saliva and urine, tests once conducted in a physician's office or a lab but now done at home.

The rise in health and well-being tests for at-home use was listed as one of 10 leading trends for 2008, according to Mintel Global New Products Database. More at-home DNA and genetic testing won't be far behind.

Self-diagnostic kits

"We'll see more self-diagnostic kits of all types and we'll see them from some very interesting companies," said Lynn Dornblaser, senior new-product analyst at Mintel.

Test kits for things like blood glucose levels (the largest market segment of home diagnostic testing), pregnancy, ovulation, cholesterol and drug use are not new. But at-home diagnostic kits, including DNA testing, are growing, raising medical and legal questions as more people bypass the doctor's office.

Since 1999, the at-home diagnostic market has grown from $2.9 billion in worldwide sales to more than $6 billion in 2005, said Mark Hughes, a vice-president and spokesman for Enterprise Analysis Corp., a health-care consulting company in Stamford, Conn.

Will this segment continue to grow?

"Yes, over time, but there are few opportunities for blockbusters like diabetes (test kits)," Hughes said, referring to blood glucose tests. "Diabetes will continue to drive the market because of the continuing problem of diabetes. The market will grow because diabetes will grow. We will see growth in other areas, but it will be a fraction of the diabetes market."

Still, Hughes said, there probably will be growth in DNA testing because it appeals to the consumer who is curious or who needs to know right away. "It's like pregnancy tests. Consumers want to know and they're willing to spend the money," he said.

A positive result of the DIY diagnostic trend is that some of these tests yield early warnings that prompt users to seek professional advice and care, said Steven Seligman, a Hartford, Conn., lawyer.

Good first step

"I would imagine that most people motivated to get these kits are sufficiently concerned to find a remedy. It's a good first step," he said.

But Seligman said consumers shouldn't consider the tests infallible.

"These companies that create home kits ... write disclaimers, not for the benefit of the consumer or the user of the product, but for the benefit of the manufacturer when, and if, they are ever brought to court," he said.