When I was little, my mother insisted on giving me bowl cuts, dressing me in overalls, and buying me miniature trucks.

I was having none of it.

I begged for frilly dresses, pined for shiny patent leather shoes, and pretended to breastfeed my teddy bear.

Meanwhile my brother, denied the joys of toy guns, carefully nibbled his toast into the shape of a pistol and raced around the house yelling “bang.” Take that, nurture.

Nature has been whooping nurture’s ass for a few decades, now, with the double-helix being hailed as supreme commander of human physique, health, and psychology.

Unfortunately for my mother, my two X chromosomes were no match for her hippie sensibilities.

But don’t just take it from me: for fees ranging from $100 to $1,000, anyone can peer into their genetic blueprint and unlock such urgent mysteries as why they don’t like brussel sprouts, why they can’t seem to shed those love handles, where their great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandparents came from (hint: Africa), and whether they’ll kick the bucket at age 80 or 82.

On January 23, California-based 23andMe Inc. launched its service in Canada.

For US$999 and a saliva sample, 23andMe will run a full analysis of your DNA, revealing everything you wanted to know about yourself, and possibly more: what diseases you’re at risk of carrying, why certain foods taste more bitter to you than other people, where your maternal ancestors are from, and whether you’re related to any celebrity figures. (A word of warning: are you really prepared to find out if you’re genetically linked to Tom Cruise?)

At the more affordable spectrum, without all the hypochondriac-tailored search tools, is Vancouver company Genebase’s DNA Ancestral Project kits.

These hit the shelves of Best Buy and Bay stores nationwide in December, just in time for Christmas. Retailing between $119 to $318, the kits allow you to trace you paternal or maternal lines, or both, when you send in a cheek swab.

And, in a nod to Facebook, the company has also set up a social networking utility which allows you to compare DNA with perfect strangers and bond over that pesky little genome rs3751812.

Of course, with DNA taking the blame nowadays for issues ranging from psychological disorders to the size of your butt, where does that leave therapy?

After all, if I can’t blame my mother for my anxiety issues, where am I to direct all my pent up angst? Although, come to think of it, half my DNA came from her. Aha! In the debate between nature and nurture, no matter how you slice it, it’s all mom’s fault.