Give your child a lifetime blanket of health by cord blood banking.

What is best gift that you can give to your child? What could be better than a lifetime of good health?
Yes now it’s possible by preserving your child’s umbilical cord blood and cord tissue stem cells at the time of birth?
Umbilical cord blood is blood that remains in the placenta and in the attached umbilical cord after childbirth. Usually it is discarded after the birth, but it is one of three sources for the blood-forming cells used in transplants and treat hematopoietic and genetic disorders. The other two sources are bone marrow and peripheral (circulating) blood. Since 1988, umbilical cord blood stem cells have been used to treat an increasing number of diseases. Today, this numbers to more than 80 including leukemia, sickle cell disease, metabolic disorders, immunodeficiency ailments and autoimmune diseases.
Cord blood is obtained by syringing out the placenta through the umbilical cord at the time of childbirth, after the cord has been detached from the newborn. It is completely painless and risk free for mother and child. Cord stem cell banks preserve cord blood and stem cells by freezing them in liquid nitrogen at a temperature of -195 degrees Celsius.
If expecting parents decide to store or their baby's cord blood, they can notify the bank or hospital by at least the 34th week of the pregnancy. The Cord Blood will take at the time of delivery by Cord Blood Bank. Some tests will be performed to ensure the blood is suitable for storage with no HIV infection or other blood diseases.
In case of history of genetic disorders or diseases the expecting parents can always opt for preserving the cord blood cell of their child at the time of birth so if in future if child shows any of the disease can be cured on time. Doctors are choosing cord blood cells over other source of stem cells because
• Cord blood cells are patients’ own blood cells and the closest match and easily accepted by the immune system of patient.
• To preserved cord blood is quickly available whereas to find an unrelated marrow or peripheral blood donor it can take more than two months.
• Less chances of graft- versus- host disease (GVHD) which is a common complication after an allogeneic transplant (which uses cells from a family member, unrelated donor or cord blood unit). GVHD can range from mild to life-threatening. Studies have found that after a cord blood transplant, fewer patients get GVHD than after marrow or peripheral blood transplants.
Scientists are still examining cord blood stem cells and perfecting how to use these stem cells in treatment. It is hoped and expected that, in the future, cord blood stem cells will be used to treat many other disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, heart disease, liver disease, muscular dystrophy, Parkinson’s disease, spinal cord injury and stroke.