HOME

BOOKMARK

NEWSLETTER

Join our newsletter to receive news of offers and discounts

Search

AS FEATURED IN...


Lucy Siegle On Eithical Living: Sunday March 5, 2006 The Observer

Weight Watchers®.co.uk. Now with an online plan.

Navigation


Parening Books

Search Now:
Amazon Logo


Stem Cells Taken From A Babys Cord


Stem Cells..

An increasing number of parents are storing stem cells from their baby's cord. Hopefully these will not be needed, but if your child develops leukaemia or any other disease requiring a bone marrow transplant, stem cells could save his life.

What Are Stem Cells?
The building blocks of your immune system. They can turn themselves into white blood cells which combat infection, red blood cells which carry oxygen around your system, and platelets which help the blood to clot.

What Are They Used For?
Some cancers destroy vital cells in the blood and immune system. The treatment commonly used is a bone marrow transplant which contains stem cells. However, a donor is required, a match is difficult to obtain and transplanting stem cells stored from birth is much easier, and matching is not a problem.

Any Other Uses?
Research is at an early stage, but there is hope that one day stem cells could cure other diseases like Parkinson's, diabetes, various cancers and spinal injury - you may recall that the late Christopher Reeve (Superman actor) hoped that stem cell research could one day enable him to walk again. So far about 5-6000 stem cell transplants have been performed worldwide, most involving young children.

So Why Isn't It Routinely Collected?
As is often the case, the establishment is dragging it's heels. In the UK the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says: "Routine collection of cord blood and stem cells cannot be recommended at this time because of the insufficient scientific base to support such practice." However, a national cord blood bank has been started and four National Health Service Hospitals are asking parents for permission to harvest blood from cords at births in their hospitals.

The UK's Department of Health has also given full accreditation to Future Health Technologies, a privately run company that will, for a price, store cord blood for 25 years. Future Health provide the kit to collect the blood at the birth, although you will need the co-operation of the medical staff.

In the USA, cord blood bank Cord Blood Registry has already stored more than 250,000 vials of stem cells.

Of course you hope the cord blood will never be required, but if it is, for the price of a holiday you could save the life of your child.

For further research, type 'cord blood' in a search engine.

****************************************************************
Author: Tony Luck who runs a website with advice about raising babies.


MORE RESOURCES:

Baby on the Way for Jackson Rathbone
People Magazine
The Twilight star, 27, and girlfriend Sheila Hafsadi, 24, will welcome a baby this summer, his rep confirms to PEOPLE. The couple “are thrilled and excited to be expecting their first child,” reads a statement. The actor, best known for his role as ...

and more »


TIME

Babies most abused in US
WFXL FOX 31
by Jessica Fairley The most common victims are babies under the age of one, with 58 cases per 100000 infants. ALBANY, GA. -- A new study released by the journal of Pediatrics is bringing the severity of child abuse to the light.
Ending Violence Sparked By Baby's CryNPR (blog)
Child abuse experts call for US campaignFox News
Abuse's big toll on littlest victimsWashington Times

all 110 news articles »


Baby on the way? Make time to prepare your pet
Chronicle-Telegram
by Lorain County Moms SUE MANNING, AP LOS ANGELES — Parents have months to get ready for a baby. Experts say the countdown should include prep time for pets too. A baby changes everything for a pet — from how its home looks, smells and sounds to what ...
Get pets ready for new babyNew Jersey Herald

all 5 news articles »


Report released on baby's death
Kennebec Journal
By Amy Calder acalder@mainetoday.com WATERVILLE -- A baby boy who died last year at Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter died of sudden unexpected death in infancy, according to the state Medical Examiner's Office. Sudden Unexpected Infant Death: Deaths in ...

and more »


Los Angeles Times

The Year of the Dragon is also the Year of the Baby
Los Angeles Times
But there is one centuries-old tradition the Asian American couple still swears by: having a baby in the Year of the Dragon, considered the most auspicious year in the 12-year zodiac cycle. "We're both dragons ourselves," said Gemma Chen, ...
Chinese New Year sparks 'dragon baby' boomAsian Correspondent

all 15 news articles »


Forbes

Sex, stars, dogs, babies: Advertisers whiff on Super Bowl stage
Appleton Post Crescent
And stars from the 90s were everywhere, as were dogs and babies, of course. Companies paid an average of $3.5 million for a 30-second spot for the right to duke it out Sunday in front of the expected 111 million-plus fans. But there were it was all so ...
Viewpoints: Eastwood's heartfelt halftime message transcended politicsSacramento Bee

all 1,470 news articles »


msnbc.com

From baby to bébé: Learning from French parenting
msnbc.com
So how come they never point out that so many French babies start sleeping through the night at two or three months old? And why don't they mention that French kids don't require constant attention from adults, and that they seem capable of hearing the ...
Bringing Up BabyWBUR
Parenting À la ModeWall Street Journal
Parenting memoirs go globalSTLtoday.com
Huffington Post
all 19 news articles »


Alone in crib is safest way for baby to sleep
Tallahassee Democrat (blog)
As a new or expectant parent, it is important to create a safe sleep environment for your baby. Sleep Right, Sleep Tight is a public awareness campaign developed by Prevent Child Abuse Florida in partnership with the Florida Department of Children and ...

and more »


Super Bowl Fans: Cutest Babies And Kids In Jerseys
Huffington Post
And I don't know if any of my fellow Huffies caught it on the news the other night, but the baby playing PING-PONG with his dad was a BEAUT ! There he was all of about 12 months old, seated on top of the table and whacking at ping-pong balls sent his ...

and more »


The Guardian

Baby weight: finger foods better than spoon-feeding, study suggests
The Guardian
Babies may know best when it comes to their future health, according to researchers who found infants who have more choice over what they eat may be less overweight than their spoon-fed counterparts. Allowing toddlers to feed theSmselves from a ...
Giving babies finger food can stop them growing up fatDaily Mail
Spoon feeding 'makes babies fatter'BBC News
Giving Babies Finger Food Could Stop ObesitySky News
Harborough Mail
all 41 news articles »

Google News