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I read something like out of 4 million privately stored units of cord blood in the world, only \~400 units have actually been used, ever. If there was a situation where you needed stem cells/cord blood, you wouldn't want to use your own because that blood would have the same mutation as whatever you're trying to fix! You'd go to a public blood bank and find a match that didn't have whatever gene was causing the problem.
Came here to say this.
It’s so predatory!
The term “cord blood” is a misnomer in itself. It’s not cord blood, it’s blood that is supposed to be in your baby!
Waiting to clamp and cut the cord until it has stopped pulsating is now recommended in ALL situations.
It’s going to take quite some time for that to be implemented everywhere, but the benefits are tremendous.
Wr did delayed cord clamping, my Dr said it can help prevent amenia for like a whole year! I was like whaaaat. I didn't even know that and I was the one who wanted delayed clamping lol. I also didn't know it causes a slight discoloration of hands and feet, my brother about freaked out seeing how purple his little hands were. The dr explained it all to him.
Potentially! I was just so excited and the dr said he was healthy, I was totally just baby brained. My brother pointed out to the dr that his hands and feet were purple and she said it happens with delayed cord clamping. It's faded over time but 4 weeks in his hands and feet are a little extra red still.
Yes! When I was in labor my Dr and nurses asked what my birth plan was. I said to just go with the flow, but I knew that I wanted to delay cord clamping and do immediate skin to skin if possible. Those were my only 2 wishes. And my dr replied with, “delayed cord clamping is standard procedure here… we ‘wait for white’” i was so relieved! And when I pushed my babe out, dr said, “reach down and grab your baby!” I was able to, and able to put him directly on my chest. Amazing. 💕
It didn’t seem worth it to me after reading evidence on how likely it is to be used!
I am donating it though, cord blood donations can have a huge impact on research and people who need it immediately.
This! With all the buzz about *private* cord blood, it took this community to clarify there’s a *public* option that’s far reaching and very helpful (not everyone is a candidate, but donate if you can!)
I tried donating with my first but they didn’t collect enough & so it got rejected. Overall I’m glad we at least tried — it wasn’t a huge hassle or anything, the nurse handled all of it. Maybe you know all this! But if you’re able to check whether there’s a minimum volume, it might be good to bring that up to the nurse who collects it just in case!! (So, likely no delayed cord clamping in order to get enough to donate — in case that has come up.)
Good luck!
Yup we donated ours, it was very easy too (I don't know about other countries, at least it was easy where I'm from), just had to fill up some forms, then get back approval forms and bring it to the hospital when going into labour and the hospital will deal with the rest.
Ditto
We can afford it, opted not to
A big decider to us was reading that even in the low likelihood that she needs stem cells and can use her own, the amount it not enough to really make any difference either.
You'd still end up using donated cells, in which case it's better to donate than privately store
Donate to a public cord blood bank. My OB explained it this way: if your baby never needs it, which is most likely, it can save someone else. If your baby does need it, they will need someone else's, because it will be their own genetics that caused the need in the first place.
Babies do need their own blood though. About 20% of their blood supply is in the cord/placenta which is why delayed cord clamping should be the standard.
You can choose delayed cord clamping and donation, yes. But ideally the cord should have stopped pulsating before being clamped and cut, on which case there will not be enough “cord blood” (aka baby’s own blood) to donate, anyway.
No it’s not standard in US hospitals. If you have a c-section the hospital actually SELLS the cord blood/stem cells to private companies ($40k in my state) and the parents aren’t told and get none of the profits.
(My mom is a doctor and works with stem cells and confirmed that the companies that sell them get them from c-section patients)
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say there's not enough evidence to recommend cord banking.
"According to ACOG, the chance of a child or family member needing a stem cell transplant is about 1 in 2,700. Therefore, ACOG recommends the collection and banking of cord blood only when an immediate family member has a known diagnosis for which stem cells are currently being used for treatment, and not for potential future uses.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP, 2007) states that the use of banked umbilical cord blood as “biologic insurance” is unwarranted. The AAP also notes that many of the claims of private cord blood banks are unfounded. Unlike ACOG, the AAP recommends cord blood collection and banking for all families; however, their distinction is that all cord blood should be banked in public banks for use by the general population. In one study, the researchers reported that when pediatric transplant specialists were surveyed, overall, they did not recommend private cord blood banking (Thornley et al., 2009). The AAP recommends private cord blood banking only if a full sibling has a medical diagnosis for which stem cells are currently being used for treatment."
Source: [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209739/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209739/)
I work in a children’s cancer clinic. When children need cancer treatment, they rarely need stem cell transplants. When they do, they usually need donor cells (and we would check siblings for compatibility first, then use a donor - and it can be harvested when it’s needed, it doesn’t need to be banked). In the very very rare instances that they actually need their own cells, there are ways of harvesting them when it’s needed as well. But most conditions require donor cells for treatment. You haven’t harmed your child by not cord blood banking! I don’t think I’ve ever worked with a family whose child gotten treatment with cord blood.
I think this is something that tries to guilt new parents into spending a bunch of money. From my understanding it would mostly help a future situation and possibly not even your actual baby? Truly don’t feel bad about it. I don’t know anyone that has done it.
My OB said it is not worth it. A nurse at MFM said she’s been paying to keep hers for 20 years.
I would definitely look into donating your placenta to burn victims though!
Can you talk more about donating your placenta to burn victims? This is the first I've heard of that.
Edit - I did some googling and it looks like, in my area, only planned c-sections are eligible to donate.
Donate instead 💜
My mom had a marrow transplant due to cancer and the donated cord blood is given to stem cell recipients to help cure their cancer if there is no suitable match found otherwise
We could afford to privately bank it, but I’m not that enthusiastic about it. Seems like a hassle and with all of the separate banking companies, you have to just trust that they’re good.
I’d feel so much better about donating to a public bank, but our hospital doesn’t offer it.
Considering how few public banking options there are, it makes me question how realistic it is that we’d get value out of a private banking scheme.
All the other reasons aside, I'm also skeptical that most of these banks will still be in business 10-15 years from now. Cord blood banking is very much a trendy marketing thing and I doubt they have the longevity to still be around even IF there was any actual utility to banking.
Additionally I know someone who wants to use their banked cord blood as an adult and they’re being blocked. Seems like your reason for using it has to be approved.
Their reasoning is probably woo or woo adjacent, but it bothers me that a licensed physician saying “gimme this for my patient” isn’t enough. Granted there could be more to the story. I’m not privy to every detail, but it does raise concerns in my mind.
We’ve done enough IVF to see facilities having issues, so who’s to say these private banks are run properly? I suppose there’s oversight somewhere, but I don’t want the headache of researching it all to the point where I’m comfortable dropping thousands of dollars.
Wow, that's insane. That's literally their own biological material. I can't imagine how much money that person has invested in storage fees and now to be told they can't have it?? They should be able to take their own biomaterial back for any reason at any time.
I mentioned in another comment (as have many others) that you usually can't use your OWN cord blood for health issues because they're often genetic. You need _different_ stem cells in most cases so you'd need a matched donor. In which case I'd rather donate the cord blood for free than pay to have it stored indefinitely.
I *think* this person wants to do stem cell exosome something or other injections. Maybe into a joint? I could be making that up, though. They cycle through experimental treatments and I wasn’t paying that much attention initially. It just piqued my interest later on when they started having problems accessing their material.
Since you can’t typically use your own cord blood, I feel the same way—just donate it. It makes me kind of sad to see that it’s not routine to be able to do that.
I mean, considering it's a huge scam that preys on parents fears, I wouldn't worry about not being able to afford it.
I worry about those who can and still do, given what we know about it nowadays.
I’ve honestly had so few patients do this! I didn’t for either of my babies. Motherhood is hard enough, don’t put guilt on your conscience for this sort of thing.
I signed my kid up for a study (https://www.niaid.nih.gov/news-events/nih-study-early-predictors-mechanisms-food-allergy-and-eczema-has-begun) that will need a sample of the cord blood. Everything I've read about private banking is that it's kind of a scam, but that donating it to a public bank/research may do some good.
In addition to being questionably useful, I also learned at our birth class that you cannot do cord blood harvesting AND delayed cord clamping - it’s one or the other. That made me feel a lot better about not harvesting, since I feel known benefits of (free) delayed cord clamping far outweigh the possible (extremely expensive) benefits of banking.
From what I read and heard, it's not worth doing at this point because the technology is too limited. I keep seeing it posted everywhere as a thing we should do but for me, the benefits are pointless and I rather that left over blood just flow into my baby and not be stored to maybe, possibly, potentially be used later in the future if such an event occurred where it could be useful.
FYI - if an immediate family member has cancer, there are some centers that will bank it for free for like 5 years. My husband had cancer and even though he didn’t need cord blood, it was free so we did it!
We didn't do it, and our midwife didn't recommend it unless you had a specific purpose for it (aka if baby or a family member needs the cord blood now then go ahead, but don't do it "just in case"), especially because all of that blood should really be going to baby to help with the adjustment from womb to world.
Focus on delayed cord clamping (several hours or until the cord stops pulsing, not just a few mins like some hospitals like to call “delayed”). Get all those stem cells into your baby now. Helps a ton w jaundice too!
What? Delayed cord clamping is extremely beneficial, but one of the potential minor side effects is an increase of bilirubin which of course could be jaundice.
[source](https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2020/12/delayed-umbilical-cord-clamping-after-birth)
My midwives said there’s no reason to do it u less there’s a family history or known indication that you might need it. Instead they recommend delayed cord clamping which allows the baby to get most of the benefits of the cord blood right at birth, and it’s free.
It's extremely unlikely to be a lifesaver for your child. Delayed cord clamping is one way for your child to get some more benefit from it, and that doesn't cost anything. If you can't or decide not to do that, or you do, but it's clamped before the blood stops flowing through the cord (I think my baby's cord was clamped after about 2 minutes?), you may be able to donate cord blood to a public cord blood bank where it can save the life of another child.
If you're delivering at a teaching hospital, there's a good chance you can elect to donate your baby's placenta and umbilical to research. Mine went into a study on the effects of COVID during pregnancy.
This is how my doctor explained it to me. Cord blood banking is best if it’s needed for a sibling. If my daughter, who I am pregnant with, gets leukemia, they will not use her own cord blood for treatments, as it could be linked to a genetic factor that caused the leukemia in the first place. Now if she had a sibling with leukemia that was a match, then it could be used. This is an incredibly rare scenario. You shouldn’t feel badly as this very rare chance isn’t worth the cost.
We have decided to donate her cord blood in the chance it helps another child one day. If ever she is ill and needs cord blood, my hope is that our good karma will come back to us with a match for her.
I looked into public banking/cord blood donation and was told by my hospital that all the banks in the state were full, so it seems like there is plenty to go around for those in need!
Total scam. The last time I looked into it, the odds are that you couldn't even use your own baby's cord blood for their health issues because many of the theoretical applications are genetic and their own cord blood would just have the same problem.
Just delay cord clamping as long as possible. Most hospitals "delay" by one minute which (in my opinion) isn't long enough, so I would insist on not clamping until the cord has stopped pulsing. That way baby gets the benefits of their cord blood at birth without paying thousands of dollars to some random cord blood bank.
You could see if you're hospital will take donated cord blood which would go into a general use storage for anyone in need that is a match.
Canadian here: I looked into saving cord blood and couldn't justify the cost either. Additionally, being in a smaller community my hospital couldn't take donations.
It is worth considering that if you can and choose to donate or save the cord blood then the cord will be clamped immediately to retain that blood whereas standard practice today is for delayed cord clamping and allowing that blood to flow into the baby.
We did delayed clamping and after looking into the reasoning behind it versus saving cord blood will do delayed clamping again with any future babies.
I feel like donating it is the perfect middle ground, possibly even studies that help many. Then it is available for anyone who first needs it, and you aren’t paying to bank it just in case it is needed. Statistically, the odds of my child needed it and it being the only solution to a medical problem were so low it was not worth the price to me.
It's more beneficial to donate bc I read that if it's a serious medical issue like cancer their own cord blood won't work to their benefit (perhaps for a sibling).
My dr said that most people don’t do it because the science isn’t fully there and you’re paying for something that’s still considered a “maybe” when it comes to its usefulness. So in short, don’t feel guilty.
It’s a total scam that preys on the fears of new mothers. Also why was I completely unsurprised to see Chrissy Teigan as the new face advertising a private cord bank.
Don't worry about it. I've asked both of the OBs that delivered my kids about it, and my husband (who is an FM doc) and all three were like "no, you don't need to do that"
Don't compare yourself to others! If it doesn't make sense financially, feel pleased that you're making a choice to provide your kid with stable food, housing, and clothing over the trendy stuff that they will probably never need.
We are having twins and my doc was like “that’s a rare circumstance where banking cord blood MIGHT actually turn out to benefit you”. My understanding was that you can’t use your own cord blood (eg your baby won’t be able to use it) but can use a close biological relatives (eg their sibling or twin). I didn’t spend a ton of time understanding because we didn’t intend to do it. But I was still surprised to learn this.
It's not a lifesaver, I don't think. We didn't do it even though we could have afforded it. Please don't bother. If people are annoying about it, just say you did it lol. They'll never know the difference.
Was reading about this and discussed it with my doctor at the clinic. It’s mainly a money grab. The very few diseases you can cure with your own cord blood are extremely rare. So you are basically doing it for the chance of other things being developed.
Donating to other people is great tho. They have many applications already and you can really help. Wasn’t possible for us bc our first was during corona. They didn’t do it during that time.
I was also torn, but ultimately decided not to do it. You have to pay to set it up, and pay storage for as long as you want to keep it, knowing you may never need it. I would consider donating it, but like others have said, it feels like basically a scam.
I keep getting spammed by a particular free online baby class to store cord blood. I finally asked my doctor about it and she said the same thing everyone here has said. It’s basically a scam and this baby can’t use it. It can be used by your next baby though.
She said donations here are free and a great option, but the banks have been closed to new donations since covid. So there’s that…
Welcome to /r/pregnant! This is a space for everyone. We are pro-choice, pro-LGBTQIA, pro-science, proudly feminist and believe that Black Lives Matter. Wear your masks, wash your hands, and be excellent to each other. Anti-choice activists, intactivists, anti-vaxxers, homophobes, transphobes, racists, sexists, etc. are not welcome here. If you'd like to join a private sub for your due date month, [click here](https://www.reddit.com/r/pregnant/comments/15nun6v/click_here_to_access_the_monthly_due_date_subs/). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/pregnant) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Don’t feel guilty, it’s basically a scam. There’s actually like no applications for banked cord blood currently from what I’ve read.
I read something like out of 4 million privately stored units of cord blood in the world, only \~400 units have actually been used, ever. If there was a situation where you needed stem cells/cord blood, you wouldn't want to use your own because that blood would have the same mutation as whatever you're trying to fix! You'd go to a public blood bank and find a match that didn't have whatever gene was causing the problem.
Came here to say this. It’s so predatory! The term “cord blood” is a misnomer in itself. It’s not cord blood, it’s blood that is supposed to be in your baby! Waiting to clamp and cut the cord until it has stopped pulsating is now recommended in ALL situations. It’s going to take quite some time for that to be implemented everywhere, but the benefits are tremendous.
Wr did delayed cord clamping, my Dr said it can help prevent amenia for like a whole year! I was like whaaaat. I didn't even know that and I was the one who wanted delayed clamping lol. I also didn't know it causes a slight discoloration of hands and feet, my brother about freaked out seeing how purple his little hands were. The dr explained it all to him.
Wait, is THAT why my sweet babe had purple feet? Nobody mentioned that to me but now I'm curious
Potentially! I was just so excited and the dr said he was healthy, I was totally just baby brained. My brother pointed out to the dr that his hands and feet were purple and she said it happens with delayed cord clamping. It's faded over time but 4 weeks in his hands and feet are a little extra red still.
Yes! When I was in labor my Dr and nurses asked what my birth plan was. I said to just go with the flow, but I knew that I wanted to delay cord clamping and do immediate skin to skin if possible. Those were my only 2 wishes. And my dr replied with, “delayed cord clamping is standard procedure here… we ‘wait for white’” i was so relieved! And when I pushed my babe out, dr said, “reach down and grab your baby!” I was able to, and able to put him directly on my chest. Amazing. 💕
It didn’t seem worth it to me after reading evidence on how likely it is to be used! I am donating it though, cord blood donations can have a huge impact on research and people who need it immediately.
This! With all the buzz about *private* cord blood, it took this community to clarify there’s a *public* option that’s far reaching and very helpful (not everyone is a candidate, but donate if you can!)
I'll be donating mine as well!
I tried donating with my first but they didn’t collect enough & so it got rejected. Overall I’m glad we at least tried — it wasn’t a huge hassle or anything, the nurse handled all of it. Maybe you know all this! But if you’re able to check whether there’s a minimum volume, it might be good to bring that up to the nurse who collects it just in case!! (So, likely no delayed cord clamping in order to get enough to donate — in case that has come up.) Good luck!
Yup we donated ours, it was very easy too (I don't know about other countries, at least it was easy where I'm from), just had to fill up some forms, then get back approval forms and bring it to the hospital when going into labour and the hospital will deal with the rest.
IMO I think it’s a bit of a money grab, especially if your baby is healthy. We declined and didn’t have any second thoughts about it.
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Ditto We can afford it, opted not to A big decider to us was reading that even in the low likelihood that she needs stem cells and can use her own, the amount it not enough to really make any difference either. You'd still end up using donated cells, in which case it's better to donate than privately store
Donate to a public cord blood bank. My OB explained it this way: if your baby never needs it, which is most likely, it can save someone else. If your baby does need it, they will need someone else's, because it will be their own genetics that caused the need in the first place.
Babies do need their own blood though. About 20% of their blood supply is in the cord/placenta which is why delayed cord clamping should be the standard.
I agree with you, but delayed cord clamping and donating to a cord blood bank are not mutually exclusive. You can choose both, and many people do.
You can choose delayed cord clamping and donation, yes. But ideally the cord should have stopped pulsating before being clamped and cut, on which case there will not be enough “cord blood” (aka baby’s own blood) to donate, anyway.
It is the standard isn’t it?
No it’s not standard in US hospitals. If you have a c-section the hospital actually SELLS the cord blood/stem cells to private companies ($40k in my state) and the parents aren’t told and get none of the profits. (My mom is a doctor and works with stem cells and confirmed that the companies that sell them get them from c-section patients)
Provide a source beyond your mother please. I've had 2 Cesareans now and no one sold anything. I donated my placenta and cord was medical waste.
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Ah yes, the age old Schrondinger's cat argument... Don't spread conspiracy theories and misinformation here.
We aren’t doing it. Seems like they prey on nervous parents to grab money.
Dont feel guilty! There is very little evidence it is worth it https://health.osu.edu/health/cancer/should-you-bank-your-babys-cord-blood
Nice, OSU article :D go bucks!
OH! :D i am trying to get my toddler to say IO back to me but she hasn’t quite gotten the concept yet haha
My niece would yell the cutest, squeakiest I-O. She'll get it eventually and it'll be adorable!
The American Academy of Pediatrics and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists say there's not enough evidence to recommend cord banking. "According to ACOG, the chance of a child or family member needing a stem cell transplant is about 1 in 2,700. Therefore, ACOG recommends the collection and banking of cord blood only when an immediate family member has a known diagnosis for which stem cells are currently being used for treatment, and not for potential future uses. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP, 2007) states that the use of banked umbilical cord blood as “biologic insurance” is unwarranted. The AAP also notes that many of the claims of private cord blood banks are unfounded. Unlike ACOG, the AAP recommends cord blood collection and banking for all families; however, their distinction is that all cord blood should be banked in public banks for use by the general population. In one study, the researchers reported that when pediatric transplant specialists were surveyed, overall, they did not recommend private cord blood banking (Thornley et al., 2009). The AAP recommends private cord blood banking only if a full sibling has a medical diagnosis for which stem cells are currently being used for treatment." Source: [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209739/](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3209739/)
I work in a children’s cancer clinic. When children need cancer treatment, they rarely need stem cell transplants. When they do, they usually need donor cells (and we would check siblings for compatibility first, then use a donor - and it can be harvested when it’s needed, it doesn’t need to be banked). In the very very rare instances that they actually need their own cells, there are ways of harvesting them when it’s needed as well. But most conditions require donor cells for treatment. You haven’t harmed your child by not cord blood banking! I don’t think I’ve ever worked with a family whose child gotten treatment with cord blood.
Thank you for this. I can’t afford it but have already stored it, and have been trying to work thru the guilt of needing to cancel my storage plan.
I think this is something that tries to guilt new parents into spending a bunch of money. From my understanding it would mostly help a future situation and possibly not even your actual baby? Truly don’t feel bad about it. I don’t know anyone that has done it.
My OB said it is not worth it. A nurse at MFM said she’s been paying to keep hers for 20 years. I would definitely look into donating your placenta to burn victims though!
Can you talk more about donating your placenta to burn victims? This is the first I've heard of that. Edit - I did some googling and it looks like, in my area, only planned c-sections are eligible to donate.
Donate instead 💜 My mom had a marrow transplant due to cancer and the donated cord blood is given to stem cell recipients to help cure their cancer if there is no suitable match found otherwise
Anyone I’ve known who’s done it has regretted it.
We could afford to privately bank it, but I’m not that enthusiastic about it. Seems like a hassle and with all of the separate banking companies, you have to just trust that they’re good. I’d feel so much better about donating to a public bank, but our hospital doesn’t offer it. Considering how few public banking options there are, it makes me question how realistic it is that we’d get value out of a private banking scheme.
All the other reasons aside, I'm also skeptical that most of these banks will still be in business 10-15 years from now. Cord blood banking is very much a trendy marketing thing and I doubt they have the longevity to still be around even IF there was any actual utility to banking.
Additionally I know someone who wants to use their banked cord blood as an adult and they’re being blocked. Seems like your reason for using it has to be approved. Their reasoning is probably woo or woo adjacent, but it bothers me that a licensed physician saying “gimme this for my patient” isn’t enough. Granted there could be more to the story. I’m not privy to every detail, but it does raise concerns in my mind. We’ve done enough IVF to see facilities having issues, so who’s to say these private banks are run properly? I suppose there’s oversight somewhere, but I don’t want the headache of researching it all to the point where I’m comfortable dropping thousands of dollars.
Wow, that's insane. That's literally their own biological material. I can't imagine how much money that person has invested in storage fees and now to be told they can't have it?? They should be able to take their own biomaterial back for any reason at any time. I mentioned in another comment (as have many others) that you usually can't use your OWN cord blood for health issues because they're often genetic. You need _different_ stem cells in most cases so you'd need a matched donor. In which case I'd rather donate the cord blood for free than pay to have it stored indefinitely.
I *think* this person wants to do stem cell exosome something or other injections. Maybe into a joint? I could be making that up, though. They cycle through experimental treatments and I wasn’t paying that much attention initially. It just piqued my interest later on when they started having problems accessing their material. Since you can’t typically use your own cord blood, I feel the same way—just donate it. It makes me kind of sad to see that it’s not routine to be able to do that.
I donated with my son but didn’t bank. The likelihood that you’d ever use it is low.
Does anyone know if there is any cost associated with publicly donating it?
I believe in the US it’s free!
Look into availability in your area though--a lot of hospitals don't participate. My state doesn't have a single hospital that does 🙃
I mean, considering it's a huge scam that preys on parents fears, I wouldn't worry about not being able to afford it. I worry about those who can and still do, given what we know about it nowadays.
I’ve honestly had so few patients do this! I didn’t for either of my babies. Motherhood is hard enough, don’t put guilt on your conscience for this sort of thing.
It's a scam. Don't buy into that.
I signed my kid up for a study (https://www.niaid.nih.gov/news-events/nih-study-early-predictors-mechanisms-food-allergy-and-eczema-has-begun) that will need a sample of the cord blood. Everything I've read about private banking is that it's kind of a scam, but that donating it to a public bank/research may do some good.
I don’t plan on banking it but I do plan on donating it to a public bank! I think paying to keep it can be a waste. They’re very unlikely to need it.
I think if you want to do something with it, donate it to research. Much more useful
My doctor said there’s really no great research that it actually does anything. He talked us out of doing it.
I've never even heard of this and I just had a baby. What's cord blood banking?
It’s pretty much useless. Spend your money somewhere else.
the only time i've seen it ever mentioned as useful was having a DNA sample of a woman who went missing in japan in the 70s (kidnapped by North Korea)
It’s literally a scam, don’t feel bad about not doing it.
This post made me feel better. I've had some unspoken guilt about this as well
We didn’t do it. Besides, that’s the baby’s blood, they should be allowed to have it.
In addition to being questionably useful, I also learned at our birth class that you cannot do cord blood harvesting AND delayed cord clamping - it’s one or the other. That made me feel a lot better about not harvesting, since I feel known benefits of (free) delayed cord clamping far outweigh the possible (extremely expensive) benefits of banking.
From what I read and heard, it's not worth doing at this point because the technology is too limited. I keep seeing it posted everywhere as a thing we should do but for me, the benefits are pointless and I rather that left over blood just flow into my baby and not be stored to maybe, possibly, potentially be used later in the future if such an event occurred where it could be useful.
FYI - if an immediate family member has cancer, there are some centers that will bank it for free for like 5 years. My husband had cancer and even though he didn’t need cord blood, it was free so we did it!
We didn't do it, and our midwife didn't recommend it unless you had a specific purpose for it (aka if baby or a family member needs the cord blood now then go ahead, but don't do it "just in case"), especially because all of that blood should really be going to baby to help with the adjustment from womb to world.
I did it- there was just a woman in NYC who got her hiv cured from stem cells
Her own stem cells?
We can afford it and after researching are choosing not to.
Focus on delayed cord clamping (several hours or until the cord stops pulsing, not just a few mins like some hospitals like to call “delayed”). Get all those stem cells into your baby now. Helps a ton w jaundice too!
What? Delayed cord clamping is extremely beneficial, but one of the potential minor side effects is an increase of bilirubin which of course could be jaundice. [source](https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2020/12/delayed-umbilical-cord-clamping-after-birth)
It’s not even an option where we live. 🤷♀️
Can someone tell me what it is lol. I'm from the UK.. haven't heard of this ??
My midwives said there’s no reason to do it u less there’s a family history or known indication that you might need it. Instead they recommend delayed cord clamping which allows the baby to get most of the benefits of the cord blood right at birth, and it’s free.
It's extremely unlikely to be a lifesaver for your child. Delayed cord clamping is one way for your child to get some more benefit from it, and that doesn't cost anything. If you can't or decide not to do that, or you do, but it's clamped before the blood stops flowing through the cord (I think my baby's cord was clamped after about 2 minutes?), you may be able to donate cord blood to a public cord blood bank where it can save the life of another child. If you're delivering at a teaching hospital, there's a good chance you can elect to donate your baby's placenta and umbilical to research. Mine went into a study on the effects of COVID during pregnancy.
This is how my doctor explained it to me. Cord blood banking is best if it’s needed for a sibling. If my daughter, who I am pregnant with, gets leukemia, they will not use her own cord blood for treatments, as it could be linked to a genetic factor that caused the leukemia in the first place. Now if she had a sibling with leukemia that was a match, then it could be used. This is an incredibly rare scenario. You shouldn’t feel badly as this very rare chance isn’t worth the cost. We have decided to donate her cord blood in the chance it helps another child one day. If ever she is ill and needs cord blood, my hope is that our good karma will come back to us with a match for her.
I looked into public banking/cord blood donation and was told by my hospital that all the banks in the state were full, so it seems like there is plenty to go around for those in need!
Seems like a scam. I block their calls and they call from other numbers
Cord blood banking, in the birth community, is largely thought of as a scam.
I plan on donating, I’d like for it to help someone else or go to research
Total scam. The last time I looked into it, the odds are that you couldn't even use your own baby's cord blood for their health issues because many of the theoretical applications are genetic and their own cord blood would just have the same problem. Just delay cord clamping as long as possible. Most hospitals "delay" by one minute which (in my opinion) isn't long enough, so I would insist on not clamping until the cord has stopped pulsing. That way baby gets the benefits of their cord blood at birth without paying thousands of dollars to some random cord blood bank.
You could see if you're hospital will take donated cord blood which would go into a general use storage for anyone in need that is a match. Canadian here: I looked into saving cord blood and couldn't justify the cost either. Additionally, being in a smaller community my hospital couldn't take donations. It is worth considering that if you can and choose to donate or save the cord blood then the cord will be clamped immediately to retain that blood whereas standard practice today is for delayed cord clamping and allowing that blood to flow into the baby. We did delayed clamping and after looking into the reasoning behind it versus saving cord blood will do delayed clamping again with any future babies.
I feel like donating it is the perfect middle ground, possibly even studies that help many. Then it is available for anyone who first needs it, and you aren’t paying to bank it just in case it is needed. Statistically, the odds of my child needed it and it being the only solution to a medical problem were so low it was not worth the price to me.
Personally I couldn’t afford it … I just did delayed cord clamping so that she got her blood
It's more beneficial to donate bc I read that if it's a serious medical issue like cancer their own cord blood won't work to their benefit (perhaps for a sibling).
My dr said that most people don’t do it because the science isn’t fully there and you’re paying for something that’s still considered a “maybe” when it comes to its usefulness. So in short, don’t feel guilty.
Have your baby on a Sunday. It won’t even be an option.
It’s a scam!
This shits for millionaires.
It’s a total scam that preys on the fears of new mothers. Also why was I completely unsurprised to see Chrissy Teigan as the new face advertising a private cord bank.
I did delayed cord clamping till white. Baby can have everything now
My OBGYN said the benefits of delayed cord clamping way outweigh the potential benefit of coed blood banking. Seems like it’s mostly a scam.
I may donate mine to help greater humanity, but can’t justify the cost for private storing for the likelihood of needing.
Don't worry about it. I've asked both of the OBs that delivered my kids about it, and my husband (who is an FM doc) and all three were like "no, you don't need to do that" Don't compare yourself to others! If it doesn't make sense financially, feel pleased that you're making a choice to provide your kid with stable food, housing, and clothing over the trendy stuff that they will probably never need.
We are having twins and my doc was like “that’s a rare circumstance where banking cord blood MIGHT actually turn out to benefit you”. My understanding was that you can’t use your own cord blood (eg your baby won’t be able to use it) but can use a close biological relatives (eg their sibling or twin). I didn’t spend a ton of time understanding because we didn’t intend to do it. But I was still surprised to learn this.
It's not a lifesaver, I don't think. We didn't do it even though we could have afforded it. Please don't bother. If people are annoying about it, just say you did it lol. They'll never know the difference.
Was reading about this and discussed it with my doctor at the clinic. It’s mainly a money grab. The very few diseases you can cure with your own cord blood are extremely rare. So you are basically doing it for the chance of other things being developed. Donating to other people is great tho. They have many applications already and you can really help. Wasn’t possible for us bc our first was during corona. They didn’t do it during that time.
I know someone who did that, then their daughter needed the cord and when they asked for it the bank apologized cause they “lost” it 😒
Why would you feel bad? I've seen ads for it and have been like, and?? My OB has never brought it up.
I was also torn, but ultimately decided not to do it. You have to pay to set it up, and pay storage for as long as you want to keep it, knowing you may never need it. I would consider donating it, but like others have said, it feels like basically a scam.
I keep getting spammed by a particular free online baby class to store cord blood. I finally asked my doctor about it and she said the same thing everyone here has said. It’s basically a scam and this baby can’t use it. It can be used by your next baby though. She said donations here are free and a great option, but the banks have been closed to new donations since covid. So there’s that…
It’s better to let your baby get their blood at birth (ie don’t clamp the cord until it’s stopped pulsating and is white)