Winter Olympians bank on freezing their baby’s stem cells

Feb 9, 2017 | Blog

Snow sport athletes are custom to ice cold weather, but now they are turning to a totally new type of freezing: the cryogenic preservation of their baby’s cord blood.

This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity enables parents to capture and store the building blocks a relatively new science known as regenerative medicine – stem cells. These cells are already being investigated in over 5,000 clinical trials to treat conditions like, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, arthritis, spinal damage and autism, and, one day, may even be used to grow replacement organs as they wear out. They are widely considered to be the future of medicine.

Umbilical cord blood is the youngest and most potent source of stem cells that a person will ever have. Cord blood can be easily and painlessly harvested from the umbilical cord and placenta after a baby is born and placed into long-term cryogenic storage. This means that should the child, or their family, ever require a treatment for which the stored cord blood is suitable, it could be available for them to use.

Olympic skier Chemmy Alcott announced she had banked her new baby’s umbilical cord blood stem cells in January 2017. Chemmy was introduced to the regenerative properties of stem cells by her surgeon, following a leg break that required intervention. Both Chemmy and partner Dougie are world class skiers and self-confessed adrenalin junkies, meaning that there is a high chance that their son will follow in their footsteps. Injuries can be commonplace in high octane sports like skiing and accessing future treatments to repair and regenerate the body using stem cells could potentially be invaluable.

Chemmy joins Zoe Gillings, Team GB Snowboarder, who also chose cord blood banking for her new baby.

What’s more, regenerative medicine is not just a concept for the future – it is happening today. In fact, some of the biggest names in sport like Rafael Nadal and Christiano Ronaldo have already been reported to have sought stem cell treatment to recover from injuries.

From sporting injury, to life-threatening disease, stem cells have the potential to transform the way that we manage our health. By saving your baby’s cord blood, you help ensure that they have access to this valuable resource.

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Everything you need to decide about cord blood banking – and, while you decide, Antenatal by Cells4Life: 18 online classes with Cass McNamara, BBC Scotland’s Ask the Midwife, on birth, feeding, newborn care and recovery. It’s free when you request your welcome pack.

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