Hello everyone,
I am just confronted with the decision to save my baby's cord blood or not. I see they are so expensive. Has anyone out there ever done it? is there any particular company that is better in terms of fees, contracts and storage. simply put, is it a good idea to do this in the first place? is it more beneficial to those with potential genetic abnormalities or what? please help. thanks.
Re: cord blood
We opted not to do this with both DD and this bean. A lot fo the companies sell the 10 year guarantee, but the cells degrade after 4 years. Also, there are public banks that are covered by some insurance companies. Lastly, I am friends with a doctor that worked for Viacord for several years. She calls it a really expensive scam. For me, personally, I could not find a scientifically backed reason to opt for it.
But, if money is no object, it can't hurt.
Delayed cord clamping (waiting to clamp or cut the cord until it stops pulsing) delivers a significant amount of blood to the baby, significantly increasing their iron stores. Once the cord is done pulsing there is still enough blood in it to be useful (as well as the tissue itself being valuable for research if you are donating).
This is a decision you have to make for your own family based on what is important to you. It is very expensive to bank it for yourself, but if you can afford it and it's important to you go for it. If money is a factor stopping you, maybe consider donating to a public bank... but with that you need to do some homework and make the decision sooner rather than later. Some hospitals are affiliated with a public bank, but many are not. If you deliver in a hospital that is not affiliated with a public bank you need to make arrangements with the bank yourself, and banks typically have a cutoff of new applicants at 34 weeks. If you apply before 34 weeks they will send you a package for your doctor to pack the cord into and send off to the bank.
This. We choose to delay cord clamping.
If I were to bank, I would choose a public bank. I personally think the private cord banking companies are predatory - preying on women and families at a time when they are vulnerable. I found this Wall Street Journal article to be an eye opener https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303887804579501500366071342
Ask your hospital if they are affiliated with a public bank. If they are they should be able to walk you through the whole process. If they are not and you are not yet 34 weeks then you can contact a public bank yourself. They will send you a package for the cord to be packed and shipped back to them in. Also, talk to your OB about your plan to donate. Many have packed cords to be donated before, but some have not.... in those cases most banks have a tutorial for your OB to familiarize themselves with the process.