Cord blood is the blood that is left in the placenta and umbilical cord after the birth of your baby. The cord blood contains stem cells. These stem cells have been shown to help treat diseases like leukemia and other diseases, much like bone marrow. The good news is that stem cells have a lower rate of rejection than bone marrow.
These stem cells are collected in the cord blood immediately after birth. The baby's umbilical cord is cut and the cord blood is removed by a syringe. It does not cause pain for either the mother or the baby.
You can do personal cord blood banking and pay to have the cord blood stored should you ever need it. There are now places to do public cord blood banking, as is recommended for most families by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
