I’m sure most everyone reading this blog has heard of stem cells and the potential they may have for healing diseased tissue and/or curing disease. What most people don’t know is that we all have these cells within the dental pulp tissue of our teeth. The youngest amongst us have the most of these cells, and they decline in number as we age. Research is being done on these cells, and they have the potential to offer therapies and possibly cures to many common diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, ALS (Lou Gehrig disease), heart disease, Parkinson’s disease, Diabetes, liver disease and Multiple Sclerosis. They are also showing promise in the treatment of stroke, spinal cord injury, muscular dystrophy and bone regeneration.
 

There are companies that are now available to freeze and store extracted teeth for future possible use. The ideal situations are in primary (baby) teeth that are slightly loose, teeth removed for braces, wisdom teeth and some adult teeth. Stem cells harvested from these teeth are a perfect genetic match for you or your children. They are stored in a lab and available in the event that they are needed, and that current science is able to utilize them in a particular therapy.

Although this is very exciting news, and there are many families now choosing to harvest and store their children’s teeth to potentially help them in the future, I’d like to stress the word POTENTIAL. This is still a developing science, and it is unknown what use, if any, these stem cells will provide.

The opportunity is now here, however, to store these cells in the event that you or your children will ever need them. For about $10 a month you can have the peace of mind that you did all you could to take advantage of this beginning science.

If you are interested or would like more information, please contact the office and one of our doctors would be happy to discuss it with you.