What happened to Austin can happen to any baby if they are not given a Vitamin K shot when they are born. Sadly, an advancement in the treatment for Austin and other babies has been blockaded by the lack of scientific funding of stem cell research. Umbilical Cord Stem Cells have been condemned by many people without any thorough research or complete understanding. Below are various links that to shed light on the research being undertaken in regards to umbilical cord stem cells and all the possibilities for medical improvements that they bring.
Links:
Umbilical Cord Stem Cells
Issues surrounding embryonic stem cells: The Genuine Never Ending Story?
Dr. Anthony G. Payne’s 82 page handbook on umbilical cord stem cells
Excerpt
We stand at the threshold of a new and exciting medicine of Regeneration where transplants of stem cells can potentially restore function to injured, diseased and debilitated tissues and organs.
Embryonic-like stem cells found in umbilical cord blood!
Umbilical cord blood was first used for blood and immune system disorders about 18 years ago. For the past several years, new possibilities for their use in a wider variety of health conditions, genetic disorders and anti-aging treatments have been gaining support with various multipotent stem cells and progenitor cells being discovered in the cord blood. In fact, embryonic-like stem cells have actually been found in umbilical cord blood and are being used in clinical research now for various neurological disorders outside the United States.
Vitamin K links
Excerpt
In newborns, vitamin K nutrition is at risk because (1) the placenta transmits lipids relatively poorly; (2) the neonatal liver is immature with respect to prothrombin synthesis; (3) breast milk is low in vitamin K, containing only 1 to 3 µg/L (cow’s milk contains 5 to 10 µg/L); and (4) the neonatal gut is sterile during the first few days of life. Hemorrhagic disease of the newborn, caused by vitamin K deficiency, generally occurs 1 to 7 days postpartum and may be manifested by cutaneous, GI, intrathoracic, or, in the worst cases, intracranial bleeding.
