Store-A-Tooth: Stem Cells for Life!

I will say being a practicing dentist, I was intrigued when I found about a site called Store-A-Tooth. Being a big advocate of stem cell research, I was pleasantly surprised to see that they are now taking the most advanced stem cell research and trying to save teeth to generate and store stem cells.

In 2000, scientists at the Natural Institute of Health, discovered that potent stem cells are found in both baby teeth and wisdom   teeth, providing a convenient and plentiful source of stem cells. Stem cells and the necessary research being done can potentially help very sick children in the near future. That is why Store-A-Tooth came about and I believe this is truly on the advanced edge of cutting technology. Similar to cord banking, Store-A-Tooth provides a way for stem cells to be saved, and used accordingly.

Store-A-Tooth is a service that enables families to store the dental stem cells from their own teeth. Dental stem cells are being studied by researchers to see how they can someday play a role in treating leukemia, spinal cord injury, diabetes, heart disease, and much more.  Eligible teeth include baby teeth that are naturally falling out, wisdom teeth, and other healthy teeth being extracted for orthodontia or other routine dental care. The stem cell banking organization’s goal is to inform parents that there are stem cells found in any healthy tooth and that parents have the potential to have their child’s cells banked for the future health of their child (and potentially their siblings/relatives). The organization safely banks these cells for when the child needs them (even decades in the future).

The stem cells have the promise to benefit anyone. Worldwide research is exploring the potential of dental stem cells in treatments for Type 1 Diabetes, as well as other serious conditions such as cardiovascular disease, Parkinson’s, and spinal cord injury. Dental stem cells have currently been shown to regenerate jaw bone and treat periodontal disease in humans.

The Process
The process is simple. Dentists extract baby teeth naturally falling out, wisdom teeth being extracted or teeth being pulled to make room for braces. The dentists prepares the specimen, and Provia Labs (Store-A-Tooth’s lab) collects the tooth for stem cell processing. The cost is $649 to bank, plus a yearly $120 storage fee (for up to 4 teeth stored). There is a significant discount if you pre-pay for 20 years of storage ($2399).

October 3 is Stem Cell research day, so I advocate to you personally and professionally to look into Store-A-Tooth. You never know when that sick child might need stem cells and if they can effectively do it through healthy teeth that needed to be extracted via baby teeth, wisdom teeth, or orthodontic extraction teeth, I am all for it! Store-A-Tooth will also donate 50% of the proceeds from banking to Type 1 Diabetic Research.

*This is a partnered post. As always, all opinions are my own and not swayed by outside sources.