Below is an excerpt from an article in the Orlando Sentinel about cord blood, its uses, and how people can go about understanding its benefits and even why they should bank it in the first place.

"On a lawn beneath Florida Hospital's Walt Disney Pavilion, NASCAR drivers and their cars were on hand Thursday morning to promote a new program that banks umbilical-cord blood.

Beyond the cars, cameras and festival atmosphere is a new partnership between the hospital and a group that collects and stores cord blood from new mothers for procedures that can cure as many as 70 diseases.

The program at Florida Hospital will allow pregnant women to donate their cord blood after they deliver their babies.

That blood is rich in stem cells, the versatile cells that can morph into other types of cells.

Like bone-marrow transplants, doctors can match donated cord blood to a patient and then transplant it to potentially save a life.

When the program begins this summer, it will be among the first of its kind in Central Florida. Many other area hospitals, including Florida Hospital, currently dispose of cord blood as medical waste.

"This blood that you would typically throw away, thanks to advances in technology, can now save lives," said Sara Channing, a spokeswoman for Florida Hospital.

Whether or not you decide to bank your child's cord blood or donate it, it does serve a very important purpose in the fight against many diseases.

Click on the link below to see exactly how banking your baby's umbilical cord blood can be  life saving should your baby ever need it.