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04 August 2025

Unang Yakap and Stem Cell Banking: A Healthy Start from Day One

Happy Breastfeeding Month! Pregnant and looking to explore more ways to give your baby the best start in life? Read on to see two important and meaningful practices that offer care and protection from your baby starting from day one.

For parents, every decision, starting from the delivery room to the first latch, can feel overwhelming but deeply meaningful. Two practices that stand out in providing babies with the best possible start in life are Unang Yakap (The First Embrace) and Stem Cell Banking. Though different in process, both offer lasting benefits rooted in early care.

What is Unang Yakap?

Photo from the World Health Organization

Unang Yakap, or “The First Embrace,” is part of the Essential Intrapartum and Newborn Care (EINC) recommended by the Department of Health (DOH), Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth), and World Health Organization (WHO)1. It highlights simple yet evidence-based steps immediately after birth that may help ensure the survival of newborns and young infants:

  • Immediate drying of the baby
  • Skin-to-skin contact between mom and baby
  • Proper umbilical cord clamping and cutting
  • Non-separation of the baby from the mother and initiation of breastfeeding

These steps are proven to regulate the newborn’s body temperature, improve breathing, and foster early breastfeeding, which can help build immunity and emotional bonding. There are also several benefits that it can provide to the mother as well. Please keep in mind that the Unang Yakap campaign or EINC protocol should be followed in order to ensure the health of both the mother and the baby2

What is Stem Cell Banking?

Stem cell banking involves the collection, processing, and preservation of the stem cells from the umbilical cord blood or tissue right after birth of the baby. These stem cells are valuable because they may be used to potentially treat over 80 diseases3 like:

  • Blood cancers such as various types of leukemia3
  • Blood disorders such as aplastic anemia and beta thalassemia major3
  • And in recent years, they’ve also been studied for their potential in regenerative medicine, such as autism, cerebral palsy, diabetes, and ischemic stroke, among others4,5

The collection process is quick, safe, and painless, and it happens after the umbilical cord is clamped6, so it doesn’t interfere with Unang Yakap at all.

Important note: Enrollment in stem cell banking can be done as early as the first trimester, with benefits like pregnancy insurance that can give coverage for the mother from 7 types of pregnancy complications as early as 18 weeks of pregnancy.

See Cordlife Philippines collection process

Planning Ahead with Your OB-GYN

Whether it’s ensuring Unang Yakap happens or deciding to bank your baby’s cord blood and cord tissue, preparing a birth plan is a great way to make your preferences known. It helps clarify your priorities and communicating them to your OB-GYN, and makes you feel empowered and at ease during labor and delivery.

Talk openly with your OB-GYN about your birth plan early on, and let them know if you're considering stem cell banking. Your medical team plays a key role in coordinating both practices safely and smoothly.

While Unang Yakap is focused on immediate health and bonding, stem cell banking offers long-term protection that may be helpful in the future. Both are anchored in the idea of prevention, preparation, and care. Unang Yakap supports survival and healthy development in the newborn’s first hours through the infancy stage, while stem cell banking provides health protection options for you and your baby later in life.

Unang Yakap and stem cell banking represent evolving ways we care for our children, from the very first touch to preparing for life’s uncertainties.

Whether you’re still exploring your options or already mapping out your birth plan, it helps to know that these steps can work hand-in-hand to give your baby the healthiest start possible.

References

  1. https://caro.doh.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/EINC.pdf
  2. https://nnc.gov.ph/luzon-region/newborn-care-unang-yakap-and-newborn-screening/
  3. Diseases treated page. Parent’s Guide to Cord Blood Foundation. https://parentsguidecordblood.org/en/diseases. Accessed August 04, 2025.
  4. Potential Future Uses in Regenerative Medicine. Cord Blood Registry Website. https://www.cordblood.com/science-in-action. Accessed August 04, 2025.
  5. Clinical trial registry page. ClinicalTrials.gov. http://clinicaltrials.gov. Accessed August 04, 2025.
  6. https://www.cordlife.ph/en/collection-process

Learn more about stem cell banking today

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