In many cases, people who are curious about stem cell therapy have many questions about regenerative medical care and how it works. Some of these questions are more common than others, and they vary on how straightforward their answers are. One such common question is whether stem cell therapy is legal in Canada. The answer is not as straightforward as people would like.
Why Stem Cells?
Before understanding whether stem cell therapy is legal or not, it can be useful first to understand why people want stem cell therapy in the first place. Stem cell therapy has grown increasingly popular in recent years. Part of this fast growth is the various endorsements that the stem cell industry has received from celebrities.
It is becoming more common for professional athletes to choose to treat their bodies with stem cell therapy rather than surgery. There are several reasons why stem cells have gotten much more popular, especially for athletes. The first reason is that it is much less painful than getting a standard surgical procedure. Stem cells are an excellent tool for pain management and make the procedure much more appealing.
Another reason why athletes have been choosing to undergo stem cell therapy is that the overall recovery time is shorter. A standard surgical procedure can take months or years to heal fully and be truly free of pain. Stem cell injections are shown to solve these kinds of health issues in significantly shorter periods.
These are some of the reasons that athletes are attracted to stem cell therapy, but even for people who lead less active lifestyles, stem cell therapy can still present several benefits for them. One of the most significant benefits of stem cell therapy is that it can treat an extensive set of illnesses and conditions which make them a potent tool in almost any medical case.
Currently, the efficacy of stem cell therapy is being tested against diseases ranging from Parkinson’s to pneumonia. Stem cells have shown a high level of efficacy when they are helping the body fight a virus, but they excel in helping the body against musculoskeletal conditions. This is because stem cells can transform into various kinds of body tissues, depending on what the medical situation requires.
This means it is especially useful when dealing with torn muscles, ligaments, or tendons, as well as very useful when dealing with muscular degeneration. These traits have led to stem cells becoming a popular alternative for anyone who may need a procedure related to body parts such as knees, shoulders, or spines, which can be particularly challenging to undergo rehabilitation for. Stem cell therapy offers the opportunity to avoid this trouble.
Is It Legal?
Stem cell therapy is legal in Canada, but it is a tricky situation. This is because while it may be legal, it is not a regulated field. It does not fall under Health Canada’s Safety of Human Cells, Tissues, and Organs for Transplantation Regulations, so any governmental bodies cannot directly monitor it.
As the popularity of stem cell therapy grows in Canada, more clinics are starting to pop up to help with any regenerative medical needs a person may have. These can have the added effect of being much faster than surgical modalities of care. This is because the processes for surgery and subsequent recovery are slow and can lead to long wait times for people who need specific operations.
These wait times can last up to a year or two for some operations that are needed in medical cases that are not life-threatening. Utilizing stem cell therapy clinics can allow for a person to circumvent these wait times and get highly effective care much sooner. As the number of clinics continues to grow in Canada, the government will eventually have to regulate the stem cell field, and likely have to do so soon.
Is This All the Placebo Effect?
Some researchers have wondered that if a medical practice is showing itself to be this universally useful and miraculous, could it be, in part, due to the placebo effect. The placebo effect is when a drug or treatment does not create the intended result claimed to be able to create.
Instead, people can be convinced that it does work, which will then cause more people to seem to experience this drug working for them as well. As far as science shows, the power of stem cell therapy is not the placebo effect. Countless studies have shown the efficacy of stem cells in various treatments in patients of all demographics. It has not only been shown to be a powerful pain reliever, but many studies are being conducted that are showing that it is also an excellent way to treat people with respiratory illnesses.
The pure utility of stem cell therapy may lend itself to the placebo effect solely because it is so widely applicable. There are numerous studies and people who have undergone stem cell therapy procedures that show that it is all happening.
Can You Go To The US Instead?
At first, it may seem like an easy solution to go to the United States and get stem cell care done there. It could be a more convenient process compared to the Canadian system. Sadly, you would come to find out that the US is swamped in confusion about stem cells and what to do with them in their country, leaving many stem cell researchers and clinics in a constant state of limbo.
This is all caused by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). This is the American governmental body that is designated with ensuring the safety of food and medicines that are sold to the American people. The FDA has classified stem cells as a drug, which means that they are subjected to strict regulations. These regulations can prevent a lot of progress and research in the stem cell field in the US. It also inhibits some modes of treatment that people would be able to receive elsewhere.
Lastly, its classifications leave it so that most insurance companies will not cover the cost, which can leave people with a hefty bill to pay out of pocket. While stem cell research is being widely expanded and slowly becoming more mainstream, there will most likely still be quite a bit of time before the US relaxes its current regulations.
Where Else Can You Go?
Although it may seem inconvenient to receive stem cell care in Canada or the United States, there are still plenty of other useful options that a person could utilize. One of the best options for anyone who is looking to get the highest-quality stem cell care they can is to go farther abroad to get the care that they seek.
This is precisely why BioXcellerator has a clinic that is set up in Colombia. By being based in Colombia, BioXcellerator is free to work as efficiently and effectively as the stem cells they utilize. This is because when they are not dealing with the regulatory issues that they are entangled in North America, they are free to see as many patients and do as work as possible in order to be the best stem cell clinic possible. By being able to work outside of the heavy-handed regulatory purview of the US and the regulatory limbo of Canada, BioXcellerator is capable of offering some of the highest levels of care that the world of stem cell therapy can offer.
Although some people would not be able to make a trip that far in order to receive their stem cell care, it is recommended that if you are capable of making the trip, that you should expect so that you can receive the high-quality care offered at this clinic. On top of this, you are free of the hassles that clinics in Canada and the US may present.
Getting stem cell care may not be accessible depending on where you live, but it can be life-changing care, and in some cases, life-saving. Because of this, people must have access to the best stem cell care that they can receive. In Canada, this is not necessarily the case.
There is a lack of regulations and a limited market that could make it more useful for people to try to receive their care elsewhere. Going to the United States is not a very viable option, either. For people who genuinely seek to find the highest quality care possible, going abroad to visit the BioXcellerator clinic in Colombia could be what you need to get the level of care that you deserve.
