Baby teeth are adorable and we may fawn over them for a bit after they’ve fallen out, left safely concealed in a drawer along with the Tooth Fairy’s real identity.

But as time goes on, things get lost and baby teeth usually wind up thrown out. If you still have young children or know anyone who’s child is still expecting to lose some more teeth, you’ll want to pay attention to what happens to them after they’ve been slipped from under the pillow.

A new study has revealed that baby teeth could help saves life in the future. Baby teeth, like umbilical cord blood, contain stem cells that are capable of creating an indefinite number of identical cells.

These cells in turn can help regenerate neurons, bones and cartilage in sick patients. Not only do stem cells show promising results in cancer treatment, but using your own stem cells resists the potential of the body rejecting them in the future.

As anyone who has ever dealt with a bone marrow transplant knows, doning is a risky business and family links are the safest – and sometimes only – bet.

Teeth have to be stored properly, so if you want to put your child’s teeth in a safe place in hopes of them being able to come in handy down the line, you’ll need to get in touch with a company like Store-a-Tooth or Tooth Bank.

They charge about $1,000 for your initial deposit and an annual maintenance fee of roughly $100. It isn’t the most cost effective storage in the world, but this type of banking has the potential to save lives so for those of us who are able, it may be a worthwhile investment.