Joy Kong, MDRegenerative Medicine Physician, Educator, and Entrepreneur

Where do stem cells know where to go? #stemcells #antiaging #stemcellinjection

11 May 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

0:39

In this brief YouTube segment, Dr. Joy Kong, a triple board‑certified physician and stem‑cell specialist, explains that humans are born with a finite pool of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). Although MSCs can replicate, their overall numbers decline sharply with age due to cumulative oxidative damage. She quantifies the decline: at birth roughly 1 in 10,000 cells is an MSC; by the teenage years this drops to 1 in 100,000; in the 40s it falls to 1 in 400,000; and by the 80s it is about 1 in 2 million. Dr. Kong concludes by inviting viewers to post any stem‑cell‑related questions in the comments for further clarification.

Chapters

Great question. I'm Dr. Joy Kong, a triple board-certified doctor and a stem cell specialist. We're all born with a set number of stem cells. While they do replicate and replenish themselves, the number of stem cells do decline sharply as we age. This is because we gradually lose them due to oxidative damages from just being alive. For example, when we were born, every 1 in 10,000 cells is a mesenchymal stem cell. This is a very important cell type. But when we reach our teenage years, it's already declined to 1 in 100,000. And when we reach our 40s, it becomes 1 in 400,000. 100,000, and when we reach our 80s, it becomes 1 in 2 million. I hope that makes sense, and drop any questions about stem cells below, and I'll do my best to answer.