Are You Going To Eat That?

Placentophagy is the act of eating the placenta. Now, I've seen plenty of animal documentaries in my day and have seen footage of animals eating their placenta. Growing up it was kind of a Park past time to sit in the living room together as a family after dinner and just tuck in to the latest PBS animal documentary. I'm not a doctor, a nurse, a scientist or anything related to a credible source when it comes to this topic, but I got very interested in it when I read that January Jones was eating her own placenta after the birth of her son Xander (source: People.com).

At first, I was disgusted. Literally sick to my stomach, but being kind of a hippie living in San Francisco, I decided to at least Google it. You get a lot of mixed opinions on the topic and after an hour of reading multiple articles and sites, I was already telling my husband to prepare a cooler to catch my placenta. The thought of eating the placenta was still horrifying, but encapsulating it into pills didn't seem so gross and if it did help with postpartum depression, lactation, energy levels, pain relief, and helping return the uterus to its original size...in fact the list goes on if you want it to...why not, right? Well, being only in my 16th week I promised CGB that I'd discuss the topic with my OB and she had some very interesting points with the bottom line being, "totally open and prepared to facilitate whatever [I] choose to do with the placenta". I went home and did more reading. So to summarize my research here are just the facts I was able to uncover:

• Yes, most mammals eat the placenta after birth. However, not all primates do this. 
• There have been studies as to why mammals eat the placenta, but nothing scientifically definitive. Hypotheses offered include: hiding scent/traces of birth from predators, and nature providing an immediate source of nutrients for the mother.
• There is one human study from 1954 from what was then known as Czechoslovakia that had participants take a supplement that included placenta which found increased milk production. This research has not been duplicated since then and some question the study for being, "somewhat unrigorous". 
• Careful care must be utilized for placenta transport. It's like raw meat, and it must be placed on ice and refrigerated or frozen immediately if preparing for consumption. If there are any pathological concerns, your placenta will not be released to you on legal grounds. 
• Remember that the placenta is often vaginally delivered, and if you've ever had an UTI you know there's lots of bacteria and germs to think about down there. 
• Another source of bacteria: if your baby is born distressed, meconium may be released and mix with the placenta in-utero before birth. 
• There have been a handful of studies regarding rats and placenta around analgesic effects, and hormone levels, but no claims for humans.
• Human studies have been done that correlate iron deficiency with postpartum depression and fatigue, but none mention placentophagy.
• Culturally, Chinese medicine has utilized placenta as a medicinal supplement, but usage extends beyond eating your own placenta as even men will take placenta-fortified pills.

There are tons of instructions online for preparing the placenta yourself...including recipes for placenta lasagna, stew etc. A simple Google search will fill your notebook easily. I also found specialized doulas who will come to your own home to dehydrate and encapsulate your placenta for you. I thought this video on Time.com was very interesting. It's a bit graphic as they show the placenta, but it films a doula visiting Joel Stein's home and the process of how she encapsulates his wife's placenta into pill form. 

As for me, the initial fear of postpartum, increased fatigue, a painful recovery and poor lactation made me furiously search for a doula and even get a price quote on what it would cost to have one visit my home for encapsulation. I even made a few calls asking relatives who would be the lucky one to transport my placenta home while I was in recovery! But then I took a breath, talked to my OB, did more research and ultimately decided that I'll save my money and worrying for something else. Science simply does not offer enough evidence to either support or reject the benefits of placentophagy so the best we can do is to make a decision based on anecdotal, philosophical and cultural considerations. 

What I decided:

My OB has delivered and spoken with women who have eaten their placenta and still suffered with postpartum. My mother never heard of eating the placenta, according to her, it's not part of the Korean culture. Lastly, I don't have any philosophical desire to be more natural or "recycle" the afterbirth. Lavender is natural, but I'm allergic to it so I know first hand that just because it's from nature, it doesn't mean it's automatically awesome. My personal plan is to have CGB waiting with an iron-rich, warm and beautifully pink roast beef or pastrami sandwich and a generous glass of red wine when I'm out of L&D.