Should I Eat My Placenta?
Being on the more alternative spectrum of health care, we get asked a lot of uncommon questions. Over the years, the topic of whether to eat the placenta (placentophagia) after giving birth has come up sporadically. Here is some information we share to help our patients in the decision making.
Placenta Contains Many Beneficial Substances
Most mammals eat the placenta after giving birth to their young, up to 99% in fact, and even herbivores. There is good reason for this. The placenta after birth contains nutrients and hormones that can benefit the mother after the severely depleting task of carrying, developing, and delivering an offspring.
Placenta contains:
- oxytocin and CRH (corticotropin-releasing hormone) both of which help with well-being and coping with postpartum stress and healing
-TSH (thyroid stimulating hormone) which helps boost energy and regulate thyroid
-prolactin which aids in milk production
-B Vitamins and iron that help with recovery from blood loss and increase energy
- POEF (Placental Opioid Enhancing Factor) which increases pain relief and improves mood
Placenta Has Been Used as a Chinese Herb for Thousands of Years
It iswell-documentedd and common practice in Chinese Medicine to prescribe placenta forpostpartumm recovery. For over 2000 years, prepared, dried placenta, Zi He Che has been used as apostpartumm tonic. It tonifies Qi, Blood, Yin, Yang and Jing - all important aspects of health which are depleted after giving birth. The goal of this tonifying is to improve milk production, decrease depression, increase mood and energy, aid the body in the healing process, and help balance hormones. While more research is needed, there was one promising study that showed an increase in milk production in 86% of participants. Other research has shown an increase in the bond between mother and offspring innon-humann animals such as dogs, sheep, rabbit and monkeys.
Use Caution, More Research is Needed
There are a few situations where encapsulating and eating placenta is not possible or advisable.
If there was a uterine or amniotic infection during labor.
If the placenta is taken to pathology and is not available.
In certain instances like placenta previa or if a D&C is used to remove the placenta.
Smoking during pregnancy or using magnesium sulfate the day of birth are also contraindications.
There are some hypothetical risks such as alloimmunization for future pregnancies, exogenous hormonal source causing health risks, and thromboembolism- none of which have any case reports. However it is very important that the placenta is prepared properly to ensure there are no living microorganisms that could cause an infection.
There are many potential benefits to ingesting placenta and some concerns to consider. But if the placenta is healthy and is prepared safely, the long history of eating placenta after giving birth points to the possible benefits outweighing the possible drawbacks. My personal experience was positive and when I compare my post partum experience and breast feeding abilities to that of my grandmother, mother and sister, I do think it had a positive effect for me. If you are considering having your placenta capsulated for ingestion, please do your own research, find a reputable person to process and ask many questions.
If eating your placenta is not appealing or possible for you, there are many other Chinese herbs and formulas that a certified acupuncturist/herbalist can prescribe. Food can also be very therapeutic and used as medicine especially in times like this. Here at Garden Acupuncture we specialize in women’s health and can prescribe herbs, treat with acupuncture, and advise on dietary therapy. Pop over to our website to check us out and if you have a question, let us know at info@GardenAcu.com