Why Do People Eat Placenta?

Eating placenta, among humans, really didn't become a phenomenon until the 1970s, an outgrowth of the counter-culture and occurring mostly among white middle-class women. Evidently on a commune sometime during that era, women began to try it out.

And they had reasons. In fact, mostly they said the effect of doing so was beneficial and had high praise for the benefits of eating placenta.

Why?

Those women on the commune said that after eating placenta their moods were boosted, they were energized and that, believe it or not, it was delicious.

And they're not the only ones who attribute these qualities to placenta.

After all, it is rich in iron and this is said to be one of the benefits of eating placenta; that it replenishes iron in your body.

The women also say the placenta looks like a "tree of life" and represents the body's ability to give, protect and sustain life.

It is said that eating placenta helps fight post-partum depression, aids in lactation and has plenty of nutrients. Makes sense because the placenta is what nourished the baby in the womb.

In Chinese medicine it has been used for its nutrients for recovery after childbirth, to prevent hemorrhaging and to help produce breast milk.

Other things that placenta is good for:

• Balancing hormones
• Help uterus return to pre-pregnancy state
• Reduce post-natal bleeding
• Increase energy (as mentioned)
• Increase milk (as mentioned)
• Makes you happier (as mentioned)

How the placenta is commonly consumed:

• Cooked, sliced and frozen and then blended into a smoothie
• Cooked, sliced and dehydrated and made into a pill

One way placenta is prepared for consumption is to steam it, slice it into small chunks, freeze it and then blend it in a smoothie. It is said to be delicious by those who consume it this way.

It is also taken in pill form. In the process of making it a pill, it is steamed, sliced, dehydrated and then made into a pill.

So, the placenta definitely has nutrients in it because it was what sustained the baby before he or she was born. There is nothing to indicate that eating it is harmful, though there's no proof, other than personal testimony, that it is necessarily beneficial.

There's no particular danger in eating the placenta and, evidently, eating it makes a good number of mothers feel good.

Have at it!