The placenta is a wonderful and complex organ that forms in
a pregnant woman’s uterus to nourish her developing baby. It forms during the
fourth week of pregnancy, after implantation, when the embryo’s cells divide in
half- half will become the mother’s son or daughter, and half will become the
placenta. The placenta provides the developing baby with nutrients via the
umbilical cord, and allows for waste elimination and gas exchange via the
mother’s bloodstream. The word placenta comes from the Latin word for cake and
the Greek plakóenta/plakoúnta, meaning flat or
slab-like, which describe the placenta’s shape.
Cultures
with pre-Roman languages have other words for the placenta, translating to
phrases like “little mother”, and “grandmother”. These definitions speak to
their reverence for the placenta’s role as the developing baby’s lifeline
during pregnancy. While it is typical in Western civilizations to incinerate
the placenta after it is delivered, other cultures have ceremonies and rituals
honoring it. (
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1ioVfHCNFo)
In keeping with the halving of cells that occurs in the fourth week of
pregnancy, t
he Ibo of Nigeria consider the placenta the deceased twin of the baby, and conduct full funeral
rites for it. Native Hawaiians plant a tree over the placenta near the home of
the baby, which will grow alongside the child throughout his life.
Burial and other rituals for the placenta
are common, but placentophagy, or consumption of the placenta, is less so.
Placentophagy is common in Eastern civilizations such as China, where it is
dried and consumed for health reasons. Additionally, midwives and traditional
healers have known of the helath and restorative properties of the placenta for
thousands of years. After all, humans are one of the only mammals who do not
eat their placentas after birth.
Though the nutritional value of
placenta consumption is documented in animals, in humans it still remains
“alternative”. More and more mothers are becoming vocal about the benefits of
placenta consumption (Why Encapsulation?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVwN6x1nbg8),
but the subject is not breeched in the popular “pregnancy Bible”
What to Expect When You’re Expecting,
nor is it likely to be covered in most pregnancy and childbirth education
classes. The topic of eating placenta has been launched into the media sphere
by celebrities like January Jones who, recognizing the health benefits of her
placenta, decided to consume it to speed her recovery postpartum.
“I was never depressed or
sad or down after the baby was born, so I’d highly suggest it to any pregnant
woman,” she told Glamour magazine in
April 2013. The actress attributes her ability to return to set in only three
weeks to the consumption of her placenta.
The
consumption of the placenta can
“alleviate
postpartum depression, aid in breastmilk production and lactation, act as a
uterine tonic, and replenish nutrients lost during pregnancy," according
to Atossa Araxia Abrahamian author of The
Placenta Cookbook. The placenta is full of nutrients and hormones that
provide amazing healing properties. The placenta contains high levels of prostaglandin which stimulates involution (an inward curvature or penetration, or, a shrinking or return to a
former size) of the uterus, in effect cleaning the uterus out. The placenta also
contains oxytocin which eases birth stress
and causes the smooth muscles around the mammary cells to contract and eject
milk.
Consuming your
placenta stabilizes your hormone levels, which can be effective in mother’s who
are at risk for postpartum depression. It also provides natural pain relief
from the birthing process, and provides interferon and gammaglobulin, which
protect against infection by boosting the body’s immune system. In addition to
the wonderful hormone benefits, the placenta also provides vitamins such as
iron and B-vitamins that sustain energy and replenish the body postpartum. The combination of hormones and nutrients in your
placenta is perfectly created for you, by you. After labor and birth, your body
needs the hormones and nourishment that only your placenta can provide. (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=290152694351173&set=vb.323660920495&type=2&theater)
So how do you go about consuming your placenta? Perhaps
the easiest and most appetizing way is by ingesting dehydrated encapsulated
placenta. The pills resemble prenatal vitamins, and can be stored in the
refrigerator or freezer indefinitely, to be used throughout the postpartum
period and even beyond, as the benefits of consuming your placenta during times
of hormonal change such as menopause have also been documented by mothers.
Placenta
tinctures are another wonderful modality to extend the purported benefits of
placenta remedies for a lifetime. Tinctures can be used after capsules
pills are gone to reduce stress and aid in coping with life’s transitions.
Many mothers use their tincture to ease emotional upheavals, anxiety, and
stress during PMS, weaning, returning to work, illness, and even perimenopause.
Mothers report that placenta tinctures restore emotional and physical balance.
The
placenta can also be eaten raw, such as ground up in smoothies, or cooked in
recipes as a meat replacement. A tincture can be made using high grain alcohol and a portion of your placenta. The tincture method can maintain a very long shelf life and even be used during your menopausal years as a hormonal supplement (see photo above). Although do-it-yourself recipes and methods are
available to mothers, the safest and most effective way to ingest your placenta
is probably through a method discussed with a Certified Encapsulation
Specialist, meaning she has been trained and certified and adheres to ethics
and standards of care of the placenta. You can find a Certified Encapsulation
Specialist here:
http://placentabenefits.info/specialists.asp.
If you live in the Gulf Coast region of Florida like I do, Danielle E.
Lorrraine
www.GulfCoastPlacentaLady.com,
provides excellent services. Consulting a professional will ensure that the
most nutrients possible are retained in your placenta regardless of which
method of consumption you choose.
If
you have the luxury of delivering your baby at home, then you will have full
control over what happens to your placenta postpartum. If you are delivering in
the hospital, however, measures should be taken to ensure that your health care
provider and the staff who attend to you during your labor and delivery are
aware of your intentions for your placenta. You and your birth team should be
verbal and vigilant to make sure that all are aware that you intend to take
your placenta with you. Unfortunately, because of the routine nature of
placenta incineration, your placenta could be whisked away for testing by a
well-meaning nurse or staff member and then taken with bio hazardous waste, or
put in formaldehyde rendering it inedible. Make sure that your placenta stays
with you in your delivery room at all times to avoid this.
Although
there is still little scientific evidence backing placentophagy, mothers all
over the world are singing the glorious praises of their placentas. The
placenta is an incredible organ whose purpose need not be over when your baby
has gained all she can from it. It can be used by you to combat mood swings and
depression, and aid in all aspects of postpartum recovery.
If you are in the Sarasota, Florida area our store will be holding a class on the Amazing Placenta!
https://www.facebook.com/events/1407659869452349/
Other Placenta Resources:
