A few weeks ago, I was discussing placentophagy with a lady who had experienced postpartum depression and wanted to avoid it after her current pregnancy. I have often wondered if my perception of Owen's temperment and well-being were not skewed by a case of the baby blues and how consuming some or all of the placenta (which is still in my freezer - made 2 moves and lived in 3 freezers) might have changed the course of our journey. I started looking for resources to share with her and am still unable to locate the article I originally read a few years back. Precious little seems to be *known* about the effects of placentophagy even though it seems to be common among many if not most mammals. While you might be thinking ewww, the fact is that many people believe that we have an important biological NEED to consumer our placentas.
Placenta: The Gift of Life - The Role of the Placenta In Different Cultures, And How To Prepare And Use It As Medicine (Cornelia Enning, Mother Baby Press, 2007)
This was definitely an interesting book, and I am glad that I had a chance to read it, but it was certainly not what I was looking for - a data-based explanation of what we know about the theraputic use of the placenta including preparation, dosage, timing of use, who can use it, and what if any effects have been documented.
Its 72 pages share a good deal of interesting placenta lore, and I have collected a few references for further reading. Hopefully those will provide me with a bit more information. The book does outline a number of uses of the placenta from various parts of the world; human and animal placentas are reported to be useful in helping mothers recover from birth more quickly and making their milk come in quickly and in good supply, stimulating hair growth, alleviating depression and the effects of menopause, supporting heart health, treating nipples cracked from poor latch, and treating skin conditions. Apparently, placental preparations were part of the German pharmacopia before the 20th century, and they are still in common use in Chinese medicine.
The book also provides information on preserving the placenta by dehydration, encapsulating the placenta (for ease of consuming), and about twenty recipes to make and use the placenta as creams, ointments, and for consuming.
Much of this information is also readily available on multiple internet sites, and I would not bother buying the book or even locating a copy again (since I had to have Abram get one through ILL).
Below is my short list of further reading that I have gathered from this book and other sources (in no particular bibliographic style). If I turn up anything interesting, I will certainly keep you all updated. Likewise, if you should have an data-based information on the subject, by all means, please share it. I don't need double-blind placebo-controlled studies - just something beyond earthy placenta lore.
A Solution to the Enigma of Placentophagia - Mark B. Kristal
(http://cogprints.org/180/0/review.html)
Placentophagia: A Biobehavioral Enigma (or De gustibus non disputandum est)- Mark B. Kristal
(http://cogprints.org/757/0/gustibus.htm)
Effects of placentophagy on serum prolactin and progesterone concentrations in rats after parturition or superovulation - M. S. Blank and H. G. Friesen
(http://www.reproduction-online.org/cgi/reprint/60/2/273.pdf)
Lang, Raven. Midwifery Today E-news. July 2004
Lang, Raven. Mothering, September 1984
Bensky, D. and A. Gamble, Chinese Herbal Medicine - Materia Medica, Seattle, 1993
1 comment:
I have wondered whether my postpartum depression would have been lessened if I had been able to consume my placenta in some form. They wouldn't let me take it home from the hospital, and I had to have a holy fit for them to even let me hold it and give it a lookover.
(By the way, I am really glad that I did because lots of the reason that we ended up in the hospital was because she was still in there at 43 weeks. Long story how we ended up there. But the placenta was not calcified or old looking in any way. It was totally fresh and healthy, and along with the vernix still on Livy and her healthy fat layer, seeing the placenta convinced me that the fuss over how overdue she was was crap.)
I was planning to eat a bit of the placenta at least, had we had our home birth. I had been making bloody mary smoothies with raw liver in them during my pregnancy, and I planned on including some placenta in them.
Anyway, I'll be glad to know more about what you find out, if you can find a more scientific book.
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