New Delhi: Consuming the placenta, also known as afterbirth, post delivery has been a common practice among new mothers।
It is believed that eating your placenta helps you to recover from the birth, as well as help ward off postnatal depression.
Consuming placenta after birth has become sort of a fad among new mothers. There is a rise in the practice in the recent years as celebrities like Kourtney Kardashian, Katherine Heigl, and Gabby Hoffman claimed that they did consume their placenta.
Experts, however, found no evidence of health benefits of consuming placenta as it is claimed by its proponents. In fact, in June, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that newborns were developing a form of sepsis from contaminated breast milk due to placenta capsules, Daily Mail reported.
Human placentas are being consumed raw, roasted, cooked, steamed dehydrated, and in capsule form, or with smoothies or other drinks. The most common form is however capsules.
“As obstetricians, it’s important, to tell the truth. And the truth is it’s potentially harmful and no evidence it’s beneficial, so, therefore, don’t do it,” said Dr Amos Grunebaum, lead author, and obstetrician.
The researchers after conducting a survey on placenta consumption found that 54% of obstetricians and gynaecologists felt uninformed about the risks and benefits of taking it, and 60% were unsure about the practice.
The CDC issued a warning after a case of a newborn developing recurrent group B Streptococcus sepsis after the mother had contaminated placenta capsules.
