The placenta is a very important organ that develops during pregnancy, specifically to fulfill the vital function of delivering nutrients and oxygen to the baby. After delivery, the placenta is usually discarded, however in recent years it has gained popularity Placentophagy: eat or drink the placenta.
Although placentophagy has become fashionable thanks to the fact that many celebrities have done so and talked about their supposed properties, the truth is that there is no study that supports the benefits attributed to it, although there are studies that prove that it really does not contribute anything.
Now, a new study confirms again that eating or drinking the placenta after delivery does not provide any benefit nor does it help prevent postpartum depression.
The study
Posted in Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology CanadaThis study followed the postpartum experience of a group of 138 women with mood disorders for a decade, with the purpose of discover if consuming placenta had a positive influence.
Among the things that were analyzed to find out if the placenta really was beneficial, were the symptoms of depression, vitamin B12 levels, energy levels and the ease or difficulty they had with breastfeedingWell, it is said that consuming the placenta helps in all those aspects.
In Babies and more Placentophagy: it has no benefit to eat or drink the placenta after delivery (and doing so could be dangerous)After concluding with a decade of analyzing and following all these aspects in the lives of the women who participated in the study, it was found that there was no difference between those who had consumed the placenta and those who had not.
In addition to sharing the results through a press release, the researchers they recalled the two warnings that have been made about the risks of placental use: one by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States and another by the Department of Health of Canada, in which both declared that it can cause infections in both the mother and the baby.
"Given the risks associated with the consumption of placenta and the absence of detectable benefits, we strongly recommend that women do not, and instead seek other mental health resources", the researchers conclude.
