Mother Ate The Placenta

Prettyladie · Apr 10, 2009

this made my skin crawl. i think this is absolutely disgusting.

ktwlpn, LPN · Apr 10, 2009

Yuck. Even most of my mom-cats won't touch 'em. The ones that do, I let them eat one, for the oxytocin, and that's it. I can hardly stand to watch.

I read about the Lotus Birth a few years ago-the mothers believe that cutting the cord is traumatic and the placenta stays attached to the baby until it detaches naturally. The rinse it off in a colander-cover it with salt and herbs and claim it really does not smell THAT bad-one mother said "Well-my cats were VERY interested in it" Can you imagine?

ICAN! · Apr 10, 2009

I am not even going to read the article, just reading these posts makes my stomach churn.

newtress, LPN · Apr 10, 2009

I know that in the Native American culture from stories handed down to me being half NA myself and a documentary I watched, that after having a part of your body removed it is planted back to the earth near a tree. In the documentary, a young boy had a tumor removed from his brain and the family then buried the excised tumor out under a very old tree.

kermitlady · Apr 10, 2009

I think this a bit cannibalistic. However, I find it amusing that this thread happened to be here because I just sent my DH an email the other day from a different message board. There is a FOUR page thread about HOW to eat the placenta!!!

Enjoy if you're game:

http://www.mothering.com/discussions/showthread.php?t=1041379

voraciousj · Apr 10, 2009

Why did I think that it would be a good idea to read that while I was eating?!?!?! :cry:

Well, it takes all kinds and quite frankly if eating their own placenta is the worse thing that these parents do...they're already leaps and bounds ahead of some other parents!

touchhealth · Apr 11, 2009

My mom had all three of us at home, and in the homebirth community the story of eating the placenta is definately passed around. It's supposed to be a great way to regain iron, and was a custom in native societies before we had things like multivitamins. But I don't know anyone personally who did this (I'm sure if I ask my mom she probably has some oddball friend that did it).

Mom did bury our placenta's though...one under a rose bush, one under a pear tree, and one under an olive tree. I'm REALLY glad she didn't eat it...my mom has done some crazy hippy-dippy things, but that's just GROSS!!!

jmtndl · Apr 11, 2009

My dad ate his hemorroids after his "operation" and said his bowel movements were never so relaxed....

Prettyladie · Apr 11, 2009

are you serious.. or was that a joke.. i hope that was a joke..

nkochrn, RN · Apr 11, 2009

I've seen a patient that had their placenta ground into pill form. I have seen on Nat Geo that it's normal for most mammals to eat their placenta after giving birth.

nanounne01 · Apr 11, 2009

I say to each his own!

Atheos · Apr 11, 2009

I say to each his own!

It would be a GREAT bonding experience if instead of that new mother share their placenta with OTHER mothers on the unit!!!