Some cultures really value placentas for their spiritual and beneficial impact on postpartum recovery. Some cultures perform a ceremony and bury the placenta after the birth of a baby while other cultures prefer to plant a tree where the placenta is buried. Some cultures prefer to eat placentas (in fact, in the wild animals eat their own placentas to reap the benefit of all its nutrients). If you are squeamish, then you might not be up for something like this (I decided to spare you all & not post a photo of my placenta), I chose to have the placentas from both my pregnancies processed (steamed, dried, crushed, and then put into gel capsules) and here is why:
According to Placenta Benefits website:“There are a variety of potential benefits to placentophagy. For one, the placenta contains vitamins and minerals that may help fight depression symptoms, such as vitamin B6. For another, the placenta is considered rich in iron and protein, which would be useful to women recovering from childbirth, and a particular benefit to vegetarian women.”
More specifically, placenta pills may help to:• Increase general energy• Allow a quicker return to health after birth• Increase production of breast milk• Decrease likelihood of baby blues and post natal depression• Decrease likelihood of iron deficiency• Decrease likelihood of insomnia or sleep disorders
Laura Perez (a local midwife) processed the placentas after the birth of both my kids. You can email her at lmcpp@netzero.ne or call 415-586-4805 for more info. Laura takes photographs of the placentas and will tell you about the medicinal and spiritual purpose behind this ancient tradition.
