1. What eating the placenta meansPlain-language definitions, animals, and human history
2. What the placenta means in different culturesHow families in different communities treat the placenta
3. How placenta capsules became popularAn easy-to-follow timeline from the 1970s to today
4. Why some families consider placenta capsulesCommon reasons people are interested in the service
5. What scientists have actually foundWhat studies found, what they did not find, and safety concerns
6. What a placenta encapsulation specialist can doWhat specialists can do, what they cannot, and how to talk with clients
7. Think about what you learnedThree short writing activities
8. Knowledge check10 practice questions, with explanations

By the end of this lesson, you should be able to ▶ Read from here

The placenta is a temporary organ that develops during pregnancy. It attaches to the inside of the uterus. Through the umbilical cord, it helps deliver oxygen and nutrients to the developing baby and move certain waste products away. After the baby is born, the placenta is delivered too. Some families call it the afterbirth. Placentophagy (pla-sen-TOF-uh-jee) is the word used for eating placenta tissue. The term describes the act itself; it does not mean the practice has a medical benefit.

In modern placenta encapsulation, the tissue is dried, ground into powder, and placed inside capsules. Some methods include a steaming step before drying; others dry tissue without steaming. People may also eat cooked placenta or add it to drinks. The capsule form feels familiar because it looks like a vitamin or supplement. But that is only a change in form. It does not tell us whether the contents are safe, how they were processed, or whether taking them changes someone’s health (Botelle & Willott, 2020; Farr et al., 2018).

A useful comparison is an ordinary dried food. A fresh apple and a dried apple are made from the same fruit, but they look and feel very different. Drying changes moisture and texture. It does not automatically prove that every harmful germ has been removed. The same distinction matters even more with human tissue. A capsule can look clean and professional on the outside while telling us very little about the safety of what is inside.

If other mammals eat the placenta, does that mean people should? ▶ Read from here

Many mammals eat the placenta after giving birth. Researchers have suggested several reasons, including cleaning the birth area, reducing smells that could attract predators, and getting some nutrients back. These ideas help us understand animal behavior. They do not tell us whether a human parent benefits from swallowing prepared capsules (Young & Benyshek, 2010). Think of another familiar animal behavior: a dog may eat things that a person should not eat. Seeing an animal do something is not evidence that it is a good choice for human health. Researchers have also proposed the fire hypothesis to explore why placentophagy is uncommon in human historical records. It is an explanation researchers considered, not a proven history of what all humans did (Young, Benyshek, & Lienard, 2012).

What about traditional Chinese medicine? ▶ Read from here

Traditional Chinese medicine has included dried human placenta, known as zǐhéchē (紫河车), in some historical remedies. However, traditional medical use is not the same thing as a mother choosing capsules made from her own placenta after childbirth. The source of the placenta, the people involved, the reason it was used, and the preparation may all differ. A client might say, “So this has been done in Chinese medicine for hundreds of years?” A careful answer is: “Dried placenta has a history in certain traditional remedies, but modern maternal encapsulation is a different practice.” This respects the historical record without suggesting that modern capsules have a proven treatment effect (Young & Benyshek, 2010).

For some families, the placenta is not simply something left after delivery. It can be connected with belonging, ancestry, the child’s future, or a family’s spiritual life. A family may want to bury it, keep it until a ceremony, or make a print or keepsake. Another family may want the hospital to handle it and feel no special attachment to it. None of these choices tells you whether the family wants to eat placenta. Ask instead of assuming.

In a 2010 cross-cultural study, Young and Benyshek reviewed written accounts from 179 societies. They found many different ways people handled or disposed of placentas. They did not find evidence in those records that mothers routinely ate their own placentas. The distinction matters. A community may care deeply about the placenta and still have no tradition of consuming it. The study described 169 handling and disposal customs. That number describes what researchers found in those written records; it is not a count of how many traditions exist in the world.

Imagine a client who says, “My grandmother wants us to bury the placenta near our family home.” Your response should be curious and respectful: “Is there a special way your family would like it handled? Would it help to ask your birth facility about release and storage before your due date?” You do not need to know the details of every tradition. You do need to listen, avoid stereotypes, and check which practical arrangements are allowed.

Source: Young & Benyshek (2010). These numbers refer to the cultural records the researchers examined, not to all families or births around the world.

How to talk respectfully with families ▶ Read from here

• Begin with an open question. Try, “What would you like to happen to the placenta after birth?” A parent might want a ritual, a keepsake, or no service at all. Listening first avoids suggesting capsules to someone who never asked for them.
• Ask what part of the tradition matters. A parent might care about the date of burial, who performs the ceremony, or whether the placenta can be returned after clinical examination. Ask permission before discussing these details with anyone else.
• Make hospital arrangements early. A facility might need the placenta for pathology, which is medical examination of tissue to understand pregnancy or birth complications. This can affect whether or when it can be released. Explain that you cannot override clinical or legal requirements (Burns, 2014; see Lesson 3.3).
• Respect different choices within the same culture. Two family members may disagree, or a family may adapt a tradition to their circumstances. Avoid saying “people from this community always do this.” The individual client’s wishes still matter.

Today’s placenta encapsulation services became more visible in North America in the late twentieth century and expanded with the internet. Family stories, books, birth-worker networks, and social media made it easier to hear about capsules or find a provider. Scientists then began asking whether the expected benefits actually occur, and whether the practice can cause harm. The timeline below follows those different threads: popularity, research, and safety.

Imagine two people in different decades. In 1980, someone might hear about placenta consumption from a small birth community. In 2026, someone might see a short social-media clip showing neat rows of capsules and a glowing testimonial. The second person may encounter the practice much more easily, but convenience and popularity still cannot answer whether it improves health. That question needs research.

Families do not all ask about placenta capsules for the same reason. One person may have heard that they improve mood. Another hopes they will help with milk supply or energy. Someone else may be drawn to the idea of using something from the birth itself. These are reasons for being interested, not evidence that capsules can deliver those results. A good conversation makes room for the family’s hopes while explaining what studies have and have not found.

What surveys can tell us ▶ Read from here

A 2013 survey asked 189 women who had consumed placenta about their experiences. Most respondents lived in the United States (91%), identified as White (93%), and were married (90%). More than half (58%) reported household incomes above $50,000. These details matter because the survey describes the people who chose to respond, not a random sample of everyone who has given birth. Another study of planned home and birth-center births found that about 30.8% of participants in that particular group reported placenta consumption (Benyshek et al., 2018). That figure is not a national rate for all U.S. births.

Source: Selander, Cantor, Young & Benyshek (2013), Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 52(2).

Hopes are not the same as proven results ▶ Read from here

In 2020, researchers read messages posted to parenting forums in the United Kingdom. People often talked about hoped-for benefits, especially changes in mood after birth. Risks received less attention (Botelle & Willott, 2020). Forum posts can show which questions people ask and how they describe their experiences. They cannot show whether a treatment works, because researchers did not give participants capsules and compare their health outcomes under controlled conditions.

A client may tell you, “My sister took capsules and felt wonderful.” You can respect that experience without calling it proof. Try: “I’m glad she felt well. Recovery is different for everyone, and we cannot know from one person’s experience what caused the change. The studies done so far have not shown a clear health benefit.” This approach is more useful than either dismissing someone’s story or treating it like a medical study (Schuette et al., 2017).

Scientists have studied placenta consumption in several ways. Some studies ask people about their experiences. Others test the contents of placenta tissue in a laboratory. A few compare people taking placenta capsules with people taking other capsules. These approaches answer different kinds of questions. A 2024 review examined 64 publications, but many discussed existing work instead of reporting new trials (Morais et al., 2024). The number of publications alone does not tell you how convincing the evidence is.

When you read a study, start with four questions: Who took part? What did researchers compare? What did they measure? What else could explain the result? If a study measured iron levels with a blood test, it can help answer an iron question. It cannot automatically tell us about mood or milk supply. If a study tested hormones in dried powder, it can tell us what was found in the powder. It cannot prove what happens after a person swallows it.

The main studies, in everyday language ▶ Read from here

Two important studies to remember ▶ Read from here

1. Do placenta capsules help with iron? Iron helps the body make healthy red blood cells. Low iron after delivery may cause symptoms such as tiredness or dizziness, but only a clinician can check the cause. In a small 2017 trial, 23 women received either placenta capsules or capsules made from dried beef. The participants and the research team did not know who received which until the trial was completed. This is called double-blinding. It helps reduce expectations and bias. The researchers found no meaningful advantage in iron status for the placenta group (Gryder et al., 2017). If someone says, “But there is iron in the placenta,” explain the difference between containing iron and raising someone’s iron levels. A food label can tell you a snack contains protein. It does not prove that eating that snack will cure muscle weakness. The same logic applies here. People worried about anemia need medical assessment, not capsule claims.

2. What happened in the Oregon infection case? In 2016, a baby in Oregon developed an infection caused by Group B streptococcus (GBS), bacteria that can make newborns seriously ill. After treatment, the baby went home and then developed another infection. The mother had been taking capsules made from her placenta. Investigators found GBS in the capsules and found that the bacterial strain matched the one found in the baby. The report could not establish exactly how every transmission occurred, but it raised serious concern about the capsules as a possible source of repeated exposure. The CDC explained that the encapsulation process had not been shown to reliably eliminate harmful germs and advised avoiding placenta capsules (Buser et al., 2017). One case report does not tell us how often an event happens. It can still reveal an important danger.

There is another easy way to see the difference between measuring and proving a benefit. A laboratory might find several hormones in processed placenta powder (Young et al., 2016). Finding a hormone is a measurement of the powder. It does not tell us how much is absorbed through digestion, whether enough reaches the bloodstream to have an effect, or whether that effect is useful or harmful. Those are separate questions for separate studies.

A placenta encapsulation specialist works in a non-medical role. This may include explaining the service, listening to a family’s wishes, sharing accurate research summaries, helping families ask about a facility’s release policy, and keeping records when services are permitted. The specialist does not diagnose illness, prescribe a capsule dose, assess whether a person is medically safe to consume placenta, or promise that capsules prevent depression, improve milk supply, or treat anemia.

The practical limits matter just as much as a kind manner. Handling or distributing products made from placenta may be subject to local laws, facility rules, and infection-control requirements. These vary by location. More importantly, no preparation approach discussed in this course has been shown to make placenta capsules reliably free of dangerous germs. Records and informed consent are important professional practices; they cannot turn an unproven product into a medically approved one. Before offering any hands-on service, a specialist should check applicable laws and consult qualified safety and legal professionals (Buser et al., 2017; Marraccini & Gorman, 2015).

These 10 questions help you review the main ideas. Answer every question, then select Check answers. Aim for at least 8 out of 10. Read the explanations for any questions you miss. The short written answers are checked by keywords, so an instructor should still review them when needed.

• Benyshek, D. C., Cheyney, M., Brown, J., & Bovbjerg, M. L. (2018). Placentophagy among women planning community births in the United States: Frequency, rationale, and associated neonatal outcomes. Birth, 45(4), 459–468. https://doi.org/10.1111/birt.12354
• Botelle, R., & Willott, C. (2020). Birth, attitudes and placentophagy: A thematic discourse analysis of discussions on UK parenting forums. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, 20, Article 134. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12884-020-2824-3
• Burns, E. (2014). More than clinical waste? Placenta rituals among Australian home-birthing women. The Journal of Perinatal Education, 23(1), 41–49. https://doi.org/10.1891/1058-1243.23.1.41
• Buser, G. L., Mató, S., Zhang, A. Y., Metcalf, B. J., Beall, B., & Thomas, A. R. (2017). Notes from the field: Late-onset infant group B Streptococcus infection associated with maternal consumption of capsules containing dehydrated placenta — Oregon, 2016. MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 66(25), 677–678. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6625a4
• Coyle, C. W., Hulse, K. E., Wisner, K. L., Driscoll, K. E., & Clark, C. T. (2015). Placentophagy: Therapeutic miracle or myth? Archives of Women's Mental Health, 18(5), 673–680. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-015-0538-8
• Davidson, J. R. (1985). The shadow of life: Psychosocial explanations for placenta rituals. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry, 9(1), 75–92. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00048538
• Dhirja, & Dhama, V. (2026). Human placentophagy: An appraisal of benefits, risks and beliefs. International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health, 13(8), 4715–4719. https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20262765
• Farr, A., Chervenak, F. A., McCullough, L. B., Baergen, R. N., & Grünebaum, A. (2018). Human placentophagy: A review. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 218(4), 401.e1–401.e11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajog.2017.08.016
• Gryder, L. K., Young, S. M., Zava, D., Norris, W., Cross, C. L., & Benyshek, D. C. (2017). Effects of human maternal placentophagy on maternal postpartum iron status: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot study. Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health, 62(1), 68–79. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.12549
• Hayes, E. H. (2016). Consumption of the placenta in the postpartum period. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing, 45(1), 78–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jogn.2015.10.008
• Helsel, D. G., & Mochel, M. (2002). Afterbirths in the afterlife: Cultural meaning of placental disposal in a Hmong American community. Journal of Transcultural Nursing, 13(4), 282–286. https://doi.org/10.1177/104365902236702
• Manulata, Sharma, S., & Shubham. (2025). Placentophagia in tribal and modern societies: Navigating the thin line between risk and benefit. Journal of Family and Reproductive Health, 19(3), 161–166. https://doi.org/10.18502/jfrh.v19i3.20053
• Marraccini, M. E., & Gorman, K. S. (2015). Exploring placentophagy in humans: Problems and recommendations. Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health, 60(4), 371–379. https://doi.org/10.1111/jmwh.12309
• Moeti, C., Mulaudzi, F. M., & Rasweswe, M. M. (2023). The disposal of placenta among Indigenous groups globally: An integrative literature review. International Journal of Reproductive Medicine, 2023, Article 6676809. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/6676809
• Morais, P. E. O., Nassif, M. S., Costa, A. C. B., Freitas, P. S., Sampaio, R. S., & Costa, I. C. P. (2024). Online scientific research on placentophagy: A bibliometric analysis. Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia, 46, e-rbgo4. https://doi.org/10.61622/rbgo/2024AR04
• Schuette, S. A., Brown, K. M., Cuthbert, D. A., Coyle, C. W., Wisner, K. L., Hoffman, M. C., Yang, A., Ciolino, J. D., Newmark, R. L., & Clark, C. T. (2017). Perspectives from patients and healthcare providers on the practice of maternal placentophagy. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 23(1), 60–67. https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2016.0147
• Selander, J., Cantor, A., Young, S. M., & Benyshek, D. C. (2013). Human maternal placentophagy: A survey of self-reported motivations and experiences associated with placenta consumption. Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 52(2), 93–115. https://doi.org/10.1080/03670244.2012.719356
• Young, S. M., & Benyshek, D. C. (2010). In search of human placentophagy: A cross-cultural survey of human placenta consumption, disposal practices, and cultural beliefs. Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 49(6), 467–484. https://doi.org/10.1080/03670244.2010.524106
• Young, S. M., Benyshek, D. C., & Lienard, P. (2012). The conspicuous absence of placenta consumption in human postpartum females: The fire hypothesis. Ecology of Food and Nutrition, 51(3), 198–217. https://doi.org/10.1080/03670244.2012.661349
• Young, S. M., Gryder, L. K., Cross, C., Zava, D., Kimball, D. W., & Benyshek, D. C. (2018). Placentophagy's effects on mood, bonding, and fatigue: A pilot trial, part 2. Women and Birth, 31(4), e258–e271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wombi.2017.11.004
• Young, S. M., Gryder, L. K., Zava, D., Kimball, D. W., & Benyshek, D. C. (2016). Presence and concentration of 17 hormones in human placenta processed for encapsulation and consumption. Placenta, 43, 86–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.placenta.2016.05.005