# Would you ever eat (or have you ever eaten) human placenta? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 19, 2010, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613 "2010-02-19T10:45:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/41 "2013-09-08T00:48:03Z")
Yeah, right after butthole ceviche. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Bird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Little\_Bird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Bird)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/42 "2013-09-08T01:24:30Z")
Oh hell no. When Baby Bird was born I got to poke mine, and that was pretty cool. I was hoping my midwife would show me all the parts and explain it to me, but unfortunately I started hemorrhaging so we had to cut show and tell time short. :eek: Anyway, it’s all veins and did not look at all appetizing. No thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 2:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/43 "2013-09-08T02:39:16Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > I view as something like chitterlings - not something I’d ever seek out, would probably not pick off a buffet table, but if in one of those situations were you _have to_ be polite If I ever find myself in a situation where it would be considered rude for me to not eat placenta, I’m finding some new friends. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/44 "2013-09-08T02:56:37Z")
Hmmm, of course if it was Blackberry placenta… ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/45 "2013-09-08T03:40:45Z")
If a woman is not programmed against it I would not be surprised if many could eat it raw and fresh. Many other animals do, it may contain kind of a starter kit for mothering. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/46 "2013-09-08T04:48:42Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > If a woman is not programmed against it I would not be surprised if many could eat it raw and fresh. I’d be surprised if anyone who saw a “raw and fresh” placenta could find it appetizing. Unless bloody, oozing, slimy, stringy and spongy are adjectives that provoke gustatory delight. :dubious: ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/47 "2013-09-08T05:00:25Z")
Years ago, when a friend of mine was pregnant, we had a running joke about this. For whatever reason, placenta eating (and even references to the scuttled SNL sketch) had kept popping up in the zines we read at the time. When she finally gave birth, she thought it would be funny to actually present me with her placenta, and asked the doctors/nurses/whomever to save it and give it to her. Luckily for me, they refused. Seemed weird that they wouldn’t let her have it, but I’m rather glad I wasn’t given a bundle o’ placenta when she came back to work. ---
**Author:** ![tesseract](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bb73d2/32.png) [@tesseract](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tesseract)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/48 "2013-09-08T06:40:25Z")
I find it strange that they refused. Seems like a person is entitled to the placenta if they want it. My son’s is still in our freezer because my husband and I joked about eating it but could never bring ourselves past the joking stage. We are going to thaw it out and bury it underneath a plant or tree or something. But refuse to give it to someone? Odd. I also think the art is cool…and although it does gross me out to think of eating it, I think it is sort of fascinatingly cool that some people do eat them. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/49 "2013-09-08T16:06:36Z")
Wanting to keep the placenta is an unusual-enough request that, if I were an expectant mom, I’d tell the hospital administration long before I gave birth, and also make my wishes clear to my OB/GYN or nurse-midwife. Since the SOP is to remove and dispose of the placenta as medical waste, it’s not the kind of request you’d want to spring on them in the delivery room with your newborn in your arms. If you felt very strongly about the issue, and encountered resistance from any of the professionals involved, you might want to find someone - or someplace - more amenable. > [@tesseract](#): > > …My son’s is still in our freezer because my husband and I joked about eating it but could never bring ourselves past the joking stage. We are going to thaw it out and bury it underneath a plant or tree or something… Interesting idea. How long ago did you give birth, may I ask? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/50 "2013-09-08T20:34:30Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > If a woman is not programmed against it I would not be surprised if many could eat it raw and fresh. Many other animals do, it may contain kind of a starter kit for mothering. It’s believed that the reason animals, even vegetarian ones like deer, eat the placenta is so predators don’t know there are baby animals nearby. As for wasting a placenta, what about cord blood donation? If I’d had kids, that would be the limit of my “use” for it, and I would also have donated it to the bank because it’s free that way. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2013, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/51 "2013-09-08T21:45:25Z")
When our first child was born in 1996, we asked about donating cord blood, and they looked at us as if we were from Mars. When our later children were born, it was much easier. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/52 "2013-09-09T03:33:13Z")
I Googled “All My Babies”, which is in the Library of Congress’ archive of films considered representative of the United States, and found this thread! > **["All My Babies" - an amazing documentary!](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=531627)** > > I’ve been looking for more material on midwifery to see if it’s something I want to make a massive career change to, and there’s kind of a dearth of good documentaries and movies about home birth. I ran across one, which we had in the library,... In the movie, “Miss Mary” wraps the placenta in newspaper and burns it in the family’s wood stove. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/53 "2013-09-09T04:23:44Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > When our first child was born in 1996, we asked about donating cord blood, and they looked at us as if we were from Mars. When our later children were born, it was much easier. I asked about it in '99/'00 when I was pregnant with my daughter (born in March '00) and they acted like it was a weird inquiry then too. My doctor just said there was personal cord blood banking but it was very expensive. Well, that wasn’t what I was trying to do, I just wanted to donate it to anyone who might need it, because why the hell not? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 3:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/54 "2013-09-09T15:32:42Z")
> [@Blackberry](#): > > I asked about it in '99/'00 when I was pregnant with my daughter (born in March '00) and they acted like it was a weird inquiry then too. My doctor just said there was personal cord blood banking but it was very expensive. Well, that wasn’t what I was trying to do, I just wanted to donate it to anyone who might need it, because why the hell not? At the time, that was true, but with the advances in stem cell research, cord blood donation is a really wise idea if you’re eligible. Some people can’t do it, and it can’t be done with multiple pregnancies. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/55 "2013-09-09T15:35:34Z")
Only those times when we finish the baby and are still hungry. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [September 9, 2013, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/56 "2013-09-09T17:30:17Z")
My mother had planned to eat the placenta from the birth of my youngest brother. Apparently, she changed her mind because we buried under a tree. (Apparently Native Americans think this gives the child a spiritual bond with the tree.) Having seen it myself, I simply can’t imagine eating it except in a dire famine. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/57 "2013-09-10T20:14:50Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Only those times when we finish the baby and are still hungry. You’ll appreciate this: [http://static.onemansblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/EAT-THE-kids-first-License-Plate.jpeg](http://static.onemansblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/EAT-THE-kids-first-License-Plate.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Agent\_Foxtrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Agent\_Foxtrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Agent_Foxtrot)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/58 "2013-09-10T20:22:13Z")
I don’t eat anything containing human DNA. ---
**Author:** ![pravnik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/8edcca/32.png) [@pravnik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pravnik)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/59 "2013-09-10T20:22:20Z")
> [@pravnik](#): > > Sure, but none of this namby-pamby unrecognizable preparation buisiness. Crouch naked in the mud gnawing at it and growl at anyone who tries to take it away, totally old school. Just wanted to add that since posting this I have witnessed the birth of my first child, and accordingly have retreated from this position somewhat. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [September 10, 2013, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613/60 "2013-09-10T23:35:05Z")
… and at what speed were you doing that retreating? 😃 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-ever-eat-or-have-you-ever-eaten-human-placenta/529613.md?page=4)