US Trends

can you eat placenta

You can physically eat a placenta, but major medical organizations advise against doing so because there are no proven benefits and there are real safety risks for both parent and baby.

What eating placenta is

Placentophagy is the practice of a human eating the placenta after birth, often by:

  • Eating it cooked or raw (e.g., in food or smoothies)
  • Having it dehydrated and made into capsules or powders

Celebrities and social media have helped make “can you eat placenta” a trending topic over the past decade, but it remains outside standard medical care.

Claimed benefits vs actual evidence

People who support eating placenta often claim it:

  • Improves mood and reduces postpartum depression
  • Boosts energy and recovery
  • Increases milk supply
  • Replenishes iron and other nutrients

However:

  • Reviews of studies have found no scientific evidence that eating placenta provides these benefits in humans.
  • Large medical centers state that any perceived improvements are likely placebo or unrelated to the placenta itself.

So from an evidence-based standpoint, “can you eat placenta for health benefits?” currently has an answer of no proven benefit.

Main risks and safety concerns

Health experts focus less on “can you” and more on “should you,” because of the following risks:

  • Infection risk
    • The placenta filters waste, bacteria, and potential toxins during pregnancy.
* If it is contaminated with bacteria (like group B strep) or viruses, eating it can reintroduce those into the parent’s body and breast milk, and potentially harm the baby.

* The CDC reported a case where a newborn got group B strep infections linked to the parent taking placenta capsules.
  • No regulated processing standards
    • Placenta encapsulation and preparation are not regulated like food or medication.
* Heating, drying, or cooking may **not** reliably destroy all harmful pathogens.
  • Toxins and heavy metals
    • The placenta may accumulate heavy metals or other substances filtered from the blood.
* Eating it could mean taking those back in, with unknown long‑term effects.

Because of this, hospitals like Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic state that placenta consumption is not recommended.

Cultural and forum perspectives

  • In some cultures, placenta burial or ceremonial handling is traditional, but routine eating is not globally standard.
  • Online forums and Reddit threads often treat “can you eat placenta” as a mix of curiosity, dark humor, and occasional serious debate, with many healthcare workers in those discussions discouraging the practice as unnecessary and potentially unsafe.

These conversations show how it has become a trending and sometimes sensational topic, but they do not change the underlying medical evidence.

If someone is still considering it

If a person is seriously thinking about eating their placenta, experts consistently advise:

  1. Talk to your own doctor or midwife first
    • Especially if there were complications like infection, fever during labor, chorioamnionitis, or heavy smoking/alcohol use in pregnancy, which make placenta consumption even riskier.
  1. Do not give placenta products to the baby
    • Newborns are especially vulnerable to infections and toxins.
  1. Understand there is no proven health benefit
    • If the goal is mood support, milk supply, or energy, there are safer and better‑studied options your care team can recommend.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.