Health Canada wants you to stop eating placentas

Canadian obstetricians are warning against the practice known as placentophagy, or the consumption of human placentas.

The trendy practice popularized by celebrities like Kim Kardashian purportedly has several health benefits including boosting iron levels, helping with postpartum depression and improved lactation.

However, physicians are telling Canadians that eating your placenta is not all that it’s made out to be.

According to the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC), eating your placenta after giving birth is not recommended and might actually lead to health problems.

“A review of available data finds no evidence of significant benefit from the consumption of human placenta,” claims an April 30th news release by SOGC.

Health Canada also released a public safety warning in November 2018 warning that human placentas are not for consumption.

“Human placenta is a biologic material and can contain infectious agents  such as bacteria (eg Group B Streptococcus) and viruses (eg hepatitis,  or HIV).  In addition, the preparation process itself has the potential  to introduce infectious agents into the product.  Consuming human  placenta containing bacteria or viruses may lead to infections in  mothers or their babies, and the risk is higher if someone ingests the  placenta of another person,” warned Health Canada.