Kourtney Kardashian is eating her placenta. She had someone dry it out like a piece of jerky, grind it up like peppercorns and put it into little capsules, then, down the hatch.
So I could tell you about all the benefits of consuming your placenta after you’ve had a baby. I could tell you how it improves milk supply, stabilises postpartum moods so you might not be a teary mumma who cries at insurance adverts. I could tell you how it can help prevent postnatal depression or how humans are one of the few mammals who don’t consume their own placentas after giving birth, but you know you’ll probably just turn your nose up and tell me how you could never do that. Or you might say it’s probably ok to do but you just couldn’t bring yourself to swallow your own organ. And that’s ok. I didn’t eat mine. I buried mine under a new olive tree (and 17 years ago, that was considered weird enough). So, one minute, placenta encapsulation is something that us crazy Doula, homebirthing, underarm hairing, hippies talk about. Yep, we even encourage mums to do it because we think it’s awesome.
But then one little facebook post and that all changed. Yep, a Kardashian sister ate her placenta. Hold up, now we’ve hit the mainstream. My birthy colleagues are saying that they have had a huge increase in bookings just in the last week since Kourtney posted ‘that’ pic with the words ‘YUMMY’ next to it.
Sure there are the doubters and the haters commenting on her post. But at last count she had over 64,000 likes on the post – 64,000 people like her post about eating her own placenta.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m pleased for Kourtney. I’m pleased for her little baby who obviously has a mumma who is willing to research her choices and decide to buck the trend of hating on the placenta. But it’s a shame that it takes a Kardashian sister to bring the practice of placentophagy into the spotlight, rather than the hard work of birth workers, doulas and midwives who have been espousing the practice for many years.
But Kourtney, it’s ok. I support your right to influence millions of people around the world based on your own personal pregnancy, birthing and postpartum practices. I can only imagine what changes to the birthing world will happen when Kim and Kanye announce their next pregnancy. Forget 64,000 – a consumed Kimye placenta would shut down the internet.
For more information on placenta encapsulation in your area contact me at michelle@engagedbirthdoula.com.au