AFTER Wang Lan delivered,
she brought home a baby girl and her placenta, which she plans to eat in a
soup—adopting an age-old practice in Chinese medicine.
The health-giving qualities
of placenta are currently creating a buzz in Western countries, where some
believe it can help ward off postnatal depression, improve breast milk supply
and boost energy levels.
But placentophagy—the
practice of eating one's placenta after birth—is relatively common in China,
where it is thought to have anti-ageing properties and dates back more than
2,000 years.
"It's in the
refrigerator now and I'm waiting for my mother to come and cook it to eat.
After cleaning, it can be stewed for soup without that fishy smell," Wang
said, adding she believed it would help her recover from delivery.
Qin Shihuang, the first
emperor of a unified China, is said to have designated placenta as having
health properties some 2,200 years ago, and during China's last dynasty the
dowager empress Cixi was said to have eaten it to stay young.
A classic medical text from
the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644) said placenta—which lines the uterus and is key to
the survival of the foetus—was "heavily nutritious" and "if
taken for the longer term... longevity will be achieved".
China's state media says the
practice of eating placenta has re-emerged over the past decade. One maternity
hospital in the eastern city of Nanjing reported that about 10 percent of new
parents took their placenta after childbirth.
Internet postings swop
recipes on how to prepare placenta. One popular health website suggests soup,
dumplings, meatballs or mixing it with other kinds of traditional Chinese
medicine.
While trade in the organs
has been banned since 2005, pills containing placentas ground into powder are
legally available in Chinese pharmacies—indicating unwanted placenta is somehow
making its way to drug companies.
"It's a tonic to
fortify the 'qi' and enrich the blood," a traditional medicine doctor at
Shanghai's Lei Yun Shang pharmacy said, referring to the "life force"
that practitioners believe flows through the body. "Sales are very good.
Basically, every time we have supplies, they sell out very quickly," a
shop clerk told AFP.
And it's not just mums who
want to eat the placenta. One new dad in Shanghai who didn't want to be named
said his relatives were eager to try the sought-after item. "My wife and I
were still in the hospital... and they ate it," he said.
But strong demand has
created a thriving black market with hospitals, medical workers and even mums
selling placentas in violation of the law. Last year, authorities investigated
a hospital in the southern city of Guangzhou for selling placentas for 20 yuan
(RM6) apiece. "The nurses take the money and use it to buy
breakfast," a source told the local Xin Kuai newspaper.
They fetch a higher price in
other parts of China like the eastern city of Jinan, where dealers ask as much
as 300 yuan per placenta, most sourced from hospitals, the Jinan Times said.
Last month, South Korean customs said they had uncovered multiple attempts to
illegally import over 17,000 capsules apparently containing the powdered flesh
of dead babies.
Experts have said the pills
may actually be made from human placenta, raising concerns that China's trade
in the organs has started to go international.
Some people, meanwhile, are
averse to the idea of eating the organ. "I know it's good for health, but the
idea of eating human flesh is just disgusting. I can't do it," said
Shanghai accountant Grace Jiang, who opted to leave the placenta after giving
birth to her son. (Relaxnews)
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