Placenta Eating: Bon Appetit!

If motherhood has taught me anything, it’s not to judge. While I may have rolled my eyes at Nerf guns and character t-shirts before, my kids are infrequently without either. A leash to keep hold of young children at theme parks seemed horrifying before, but is now completely understandable. Even toddler bikinis seem cute to me these days.

But, I’m not perfect. Occasionally, I do jump to judgment.

A friend shared a link with me this morning from New York Magazine, called The Placenta Cookbook. I read it, on an empty stomach, and immediately lost all appetite for breakfast.

From the article: “When I was pregnant, I just craved organs,” says Beckham, a onetime vegan and raw-foodist who now eats grass-fed and organic meat. “I’d go to Diner and order beef hearts, marrow … so the placenta just made sense. After I gave birth, I threw a chunk of placenta in the Vitamix with coconut water and a banana,” she adds. “It gave me the wildest rush. You know the feeling of drinking green juice on an empty stomach? It’s like that, but much more intense.” One husband described the taste like jerky; “Dry, gamy, bland jerky.”

{Insert dry heave}

Since I immediately lost my appetite, I decided to share in on Facebook so everyone else could be equally as nauseated. I’m a giver like that.

For the most part, the consensus was consistent. Gross. Nasty. Gag. My kind of people.

There were a handful of people, however, with stronger stomachs than I, who defended a woman’s right to do with her body what she wishes. And they weren’t totally wrong. Your placenta, your choice. As long as you don’t serve it to me in stew, I suppose it doesn’t impact me in the least.

This one, though, made me laugh:

“Personally, I think eating the placenta, which grew inside of YOU, is far less disturbing than eating another animal. Does breastfeeding revolt you too?”

Because breastfeeding is totally the same thing as placenta eating.

And, to the woman who suggested I try placenta, because “when prepared correctly, {it} can be a delicacy,” I’m going to respectfully decline. I can hardly stomach chicken, so I’ll hold off on dead human organs, thank you very much.

In the meantime, I think I might be able to drop a few pounds because I still haven’t found my appetite.

Stew, anyone?