Consumption of human placenta products is a risk for mothers and babies: Health Canada

TORONTO – Kim Kardashian did it. The same goes for the mothers Alicia Silverstone and Hilary Duff.

Consuming one's placenta for so-called health benefits after childbirth is a headline phenomenon – and not just among celebrities.

The promoters allege that ingesting human placenta preparations helps prevent postpartum depression, defeat anemia, increase energy levels and boost bad milk production.

But on Tuesday, Health Canada warned against this, saying there is no scientific evidence to support such medical claims and that it could result in bacterial or viral infections in mothers or their babies.

The risk is higher if a person consumes placenta by another person.

"When you give birth, your bad contains a lot of bacteria and cross-contamination with other substances, such as feces," said Dr. Amanda Selk, obstetrician-gynecologist at Women's College Hospital in Toronto. , commenting on Health Canada's warning. . "Everything is close together, especially during a badl delivery."

Selk stated that there is no scientifically proven way to prepare the placenta – whether by cooking, steaming, dehydrating or encapsulating – which ensures the destruction of any bacteria or viruses present.

"And some people eat it fresh," she says.

Health Canada cited a case reported by the US Centers for Disease Control for an infant hospitalized for an infection with a bacterium found in the placenta tablets her mother had ingested.

The federal department also stated that third-party placenta products are considered drugs and are subject to the requirements of the Food and Drugs Act. No products containing human placenta are allowed for consumption in Canada.

Meaghan Grant, co-owner of Toronto Family Doulas, said her company has been supplying new mothers with placenta capsules since June 2016 for $ 325.

A trained and certified doula spends two days in the client's home preparing the placenta, which is steamed, dehydrated for 12 to 24 hours, and then encapsulated.

The company also operates in Hamilton and Ottawa, but encapsulates the placenta only in its former location.

Health Canada has reported that it has sent several compliance letters to clinics and people offering human placenta encapsulation services to clarify regulatory requirements, and that it will take regulatory action if a risk to the health is identified.

But Grant said his company did not violate Canada's Food and Drugs Act because it did not prepare or sell placentas from one individual to another.