China Exclusive: Placenta capsules give birth to controversial health trend

Taking dried human placenta in the form of a capsule is one of the more divided health trends to sweep China. While practitioners swear by the benefits, others view it as a controversial and disgusting practice.

Qiang Jing, 30, had her placenta encapsulated with the help of her housekeeper near the Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital at her husband's request.

"My mother-in-law suggested the idea after my son was born," Qiang, who's name has been changed to protect her anonymity, said. "He took one capsule a day, but gave up a month later every time he remembered what was contained in the capsule."

Two of her friends also had placenta capsules made after giving birth, she said. One took the capsules herself and another gave the pills to her grandmother.

Placenta is an organ which provides the fetus with oxygen and nutrients through the umbilical cord and removes waste during pregnancy. The dried placenta, known as "Ziheche", usually spans around 22 centimeters in length and has been used to increase blood health and vitality in traditional Chinese medicine.

Hundreds of advertisements touting human placenta processing services were posted around the gates to a maternity hospital in Harbin, capital city of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province,

Xinhua correspondents tracked the address of several and found more than 20 placenta processing workshops with poor sanitary conditions. Many were crudely assembled in low-rent apartments near the hospital.

In the crowded kitchen of one workshop, buyers cover their nose and mouth as they wait. A bloody trash can filled with medical waste sits underneath the table in the middle of the room.

Carrying a refrigerated plastic bag, a salesman appears and greets a customer.

"You're lucky. We obtained it yesterday," he says.

One placenta can be made into more than 100 capsules, he explains. Most customers use their own and pay around 150 yuan (24 U.S. dollars) for processing. The fees are doubled if the workshop has to provide the placenta, which he "collects" from local hospitals.

Xia Hongwei, a doctor with the Maternal and Child Health Hospital of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said fewer mothers are giving up their placenta after giving birth.

Most people opt for encapsulation, in which the placenta is steamed, dehydrated and ground into powder to make it easier to swallow.

"They have realized that placentas are good. Even pharmaceutical companies extract hormones and proteins from placentas for medical use," Xia said.

Li Mei, who recently gave birth, believes the practice is a natural remedy and worth trying.

"I ate placenta capsules and felt much better after giving birth to my son," she said.

Supporters say it helps new mothers increase milk supply and fight off postpartum depression. For the old and the sick, it helps regain energy.

However, controversy surrounds the beneficial effects, safety and ethics of the act.

Cai Yan, head of the obstetric department at the Fourth Hospital affiliated to Harbin Medical University, said she has no problem with patients who want to take placenta capsules, though she warns that there are no clinical trials or scientific research to back their effectiveness.

Meanwhile, the process involved in the production of capsules presents potential health risks. "If the mother carries viruses like hepatitis B or HIV, they may be left over in placentas," Cai said.

Opponents also argue it's unethical.

Qin Xue, a pregnant woman, said she would not eat her own placenta even if it has nutritional value. "I think it is a part of you and your baby," she said.

She still worries her placenta could be used in other ways after friends told her their doctors did not offer them the option to keep it after birth.

According to China's health authorities, hospitals should give placentas to new mothers after they give birth. If the new moms give up or donate their placentas, medical institutions can process the handling. No outside organizations or individuals are allowed to buy or sell placentas.

The trend is not only limited to China, with news reports examining growing popularity in other parts of the world.

The Guardian recently published a story about a woman from Wiltshire who makes smoothies by blending berries, bananas and human placenta. The report prompted an investigation by public health officials over health and safety concerns.

Independent Placenta Encapsulation Network (IPEN), which is dedicated to transforming views of the practice, said it has helped more than 4,000 mothers consume their placenta in the UK alone.

Placenta capsules are not good for everyone, Yin Yan, doctor with the First Hospital affiliated to Heilongjiang University of Chinese Medicine says. It depends on the user's physical state.

"Perhaps it can be proved physically and mentally beneficial in clinical trials in the future. But before that, the medical and ethical debate will not end," she said. Endi