Encapsulation

seasidesweete · September 2015

has any one done it on prior pregnancies? If so I have any questions...
How do you go about doing it?
If you didn't do it for one pregnancy but did it for subsequent one, did you notice a difference in milk production?
Did insurance cover it for you?
Who do you contact to do it for you?

TIA!

myndihallberg · September 2015

Following.
I haven't done it but I want to. My insurance doesn't cover it and I think most insurances don't. I've also heard it really helps woth postpartum depression so that's another plus.

cmjenkies · September 2015

I'm assuming this is placenta encapsulation? I haven't done it and don't plan on it (no offense, I just find it really unsettling and icky - but more power to ya!) Nevertheless, I have a close friend who is a super 'crunchy' mom, so to speak, who did it with her 2nd and we've discussed it in depth. It is not something insurance will cover, I'm 99% sure. A certified doula friend of hers who is well versed in such things did it for her. I do know that somebody from a funeral home had to come and claim 'the remains' and hand it over to the doula. The hospital was not allowed to release it directly to the mom because it's considered a biohazard/medical waste? You'd need to look into it. She said it was helpful with energy, anemia, and PPD I believe. Not sure about milk production, but she's successfully BFd DD2 for the last 20 months.

cmjenkies · September 2015

^^ Oh and I would look into doula groups/more natural minded ('crunchy' I guess?) groups in your area for resources. They may be able to help and may be better versed in state regs, etc. I don't think the cost was incredibly outrageous. We're in Indiana, for reference.

UnbreakableKimmySchmidt · September 2015

I personally am not doing this but this is obviously something you want to research! I read this article a few months ago which has lot of interesting points: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2015/06/04/411990944/placenta-pills-gain-fans-among-new-moms-but-benefits-are-elusive

Obviously, you can find articles/research supporting both sides. I just wanted to share this article as I thought it was well written, especially for those that might need more background on what placenta encapsulation is. GL!

momofmanyinthemitten · September 2015

My doula's daughters swear by it. I haven't done it, but I wouldn't rule it out. I had some postpartum anxiety that I'd love to not experience this time around.

seasidesweete · September 2015

@cmjenkies it gave me the heebie jeebies when I first heard/read about it. But I had low milk production after I went back to work (may have been the pill I got put on) and I had heard it can help with production. I prob should have just supplemented but felt too pressured not to (how sad that I felt like that). Thanks for the info!

@UnbreakableKimmySchmidt thank you. I will check that article out!

animalia1234 · September 2015

I will not be doing it. There is currently no scientific evidence that there is any benefit from consuming the placenta. The digestive process destroys the hormones before they can be absorbed into your bloodstream, and there are infection concerns about consuming something that has passed through the birth canal. Personally I am in fact a little suspicious of the motives of some of those who say how great it is: there is a lot of money to be made from people paying for the expensive encapsulation process. For those who have researched it and are willing to pay, good luck to them, and I hope they experience it to be helpful! I just think there are much better evidence-based ways to support breast milk production, replenish iron stores and prevent PPD.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00737-015-0538-8
https://www.mja.com.au/insight/2015/24/sue-ieraci-placenta-placebo
https://americanpregnancy.org/first-year-of-life/placental-encapsulation/

cmjenkies · September 2015

@seasidesweete I'm really sorry to hear that - the pressure on moms to stick with certain practices can really negatively impact the early experience. I do know that, depending on the type of BC you're on, it can affect milk production. So can stress and a number of other factors. Happily, just because you had supply issues first time around doesn't mean you will the second time. There are a lot of good resources for BFing moms - and if it just doesn't work for one reason or another - at least there is a reliable method available to keep baby fed. At the end of the day, that's all that matters - regardless of what anybody else says.

I only BFd DS for 6 weeks. I was younger (about to turn 21) when he was born and wanted to breastfeed but didn't have a lot of support. I also was a full time college student about to start grad school and I had a FT job. My supply was good but I felt like the odds were stacked against me.. I actually felt pressure to formula feed and I felt REALLY uncomfortable with BFing whenever other people were around. I'm hoping for another experience this time around and to BF but I'm still comfortable knowing that if something goes wrong with me for one reason or another, my DS is a hell-on-wheels brilliant kiddo who 'survived' formula just fine.

TL:DR - Every experience can be different, regardless I hope things go better for you this time around and you feel confident in whichever decisions need to be made to make little babe happy and healthy! That's what matters.

cmerribury · September 2015

I won't be encapsulating, but my best friend did. She swore up and down that she felt the benefits. I would be very careful in your research, however, when it comes to who will do the encapsulation for you. A lot of people mix in herbs, etc. and some of them when combined can have negative effects. Since there are no FDA guidelines on herbal supplements and treatments, it's really important to research and advocate for yourself and your baby. If everything added to the capsules is safe I don't think it's harmful, I just personally won't be doing it.

Best of luck!

dayj11 · October 2015

@UnbreakableKimmySchmidt
Thanks for posting that npr article. That was really interesting and a helpful perspective

mojomama6 · October 2015

I encapsulated with two of my five. Basically, I don't care if it's a placebo effect, I just want things that make me feel better post partum. I had really just horrible post partum depression and anxiety with my first two, and I was too busy trying to manufacture more blood after a mishandled pph after my third to notice whether that was an issue. But my last two were great! There were a number of factors that could easily contributed to the pp experience being so much better, but just like wearing a lucky sweatshirt when your team plays, I'll be doing all of it again, haha.
The cost was not covered by insurance, but was included in my midwife's usual fee with my fourth. While we're aware that we could call basically any doula and find someone who could do it for us, my husband is actually the one who handled all of it when our fifth was born, and it wasn't that hard at all, just a little bit time consuming. I think the going rate in my area is two or three hundred; we definitely spent less than that for the added herbs, capsules, and encapsulation machine. The herbs we bought at a local store, the capsules and machine we got on Amazon. We just pulverized it in the blender we already had.

eastdurian · October 2015

Not related but I definitely found oatmeal/lactation cookies, most recipes have the same basic ingredients including brewer's yeast (https://www.food.com/recipe/oatmeal-chocolate-chip-lactation-cookies-by-noel-trujillo-192346) helped. I actually started... spraying out of my shirt after eating the cookies once.

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

Id love to see a control double blind study on this. I seriously don't believe it works for what the claims say and believe it's placebo effect. But that's just me.

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

But I do realize the power of placebo affect so if you can afford it and wanna do it go for it!

seasidesweete · October 2015

@eastdurian I tried those cookies w dd and had an increase at first but then I guess my body got used to it.

@NachosAndPeaches I too would like to see a double blind study. But wouldn't that suck to be the mom who wants to do it but is getting a placebo!

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

Yeah unfortunately in science the only way to confirm a theory (an medicine or treatment) is a controlled study. Would suck a lot more to get the placebo in a clinical trial for a disease like cancer or Alzheimer's etc, all in the name of science I guess.

thaisac1 · October 2015

NachosAndPeaches said:
But I do realize the power of placebo affect so if you can afford it and wanna do it go for it!

The problem with the "natural supplement/alternative medicine" industry is that they can get away without ever doing a clinical trial because there is no regulatory mechanism to hold them back; and they don't have to convince healthcare providers since doctors won't be prescribing anyways... So they run free with observational studies which are enough to convince the lay public.

Then the widespread use of substances that never underwent any rigorous evaluation end up identifying problems. For example, Published last week in Medicine's most prestigious journal: https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMsa1504267

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.

RoseShadow873 · October 2015

How can you get the placebo effect if you know it's only going to be a placebo effect? It makes no sense! I can't just go take Pez as medicine and trick myself into thinking it has medicinal properties.

mrstrax · October 2015

RoseShadow873 said:
How can you get the placebo effect if you know it's only going to be a placebo effect? It makes no sense! I can't just go take Pez as medicine and trick myself into thinking it has medicinal properties.

You can't if you believe Pez is 100% just candy. You can, however, if you think Pez *could* be useless candy because then you're also saying it *could* have medicinal properties, so you attribute any effects/differences from previous pregnancies to the Pez instead of something else.

thaisac1 · October 2015

RoseShadow873 said:
How can you get the placebo effect if you know it's only going to be a placebo effect? It makes no sense! I can't just go take Pez as medicine and trick myself into thinking it has medicinal properties.

This is a very well described phenomenon! You don't really know you are taking a neutral substance. The placebo effect comes from the fact that you are taking a neutral substance but thinking you are actually taking something that is a "real" active ingredient which is meant to cause a certain effect. It is well documented that the placebo effect can account for up to 30% of perceived improvements in studies. The human mind is a powerful thing.
If you are in a clinical trial no one tells you you are in the placebo arm. Participants and physicians are usually blinded to what each participant is usually taking.

So what @NachosandPeaches was referring to above was that it could be that if you taking a placenta pill thinking it is going to cause benefits X, Y and Z; up to 30% of people will actually perceive benefits X, Y and Z even if the pill does nothing (the so called placebo effect). But only with a randomized clinical trial can you separate true effect from placebo effect.

K&Elizabeth · October 2015

NachosAndPeaches said:
Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.

Ooooh ooooh can I be your autism "expert"?!

dayj11 · October 2015

I was seriously considering trying it with this baby 4. After attempting to research and not finding scientific proof or studies to prove it I can't justify spending the $300

RoseShadow873 · October 2015

I know very well what the placebo effect is, but I thought that was the point of a double blind study: To get the placebo effect you can't know it's the placebo! People above were saying they know it's useless except for the placebo effect but they are going to take it anyway to get the placebo effect.

NachosAndPeaches · October 2015

RoseShadow873 said:
I know very well what the placebo effect is, but I thought that was the point of a double blind study: To get the placebo effect you can't know it's the placebo! People above were saying they know it's useless except for the placebo effect but they are going to take it anyway to get the placebo effect.

Enter pseudoscience believers.

ivyvines6 · October 2015

I was actually interested in trying this.

jonesl12 · October 2015

I'm choosing delayed encapsulation so that there is less chance of it causing autism but i read that if you surround yourself with other people who did eat their own placenta, I will be protected by the " herd placenta immunity" and I won't have to eat my own because it's "poison ".

K&Elizabeth said:

NachosAndPeaches said:
Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.
Ooooh ooooh can I be your autism "expert"?!

NachosAndPeaches said:
Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.

AmadorRose · October 2015

jonesl12 said:

I'm choosing delayed encapsulation so that there is less chance of it causing autism but i read that if you surround yourself with other people who did eat their own placenta, I will be protected by the " herd placenta immunity" and I won't have to eat my own because it's "poison ".

K&Elizabeth said:

NachosAndPeaches said:
Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.
Ooooh ooooh can I be your autism "expert"?!

NachosAndPeaches said:
Let's make up a study. Placenta encapsulation causes autism.

Publishing it now.

I thought you were serious and I almost fell out of my chair. That's bad juju for a pregnant lady!

elasticheart13 · October 2015

I thought you were serious too!

)

jonesl12 · October 2015

Omg no just showing how silly anti vaccine people sound lmfao
Because vaccines cause autism duh

pinottoparenthood · October 2015

I made lactation cookies and I don't think they helped (with my first). And I used too much brewer's yeast, so they tasted kind of like beer. Blech.

AmadorRose · October 2015

jonesl12 said:
Omg no just showing how silly anti vaccine people sound lmfao
Because vaccines cause autism duh

Because having a kid with autism is way worse than having a dead kid. Oh wait...

@pinottoparenthood beer sounds good...beer cookies, not so much.

K&Elizabeth · October 2015

AmadorRose said:

jonesl12 said:
Omg no just showing how silly anti vaccine people sound lmfao
Because vaccines cause autism duh
Because having a kid with autism is way worse than having a dead kid.

This is why you're my favorite!

AmadorRose · October 2015

K&Elizabeth said:

AmadorRose said:

jonesl12 said:
Omg no just showing how silly anti vaccine people sound lmfao
Because vaccines cause autism duh
Because having a kid with autism is way worse than having a dead kid.
This is why you're my favorite!

In all seriousness, I don't know what I'm going to do when I have a job where people are easily offended. I'll probably pretend to have laryngitis...like permanently. This is why I can't work around kids!

SisterMaryNapalm · October 2015

RoseShadow873 said:
How can you get the placebo effect if you know it's only going to be a placebo effect? It makes no sense! I can't just go take Pez as medicine and trick myself into thinking it has medicinal properties.

It's a well documented phenomenon regardless of whether or not people know it's a placebo. That's part of the mystery of it and why it's so fascinating. In fact, the placebo effect is heightened when you take 4 placebo pills a day versus 2 placebo pills a day and has the strongest result if you inject the placebo rather than taking pills. The placebo effect is and can be quite complicated and isn't simply "I think I'm taking this medicine so it works". It's why studies have to be rigerous to be valid and why homeopathy studies etc are often so dubious.

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