Not for the faint hearted or screamish............?

Question

Well you asked for it.

Do veg*ns eat ani.........cra....

No, seriously now.

I saw a program about birth customs and all that. Its seems there are a few people who celebrate the birth of there son or daughter by cooking the placenta from the birth. (The doctors on the wishes of the patent keep this in a sterile container until needed).

This couple had a party and some of it was used as a platte and the other half was cooked as a pie.

I wanted to know
a) Would you say human placenta is veg*n.
b) Would any of you veg*ns eat such a thing.
Bare in mind that may herbivores offspring do eat there placenta

For those who don't believe me goto

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Placentophagy

and read the second part on which is on
Human placentophagy.

Answer 1

That is what the placenta is there for even if you are a vegan. I'd say that no, it isn't vegan but it is something herbivores do as well. Just like feeding a child breast milk. Some people do it and others don't. I would never do it because I find it disgusting but I wouldn't criticize anyone who would. The placenta is intended to provide nutrients that have been lost during childbirth. Most people can not eat or hold down food for several hours prior to childbirth and need the nutrients. It's simply a matter of choice I suppose.

Answer 2

Well, I think if it's a part of your own body, it should be considered vegan, because vegans primarily focus on not eating flesh of other creatures... if it was someone ELSE'S placenta you were eating, it's not technically vegan, but I don't think it's morally repugnant because really nothing cruel occurred and there is complete consent between the person giving up the placenta and the person eating it...

I think human placenta is like breastmilk, or chewing your nails, and all that other stuff.

Eating placenta is very common in other cultures, you're right, and there are plenty of other cultures that bury the placenta, or that preserve it and eat it many years past the birth as part of a ceremony... what an unusual world we live in. I personally think it's gross and wouldn't put anything like that in my mouth, but different strokes for different folks.

Answer 3

Well, since I'm never having a kid, that issue won't come up for me.

Ethically speaking, there's nothing wrong with a woman eating her own placenta, just like ideally, a mother, vegan or not, breastfeeds her own baby. All mammals produce milk for their babies, which is why vegans won't drink cows' milk--it's for calves, not for humans.

I have heard of some cultures where the family buries the placenta near a tree, which is a lot less gross than eating it.

P.S. Veg*an (or veg*n) is just shorthand for "vegetarian and/or vegan" and is used to save time and keystrokes.

Answer 4

I would say they are veg*n... no suffering was involved, it's not from an animal and i'm sure they wouldn't eat it very often... just when they have a child. Apparantly the placenta is very nutritious and full of Iron... that's why animals eat it after they give birth to give them strength after all the hard work they've just had to do. Of course it's healthy - it's the main thing that helped nurture and grow a baby. It sounds disgusting to most people but in some cultures it's perfectly normal to eat it. I don't know whether I'd ever eat one but I can understand why some people do. In the Japanese culture we keep the small bit of belly button that falls off when we're a few days/weeks(?) old. I told my friends that I still have mine and they think it's gross but most Japanese people keep theirs so it's seen as normal.

Answer 5

First of all, humans are not animals.
Well, biologically we are but literally we aren't.
But anyway, what do you mean by veg*n? Could you fill in the blanks?
By the way, I wouldn't practically say that it's an option to be treated as a delicacy. But believe it or not, there are actual cultures that actually practice that sort of thing.
As fot the second query, I'd have to say that it's true. Loke you said, you yourself saw it an a real and actual documentary. So, I guess it's true.

Answer 6

"Different strokes fo different folks is all"


@marj - if people are biologically animals but "not really" then what are we in relation to other animals? From your statement, I can deduce tha we are superior over them. So doesn't that give us the right to use them as we see fit? In nature, animals don't debate whether they are above, below, or equal to another. They eat or are eaten (withtout morality debates), procreate, sleep, do it all over again the next day and the next then they die. Cute and cuddly has no meaning. Cute and cuddly means easier prey actually. So can we behave as animals as is dictated by our biological make-up
and consume other animals for food?

Answer 7

a) I think that it is their personal choice to eat the placenta or not. Some people call themselves vegetarians and eat chicken, so they would probably eat it if people did that here.
b)I wouldn't. It just sounds gross. If i was raised to believe it wasn't gross, well maybe i would eat it.

Answer 8

Here's my take.

1. It doesn't challenge the ethical principles of veganism
2. It does challenge the dictionary definition of veganism
3. It is gross.

This makes it identical to the "would you eat an animal that died naturally" question.
And no, I wouldn't. My only reason for that is because I find the concept nasty, that's all.

Answer 9

Why do you care so much? Seriously.

Some bury it under a tree. Some eat it. whatever. It's irrelevant to vegetarianism.

No. I wouldn't.

Answer 10

Just because animals eat it doesn't make it veg*an.
It is an animal by-product. Of course it's not vegan.
And it certainly isn't Kosher.