"They Actually Eat That:" Human Placenta.

Admit it: You knew I would cover some form of anthropophagy eventually. I am fascinated by anything that eats people. Even when people do it, there is a bit of an edge; it is something considered so taboo in so many cultures that its forbidden nature is a large part of its appeal. It's a shame that this particular type of cannibalism is rather mundane.

After all, it's just eating a placenta.


This thing got its own Egyptian glyph. I cannot fathom why.

For those of you who have no clue how humans reproduce, the placenta, a key organ for most mammals, is what keeps the fetus fed while it is in the womb. It comes out of the womb after the baby is born.

They actually eat that?!

Yes. Despite the women doing it a large amount of the time as a cure for postpartum depression, men have been known to consume placenta as well. This is not uncommon in nature; after all, many placental mammals eat their afterbirth to make their young less noticeable to predators. This even holds for the herbivores. Marsupials and monotremes are exempt.


Joke's on YOU, evolved dorks.

But that's animals, right? Or savages? Nope. Australia and the U.S. both cook placentas upon a mother's request. Recipes to make this bloody organ more appetizing may mention 'baby-side up' or 'womb-side up,' depending on how you like your meat.



The placenta tastes like liver and can be cooked like beef. It supposedly has the texture of heart, but I wouldn't know.


With our powers combined, we...Wait, what the hell kind of power is HEART, anyways?

There are, of course, reasons that cannibalism (or, hell, eating monkeys) is prohibited in many cultures. Cook it wrong and, unless it is your placenta, you could end up getting some nasty diseases. Y'know, as if this was not disgusting enough already.