Mad Mom? January Jones Eats Her Own Placenta

ABC News ^ | Mar 26, 2012 | Mikaela Conley

[nickcarraway]

January Jones credits eating her own placenta, along with a healthy diet and vitamins, to helping her get back to work on the hit series, “Mad Men,” in a matter of weeks. She told People.com, “Your placenta gets dehydrated and made into vitamins. It’s something I was very hesitant about, but we’re the only mammals who don’t ingest our own placentas.”

“It’s not witch-crafty or anything,” said Jones, who plays Betty on the TV show. “I suggest it to all moms.” In some cultures, it is commonplace to consume the afterbirth. While placenta encapsulation is not FDA-approved in the U.S., the practice has become more popular as midwifery and home births continue to rise in this country.

Research has shown that the afterbirth is indeed a nutrient-packed pouch, and it has been touted as a way to prevent post-partum depression and promote a fast recovery after pregnancy. There is no hard evidence that humans benefit from consuming it, though.

“There is certainly a potential medicinal use,” Dr. David Katz, founder of the Yale Prevention Center, said of placentas last year. “This is a time-honored cultural practice of eating the placenta. It is nutrient-rich and a source of hormones.”

Along with the growing popularity of consuming one’s placenta, new companies have seen the demand and offer services to process a woman’s afterbirth. Many companies will pick up the new mom’s placenta from the hospital, then steam it, dry it and encapsulate it before returning it to the mom in a few days time. Other reports show that some people make a dish that would normally contain meat, like stew or lasagna, then replace the meat with placenta.

Some experts say the up-and-coming industry is a scam, though, particularly when companies tout the afterbirth as a means to prevent post-partum depression. At

[Responsibility2nd]

OK, I clicked the link, thinking they must have used a body double. And they did,

"Because January Jones is so slender to begin with, and didn't pack on that much weight, the show apparently had to resort to some of the makeup tricks they used on Elisabeth Moss during Peggy's pregnancy late in season 1, plus a non-pregnant body double for the bath scene," he continued.

[CatherineofAragon]

This is what happens when people think of themselves as just another animal.

[Tax-chick]

And yes, they are mammals.

But not carnivores. That's probably significant.

[stylecouncilor]

Um....NO.

[moehoward]

When she got out of the tub it was an obvious double. The rest of SUndays show was a suit. They even put a pudgier schnoz on her.

Gotta say. That season opener was some of the best TV on these days.

[retrokitten]

I’d like to type some witty, humorous reply, but I’m too busy vomiting.

[Deb]

According to SNL cast members, her appearance was their most painful since Steven Seagal. And Seagal is considered the worst host they ever had. I don’t watch “Mad Men” so I can’t comment on that, but her SNL appearance was HORRIBLE.