While there are various ingenious ways to make money, an Australian midwife has found a truly innovative solution to make some extra cash. Believe it or not, Ciara Noble makes over Rs 7 lakh a year making products from the human placenta.
The items she specializes in includes smoothies, creams and various kick-knacks and keepsakes, all made from placenta - the mucus covered uterine organ that is connected to a foetus inside the womb.It is through the placenta that a baby receives nourishment while in the womb and it is ejected from the woman's body along with the baby at the time of delivery. As a midwife, Noble has easy access to the raw material.
According to a report in The Mirror, the 23-year-old became a 'placenta remedies specialist' about two years ago. Since then, she is the proud owner of her company 'Kindred Postnatal Products' that sells placenta products and services to hundreds of women. One of the most popular services Noble offers is placenta encapsulation.
"Once I get the placenta I cut it into thin slices, and I pop it into the dehydrator for 15 hours, the same as if you were making beef jerky or dried fruits. Then I'll put all the slices in a blender and whizz it up into a powder. I have a pill-making machine that makes it all into little capsules," said Noble said. She sometimes adds artificial flavours like bubblegum, yoghurt, blueberry etc to make the capsule taste better.
Placenta smoothies are also another hot seller for Noble who said she uses a 'walnut sized' piece of placenta and blends it together with regular smoothie ingredients such as fresh fruit and milk to make the drink tough the blood in the placenta often leads to a reddish colour.
Placenta smoothies raised eyebrows recently after singer and actress Hillary Duff spoke about drinking one after the birth of her child. The actress revealed the experience during a podcast in November, raising several questions about the safety of the practice.
While placentophagy - the act of eating a placenta - is common among animals and is said to decrease stress and increase energy in new mothers, some studies have linked it to causing bacterial diseases among women.
