How Much Is A Placenta Worth?

Pregnant people may wonder if the placenta has any value after birth. While placentas have been utilized in various forms, some accepted and known to be worthwhile, others may use the placenta in non-approved or recommended ways. People should never attempt to purchase (or sell) a placenta. However, the placenta from birth has value to the baby and family after delivery. The placenta can be saved for the family or donated for others to utilize. Still, the placenta is an organ and should never be bought or sold.

The placenta is a precious organ that has medical value. The value is increasing as more studies are conducted, and research continues. The placenta's street value today is estimated at $50,000, which could double or triple in five to ten years. It is important to note that the placenta is never sold or paid for at that amount. That value is a figure used to demonstrate how important the placenta is and how must waste is incurred when it is just discarded.

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Freeze your placenta for stem cells

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The placenta is a rich source of stem cells which are essentially "blank cells" that can develop into many different cell types, from muscle cells to brain cells. Stem cells are the only type of cell in the body that has the natural ability to generate new cell types.

The placenta contains amniotic epithelial cells and amniotic mesenchymal stem cells, which are studied as treatment options for autoimmune diseases, gynecological conditions, lung diseases, neurological disorders, and orthopedic conditions. Freezing your placenta in addition to your umbilical cord blood stem cells exponentially multiplies potential treatment options.

Stem cell sources vary, with the bone marrow being the most utilized. However, the ability to harvest bone marrow stem cells from infants is limited and invasive. Stem cells from the placenta provide an alternative and highly attractive source. They are abundant with stem cells and require no invasive procedure to collect. Stem cells from the placenta can give medical value to the baby and its family members.

Saving your placenta stem cells with a private cord blood bank like Anja Health allows families to store their baby's cord blood for future cell-based treatment options for themselves and their loved ones. When a family chooses to keep their cord blood privately, they own those stem cells, meaning that only the family has access to the use of those stem cells. They are not publicly available. 

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Donate your placenta

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There is no risk to the parent or child if the placenta is donated. Once deciding to donate your placenta, your healthcare provider may have you sign a consent form or ask other questions. Still, none of this will interfere with the birth or other measures. There is no cost to donate, and the placenta can provide valuable resources to those needing surgery, wound treatment, and more. Donation of the placenta does not impact the ability to bank your cord blood. Cord blood can be saved for essential procedures in the future, and the placenta can also be saved. There is no reason not to keep the cord blood and placenta because, as science evolves, increased uses for these unique cells are found.

It is currently illegal to compensate donors for organ donation. Suppose a person chooses to donate their placenta. In that case, there cannot be any monetary donation, and it must all occur ethically. There has been some speculation or discussion about incentivizing donors, as the donor must agree to donate, and often the placenta is just discarded. Improving education on the need to bank the placenta along with cord blood can help improve the number of people that choose to donate or save, rather than discard, the placenta after birth.

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Other uses of the placenta

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Burying or planting

In some cultures, it can be tradition to bury or plant the placenta, acting as a method of reconnecting to the earth. Some people may choose to receive the placenta and bury it with a token of remembrance, such as a tree or stone structure. While this can be meaningful, there can be other ways to utilize the placenta.

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Eating the placenta

Some people choose to eat their placenta after birth in a practice known as human placentophagy. In this instance, the placental tissue is usually encapsulated in placenta pills or placenta capsules. While there is some discussion that the placenta can be consumed for health benefits, these claims have not been proven, and there are risks like contamination or spreading illness. A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report reported that a healthy baby developed group B strep after his mother consumed her placenta.

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Making keepsake jewelry

Some people create jewelry from their placenta as a way to remember the process of pregnancy and birth. This keepsake jewelry is made by preserving a portion of dried and ground placental tissue in resin to create a stone-like material and then setting that into a ring, pendant, earrings, etc. Making a piece of jewelry out of dried and ground umbilical cord is also possible.

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Be wary of scams

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Anyone attempting to buy or purchase a placenta or part of a placenta should be wary of scams. Just like other common scams, scams are prevalent involving the placenta and stem cells. Stem cell use and treatments are regulated by the FDA in the United States, so any procedure that is not FDA-approved should not be utilized. Scams may involve selling the placenta or items to consume made from the placenta. Not only are these scams potentially dangerous, but they can also be outright harmful. Consumption of the placenta should be done only with extreme caution and only if it is your own placenta. Otherwise, using the placenta in other ways (such as topically via creams) can cause more health issues than they prevent. Because the placenta is an organ, selling the placenta is no different than selling other organs, which is illegal.

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Get started with Anja Health today

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Anja Health is a leader in cord blood and placenta banking. With an AABB-accredited lab, you can rest confidently knowing your valuable resources are well cared for. Also, an FDA-approved facility, banking, and storing these cells can be made available for the child or other family members, if applicable, in the future. Rest easier knowing you have a partner in Anja Health from pregnancy to beyond.