Alternative Uses for Placenta

The placenta is the organ that links a fetus to its mother in mammals, transferring oxygen and nutrients to the fetus and carrying fetal waste products back to the mother, and beyond its role in pregnancy it has a number of alternative uses. Human placentas are processed as a source of extracts used as ingredients in consumer products such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, hair care products, health tonics, and food products, alongside cultural practices of family consumption. Human placentas are also used by search and rescue teams to train dogs to detect human remains.