Nutrients and oxygen are passed from the mum to her baby via the blood supply and into the placenta - which also produces hormones to help the baby develop, and protect the foetus from bacterial infections.
NEW mum Lottie Tomlinson has joined the likes of Kim Kardashian and Rochelle Humes who decided to eat their own placenta after giving birth.
Placenta eating - either raw, cooked or in pill form - is said to boost iron levels, improve milk supply and reduce the risk of post-natal depression.
Eating the raw placenta could help the mum recover from giving birth and boost her strength while breastfeeding, according to the theory.
Kim Kardashian famously had her placenta turned into pills when she gave birth to North West in 2013, then again with her son, Saint, in 2015.
