Placenta capsules give birth to controversial health trend

Taking dried human placenta in the form of a capsule is one of the more divided health trends to sweep China. While practitioners swear by the benefits, others view it as a controversial and disgusting practice.

Qiang Jing, 30, had her placenta encapsulated with the help of her housekeeper near the Beijing Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital at her husband's request.

"My mother-in-law suggested the idea after my son was born," Qiang, who's name has been changed to protect her anonymity, said. "He took one capsule a day, but gave up a month later every time he remembered what was contained in the capsule."

Two of her friends also had placenta capsules made after giving birth, she said. One took the capsules herself and another gave the pills to her grandmother.

Placenta is an organ which provides the fetus with oxygen and nutrients through the umbilical cord and removes waste during pregnancy. The dried placenta, known as "Ziheche", usually spans around 22 centimeters in length and has been used to increase blood health and vitality in traditional Chinese medicine.

Hundreds of advertisements touting human placenta processing services were posted around the gates to a maternity hospital in Harbin, capital city of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province,

Xinhua correspondents tracked the address of several and found more than 20 placenta processing workshops with poor sanitary conditions. Many were crudely assembled in low-rent apartments near the hospital.

In the crowded kitchen of one workshop, buyers cover their nose and mouth as they wait. A bloody trash can filled with medical waste sits underneath the table in the middle of the room.