YouTube star Brittani Boren Leach revealed she saved her placenta to eat via encapsulation as the family welcomed her newborn baby just 10 months after the death of their three-month-old son Crew.
The 29-year-old first announced the birth of the newborn on her Instagram Stories on Thursday morning, and on Friday shared more details about her postpartum plans.
Brittani said that following Cole’s birth, she would send the placenta to Mommy Made Encapsulation, a California based company that turns placentas into digestible pills.
She shared a photo of her placenta packaged in a Mommy Made Encapsulation box with her 875,000 Instagram followers.
Brittani Boren Leach (pictured) gave birth on Thursday to a baby boy named Cole less than a year after the death of their three-month-old son Crew
Cole Leach (pictured) is the youngest of five siblings, including Cooper, Cash, Carter and Sydney Leach
Brittani shared a photo of her placenta packaged in a Mommy Made Encapsulation box (pictured) with her 875,000 Instagram followers
Placentophagy, or the act of eating placentas, has become popular with celebrities like Kim Kardashian-West and January Jones indulging in the process.
Proponents of placentophagy have accredited the process with preventing and reducing postpartum depression, improving mood, boosting energy, improving lactation and being a general benefit to new mothers.
But health officials have previously pushed back on encapsulation based on a June 2017 study published by the CDC.
The CDC warned against capsule consumption after a newborn in Oregon developed recurrent group B streptococcus sepsis, a bacteria that can cause complications for newborns and even result in sepsis.
The CDC study said the newborn baby began having difficulty breathing after the mother began digesting placenta capsules infected with the bacteria from her dried placenta.
Pictured: Cole Leach wrapped in a blanket and resiting in hospital bassinet after he was born on Thursday
On Friday, Brittani shared adorable photos and videos of little Cole meeting his four older siblings.
Brittani has a son named Carter from a previous relationship, while Jeff has a daughter named Sydney. The couple share two sons named Cooper and Cash.
Footage shared to Brittani’s Instagram Stories showed Cash holding Cole and watching the baby with adoring eyes.
Brittani said that the older siblings are all eager to spend time with their new sibling.
‘Carter and Syd get to hold him a bit after dinner,’ Brittani wrote. ‘Cooper said, “Okay Mom, it’s my turn to feed him. I’ve been waiting 100 minutes for this.”‘
The Leach children took turns meeting their newest sibling, including Cash Leach (pictured), who stared lovingly at the baby
Brittani revealed on her Instagram Stories that the four siblings were eager to spend time with Cole
Brittani shared shared updates with her 875,000 Instagram fans, including Jeff Leach’s ‘stork meal (right) and suggested bringing Starbuck’s gift cards to hospital nurses (left)
Pictured: Brittani Boren Leach and little Cole feeding after he was born on Thursday
Brittani also added photos of Cole resting in her arms, Jeff Leach eating his ‘stork meal’ and spoke with fans about her in-hospital ‘mommy massages’ on social media.
On Thursday, Brittani shared photos of herself in the hospital leading up to the birth and then cradling her baby boy.
‘He’s here,’ she captioned a close-up of her son, adding a white heart emoji. ‘Born at 8:33, right after I posted the last story.’
In one heartwarming shot, Brittani is holding her baby boy close while her husband, Jeff Leach, is standing next to her hospital bed in a surgical mask, gazing down at them with love.
Happy day: YouTuber Brittani Boren Leach and her husband Jeff have welcomed a baby boy on Thursday morning
‘I’m so so thankful for our nurse who offered to take pictures for us,’ she wrote on a photo that appears to have been taken when she was in labor.
Brittani took to Instagram on Wednesday to share a picture of herself in her hospital bed, telling her 871,000 followers that her baby would be arriving soon.
‘It feels very surreal to be typing this, but our rainbow boy is on his way,’ she captioned the hopeful snapshot.
Unforgettable moment: Brittani shared photos of herself in labor and holding her new son
Special: The mom revealed a nurse had offered to take pictures for them and she was ‘so thankful’
Brittani called her son a rainbow baby, a term used to describe a child born after a miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death.
‘I have a lot of feelings and emotions right now, so much so that I’m typing through tears,’ she continued. ‘We appreciate every message, thought, and prayer being sent our way as we bring this baby into the world.
‘I can feel Crew in this room, I know he’s ready for us to meet this baby that he perfectly hand-picked to join our family.’
Brittani documented her entire overnight hospital stay on her Stories, admitting that ‘can’t help but cry’ when she looks at the pediatric examination table in her room.
Hard to handle: Brittani documented her entire overnight hospital sty, admitting that ‘can’t help but cry’ when she looks at the pediatric examination table in her room
Keepsake: To keep her company, she had her late son Crew’s stuffed llama with her, explaining that she sleeps with it ‘every night’
Heartbreaking: Crew is pictured in the hospital with his stuffed llama before his death
To keep her company, she had her late son Crew’s stuffed llama with her, explaining that she sleeps with it ‘every night, so of course he is here with me.’
She went on to share that she had gotten an epidural, but it had to be fixed because it only worked on the one side.
‘Then I was nauseous all night,’ she added. ‘I think he will be here soon though. I’m extremely anxious.’
Roughly an hour later, she announced her son’s arrival, proudly sharing pictures of their newborn baby. It was likely a bittersweet moment for the couple, who are still mourning the loss of their baby boy Crew.
Brittani revealed that she was pregnant on Instagram in May, four months after Crew’s death. She shared a video announcement featuring four of the children.
Loss: Brittani’s three-month-old son Crew died in late December after being found unresponsive on Christmas Day
Devastating: Crew was resuscitated after he was found not breathing, but ended up brain dead, leaving Brittani and Jeff with the difficult choice of turning off his life support
Never forgotten: The family celebrated what would have been Crew’s first birthday in September by visiting his grave
In the clip, the expectant mom is standing next to Jeff as she holds a photo of Crew in front of her baby bump. The footage then cuts to the family holding a present with a note that says: ‘Heaven Sent.’
‘Sent straight from Heaven and without a doubt, hand-picked by big brother Crew himself, estimated to arrive on December 1, 2020,’ she wrote in the caption. ‘We wanted to announce in a way that honored our sweet Crew, so thank you @elliott.beltran for this amazing video.’
The following month, she shared another candid Instagram post announcing that she and Jeff were expecting a son.
‘Can you believe that I have been so blessed to carry FIVE precious little boys?!’ she wrote. ‘We know without a doubt that big brother Crew had his hand in helping God create the perfect little brother to join our family.’
Last December, Crew was found not breathing at a relative’s house on Christmas Day. The three-month-old was eventually resuscitated, but ended up brain dead, leaving Brittani and Jeff with the difficult choice of turning off his life support and donating his organs.
News: The couple announced Brittani was pregnant in May, four months after Crew’s death
Understandable: Brittani, who is pictured just a few days before she gave birth, admitted she was worried about becoming a mother again after suffering such a heartbreaking loss
Family: Brittani and her husband Jeff are also parents to sons Cooper and Cash as well as her son Carter and his daughter Sydney from their previous relationships
Brittani shared a series of heartbreaking images of herself sitting alongside her tiny son while in the hospital during his final days. She kept her followers up to date and revealed she buried Crew in a gown made from her wedding dress.
She also told fans the family had decided to donate his organs, saying: ‘The pain is unbearable. I keep thinking that I will wake up from this nightmare, but I don’t.’
The family celebrated what would have been Crew’s first birthday in September by visiting his grave, which was covered with flowers, candles, and mementos.
Brittanie admitted the month before that she was worried about becoming a mother again after suffering such a heartbreaking loss.
‘I’m terrified that I will never sleep again, that I will never want to put him down, that my anxiety will be completely unmanageable,’ she said. ‘So if you want to know why I’ve been absent, why there’s been a lot of sponsored content lately, that’s because that’s all I can get out right now. ‘