Sheep Placenta: Alternative Uses
Writer: Wan SofaSyifa
Reviewed by: Fenny Lim, BSc. (Hons) Nutrition, UKM
Sheep placenta is an ingredient steeped in history. It has been traditionally used as a medicine globally, with early documentation during the Tang dynasty in China. This ingredient was first scientifically studied in the West by Vladimir Filatov in the 1920s. Sheep placenta has been widely used in modern commercial supplements as an anti-aging supplement, for mediating hormone imbalance symptoms, libido, and fertility boosters. Less known is its flexibility to be a natural energy supplement, a focus supplement, and an anxiety supplement.
Sheep Placenta as an Energy Booster
How Energy Works
Your body produces energy by turning the food you eat into absorbable nutrients. These nutrients are then further broken down and synthesized in your cells to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the form of energy your cells use. The three biochemicals involved in this process are hormones, enzymes, and coenzymes.
The Differences between Hormones, Enzymes, and Coenzymes
Out of these three, hormones are the ones that can easily fluctuate and cause significant changes to your energy levels.
Types of Hormones and How They Influence Energy
Thyroid hormones – are responsible for body balance, including metabolic rate and body temperature. Low levels result in less energy during metabolism.
Adrenal hormones – cortisol, produced by the adrenal gland, regulates metabolism and hunger. An irregular diet affects energy levels due to insufficient energy production.
Testosterone – plays a crucial role in red blood cell production, which carries oxygen needed for energy metabolism. Low levels of testosterone can cause fatigue.
Estrogen and Progesterone – regulate many bodily functions, but fluctuation due to the menstrual cycle can affect energy levels. Low levels can cause fatigue, particularly during pre-menopause and menopause.
How Sheep Placenta Works as a Natural Energy Supplement
Since 1929, when Vladimir Filatov first studied the placenta [1], it is widely believed that a sheep placenta contains many different micronutrients, such as;
- Growth Factors
- Nucleic Acids
- Amino Acids
- Extracellular Matrix (ECM) Components
- Vitamins
- Minerals
Growth factors are the primary nutrient in sheep’s placenta, making it a potent energy booster. They are a group of proteins that stimulate tissue growth and can stimulate the pituitary gland or the master gland [2]. As the name suggests, the pituitary gland is the main organ that controls and regulates hormone secretion in various parts of your body.
Sheep placenta has a unique ability to balance your hormones and indirectly act as an energy booster. In fact, most of our CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA users report that they can feel an increase in energy levels as early as two weeks after taking our sheep placenta capsules.
Sheep Placenta as a Natural Focus Supplement
How Focus Works
As humans, your brain can multitask, sometimes with negative consequences. Your focus on a particular task can suffer, and the quality of your work can decrease. Focus is the cognitive ability to concentrate and fully engage in a task, which can decrease over time. Genetics, lifestyle, and environment can contribute to this decline, but recent studies have shown that hormone imbalance may also influence your cognitive abilities [3].
Types of Hormones and How They Influence Focus
Estrogen and Progesterone – fluctuations can cause brain fog in women during various stages like the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, nursing, pre-menopausal, and menopause.
Testosterone – helps strengthen artery muscles and nerves, which are important for mental focus by providing sufficient oxygen to the brain.
Thyroid – the main hormone responsible for metabolism. Reduced metabolism and energy levels can cause you to lose your ability to focus.
How Sheep Placenta Works as a Natural Focus Supplement
Similar to how sheep placenta indirectly acts as a natural energy booster, it can be a natural focus supplement as it helps balance your hormones. Hormone imbalance is a precursor to many health conditions, and a slight inability to focus might be the first warning sign. An increase in focus is also one of the earliest effects our CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA customers see in just two weeks.
Sheep Placenta for Mood and as Anxiety Supplement
How Mood Works
Your mood is something that shifts, as emotions do, but typically lasts longer and can be either positive or negative from one moment to the next. Mood is regulated in the brain as part of the limbic system – the parts of your brain in charge of emotional intelligence. Your brain regulates your mood with the help of neurotransmitters and certain hormones [4].
Prolonged negative mood is what medical practitioners will label as a mood disorder, and without treatment, it can lead to mental illness such as depression.
What is Anxiety
As an emotion, anxiety is the feeling of tension and worry that can emit a physical reaction [5]. It is a complex response to threats – both real and perceived. When you feel anxious in the face of a real or perceived threat, your body secretes adrenaline that stimulates a fight-or-flight response. Examples of anxiety reactions caused by this are jitteriness and sweating.
If you start experiencing a more severe reaction, such as increased blood pressure or nausea, that is when common anxiety is diagnosed as an anxiety disorder.
How to Treat Mood and Anxiety Disorders
Common treatments for both conditions include behavioral therapy, psychotherapy, and prescription medicine. There are no absolute medications to cure these disorders, but simply alleviate and reduce the period of the symptoms.
The Link Between Hormones and Mood or Anxiety
Hormone imbalances can cause mood or anxiety disorders, but they also work in reverse. Researchers agree that they are linked to one another, but which is the causal differs from one person to another. What is agreed is that a lack or an overabundance of certain hormones is detrimental to the severity of mood and anxiety disorders.
Types of Hormones and How They Influence Mood or Anxiety
For mood, two hormones play an important role in the limbic system: cortisol and oxytocin [6].
Cortisol – this hormone causes two types of stress: eustress (good stress) and distress (bad stress). A balanced cortisol level or a slightly elevated one associated with eustress can make you feel alert and energized. When your cortisol levels go high in distress and stay high, you start to feel negative moods such as uneasiness, tension, and anxiety.
Oxytocin – known as the “love hormone,” gives you happiness, satisfaction, relief, and other positive emotions. Low oxytocin levels can cause a darkened mood, and when this negative mood stretches out or happens more often than normal, it may lead to mood disorders.
In anxiety, the hormones involved are estrogen, testosterone, cortisol, adrenaline, thyroid, and oxytocin [7].
Estrogen and Testosterone – changes in estrogen levels during the menstruation cycle, pre-menopausal, and menopause can cause spikes in anxiety. Low levels of testosterone in both males and females can cause increased anxiety.
Thyroid – hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) can cause anxiety symptoms, while hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) can cause fatigue and mild depressive mood.
Cortisol and Adrenaline – when excess cortisol and adrenaline levels are produced, your body will start exhibiting signs of anxiety. It causes an elevated heart rate, a rise in blood pressure, jitteriness, and other symptoms with varying severity.
Oxytocin – this “love hormone” helps modulate stress hormones and reduces anxiety responses. Low oxytocin levels make it easier to trigger stress hormones and anxiety responses.
How Sheep Placenta Works as Mood and Anxiety Supplement
Sheep placenta may indirectly help act as a mood and anxiety supplement by balancing your hormones with its rich growth factors. The sheep placenta also contains the amino acid tryptophan, which can help produce the neurotransmitter serotonin [8]. Serotonin is the master neurotransmitter for mood regulation, and balanced serotonin levels make you feel content.
Sheep Placenta as a Natural Sleep Supplement
How Sleep Works
Sleep is a natural process your body uses to replenish itself. When you sleep, your muscles relax, your cells start to repair themselves, and your brain starts processing the day’s events. Your sleep works in different stages attached, where you either experience REM (rapid eye movement) sleep or NREM (non-REM) sleep.
Two internal systems help regulate your sleep: sleep-wake homeostasis and the circadian rhythm. The sleep-wake homeostasis is your body’s natural indicator that tells you the amount of sleep you need compared with how long you have been awake. The circadian rhythm is a 24-hour biological clock that tells you when is the time to wake and rest. It is highly sensitive to light.
These two systems are triggered by different neurotransmitters and hormones, such as
Neurotransmitters
GABA – an inhibitory neurotransmitter that helps control a state of wakefulness produced by other neurotransmitters such as histamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine, serotonin, and orexin/hypocretin [9].
Adenosine – indicates the amount of time you have spent awake and promotes sleep by inhibiting regions of the brain that are in charge of wakefulness.
Hormones
Melatonin – the main hormone responsible for sleep; melatonin production begins when your body is exposed to darkness and stops in the presence of light. It is the hormone responsible for regulating your circadian rhythm. Low melatonin levels are known causes of the inability to sleep [10].
Cortisol – high cortisol levels, especially nearing bedtime, can cause increased wakefulness and low-quality sleep.
Thyroid – hypothyroidism can cause night sweats and increase urination, affecting sleep quality. Hypothyroidism can make you feel too cold or cause joint and muscle pains while sleeping [11].
Estrogen and Testosterone – fluctuations between high and low sex hormone levels can affect sleep quality. They either make you feel more awake or affect other metabolic functions, causing hot flushes and increased heart rate.
How Sheep Placenta Works as a Natural Sleep Supplement
Customers who have taken CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA consistently confirm that it can improve their sleep quality as early as two weeks after initial intake. This is because the sheep placenta contains growth factors capable of improving hormone production for better hormone balance. It is especially useful in boosting your natural melatonin production to get better sleep.
Should You Start Taking Sheep Placenta Supplements?
We highly recommend taking sheep placenta as an anti-aging supplement, for hormone balancing, and as a fertility or libido booster. Sheep placenta supplements work best for general well-being and should only be chosen as a supplement for the conditions above. It should not, in any way, be treated as an alternative treatment or in place of prescribed medication.
For best results, we highly recommend the regularly mentioned CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA. CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA has the highest permissible dosage at 30,000mg, the fastest absorption with a 120:1 extraction ratio, and a synergistic seven-in-one (7-in-1) formulation. However, due to its high potency, you are recommended to take CellLabs® CLASSaaNTA if you are over 30 years of age.
You are welcome to try other options in our sheep placenta line with a slightly lower dosage and extraction ratio. We always advise you to work your way up the line as you age for optimal results.