Unravelling Taboos and Cultural Beliefs Associated with Hidden Hunger Among Pregnant and Breast-feeding Women in Buyende District Eastern Uganda

Overview

Journal J Ethnobiol Ethnomed

Publisher Biomed Central

Specialties General Medicine
Social Sciences

Date 2024 May 1

PMID 38693532

Authors

Patience Tugume

Abubakar Sadik Mustafa

Abdul Walusansa

Samuel Ojelel

Evelyne B Nyachwo

Emmanuel Muhumuza

Maria Nampeera

Fredrick Kabbale

Jamilu E Ssenku

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Food taboos and cultural beliefs among pregnant and breast-feeding women influence their food consumption patterns and hence the health of women and unborn children. Cognizant of their neglect in programs aimed to ameliorate hidden hunger among pregnant and breast-feeding women in Buyende and other resource-poor communities in sub-Saharan Africa, we opted for a study to unravel them to inform program design.

Methods: We documented food taboos and beliefs amongst pregnant and breast-feeding women from six sub-counties of Buyende district in Eastern Uganda. A mixed-methods approach was used, which was comprised of questionnaire interviews with 462 women, eight focus group discussions with 6-10 participants in each and a total of 15 key informant interviews.

Results: The present study revealed that 129 (27.9%) of the respondents practice food taboos and adhere to cultural beliefs related to their dietary habits during pregnancy and breast-feeding that are fuelling the prevalence of hidden hunger. The most tabooed foods during pregnancy were sugarcane (17.8%), fishes which included lung fish, catfish and the Lake Victoria sardine (Rastrineobola argentea) (15.2%), oranges (6.6%), pineapples (5.9%), eggs (3.3%), chicken (3.3%) and cassava, mangoes and Cleome gynandra (each at 3%). Most foods were avoided for reasons associated with pregnancy and labour complications and undesirable effects on the baby. Most women learnt of the taboos and beliefs from the elders, their own mother, grandparents or mother-in-law, but there was also knowledge transmission in social groups within the community.

Conclusions: The taboos and cultural beliefs in the study area render pregnant and breast-feeding women prone to micronutrient deficiency since they are denied consumption of a diversity of nutritious foods. There is a need to educate such women about consumption of nutrient-rich foods like fish, eggs, fruits and vegetables in order to improve their health, that of the unborn and children being breast fed. Additionally, culturally appropriate nutrition education may be a good strategy to eliminate inappropriate food taboos and beliefs with negative impact on the health of pregnant and breast-feeding women.

References

Hardee K, Jurczynska K, Sinai I, Boydell V, Muhwezi D, Gray K . Improving Voluntary, Rights-Based Family Planning: Experience From Nigeria And Uganda. Open Access J Contracept. 2019; 10:55-67. PMC: 6839576. DOI: 10.2147/OAJC.S215945. View

Serbesa M, Iffa M, Geleto M . Factors associated with malnutrition among pregnant women and lactating mothers in Miesso Health Center, Ethiopia. Eur J Midwifery. 2021; 3:13. PMC: 7839159. DOI: 10.18332/ejm/110131. View

Kavle J, Mehanna S, Khan G, Hassan M, Saleh G, Engmann C . Program considerations for integration of nutrition and family planning: Beliefs around maternal diet and breastfeeding within the context of the nutrition transition in Egypt. Matern Child Nutr. 2017; 14(1). PMC: 6866077. DOI: 10.1111/mcn.12469. View

Huang W, Lu Y, Xu M, Huang J, Su Y, Zhang C . Excessive fruit consumption during the second trimester is associated with increased likelihood of gestational diabetes mellitus: a prospective study. Sci Rep. 2017; 7:43620. PMC: 5341573. DOI: 10.1038/srep43620. View

Waiswa P, Kallander K, Peterson S, Tomson G, Pariyo G . Using the three delays model to understand why newborn babies die in eastern Uganda. Trop Med Int Health. 2010; 15(8):964-72. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3156.2010.02557.x. View

Sharifah Zahhura S, Nilan P, Germov J . Food restrictions during pregnancy among Indigenous Temiar women in peninsular Malaysia. Malays J Nutr. 2014; 18(2):243-53. View

Victora C, Christian P, Vidaletti L, Gatica-Dominguez G, Menon P, Black R . Revisiting maternal and child undernutrition in low-income and middle-income countries: variable progress towards an unfinished agenda. Lancet. 2021; 397(10282):1388-1399. PMC: 7613170. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(21)00394-9. View

Ramulondi M, de Wet H, Ntuli N . Traditional food taboos and practices during pregnancy, postpartum recovery, and infant care of Zulu women in northern KwaZulu-Natal. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2021; 17(1):15. PMC: 7981893. DOI: 10.1186/s13002-021-00451-2. View

Ekwochi U, Osuorah C, Ndu I, Ifediora C, Asinobi I, Eke C . Food taboos and myths in South Eastern Nigeria: The belief and practice of mothers in the region. J Ethnobiol Ethnomed. 2016; 12:7. PMC: 4729178. DOI: 10.1186/s13002-016-0079-x. View

10.

Kominiarek M, Rajan P . Nutrition Recommendations in Pregnancy and Lactation. Med Clin North Am. 2016; 100(6):1199-1215. PMC: 5104202. DOI: 10.1016/j.mcna.2016.06.004. View

11.

Liamputtong P, Yimyam S, Parisunyakul S, Baosoung C, Sansiriphun N . Traditional beliefs about pregnancy and child birth among women from Chiang Mai, Northern Thailand. Midwifery. 2005; 21(2):139-53. DOI: 10.1016/j.midw.2004.05.002. View

12.

Freeland-Graves J, Sachdev P, Binderberger A, Sosanya M . Global diversity of dietary intakes and standards for zinc, iron, and copper. J Trace Elem Med Biol. 2020; 61:126515. DOI: 10.1016/j.jtemb.2020.126515. View

13.

McNamara K, Wood E . Food taboos, health beliefs, and gender: understanding household food choice and nutrition in rural Tajikistan. J Health Popul Nutr. 2019; 38(1):17. PMC: 6685270. DOI: 10.1186/s41043-019-0170-8. View

14.

Miranda J, Anton X, Redondo-Valbuena C, Roca-Saavedra P, Rodriguez J, Lamas A . Egg and egg-derived foods: effects on human health and use as functional foods. Nutrients. 2015; 7(1):706-29. PMC: 4303863. DOI: 10.3390/nu7010706. View

15.

Mengie T, Dessie Y, Egata G, Muche T, Habtegiorgis S, Getacher L . Food taboos and associated factors among agro-pastoralist pregnant women: A community-based cross-sectional study in Eastern Ethiopia. Heliyon. 2022; 8(10):e10923. PMC: 9557892. DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e10923. View

16.

Zerfu T, Umeta M, Baye K . Dietary habits, food taboos, and perceptions towards weight gain during pregnancy in Arsi, rural central Ethiopia: a qualitative cross-sectional study. J Health Popul Nutr. 2016; 35(1):22. PMC: 5025964. DOI: 10.1186/s41043-016-0059-8. View

17.

Chakona G . Social circumstances and cultural beliefs influence maternal nutrition, breastfeeding and child feeding practices in South Africa. Nutr J. 2020; 19(1):47. PMC: 7240933. DOI: 10.1186/s12937-020-00566-4. View

18.

Azizi F, Smyth P . Breastfeeding and maternal and infant iodine nutrition. Clin Endocrinol (Oxf). 2009; 70(5):803-9. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2265.2008.03442.x. View

19.

Mohammed S, Taye H, Larijani B, Esmaillzadeh A . Food taboo among pregnant Ethiopian women: magnitude, drivers, and association with anemia. Nutr J. 2019; 18(1):19. PMC: 6431010. DOI: 10.1186/s12937-019-0444-4. View

20.

Berhan Y, Berhan A . Commentary: Actions in the pipeline and the way forward to reduce maternal and perinatal mortality in Ethiopia. Ethiop J Health Sci. 2014; 24 Suppl:149-68. PMC: 4249202. DOI: 10.4314/ejhs.v24i0.13s. View