The Practice of Prelacteal Feeding to Newborns Among Hindu and Muslim Families

Abstract

A 21‐year‐old gravida 2, para 1001 female at 39 weeks and 4/7 days gestation was admitted to the labor and birth unit in active labor. She moved to the United States from Pakistan during the last 2 months of her pregnancy. She is a practicing Muslim. Her sister‐in‐law accompanied her. She had an uncomplicated antenatal course, except for iron deficiency anemia (at admission, her hemoglobin was 9.40 g/dl and hematocrit was 29.1%). She had an epidural anesthetic for pain relief. Her first stage of labor was 9 hours, her second stage was 5 minutes, and her third stage was 15 minutes. The baby was born over an intact perineum with Apgar scores of 9 and 9, respectively, and weighed 3,095 g. The baby was placed on the mother's abdomen, and once cleaned and wrapped in a blanket on the infant warmer, the baby was held by the mother. When asked her infant feeding preferences, the mother expressed eagerness to breastfeed. However, before initiation of breastfeeding, the sister‐in‐law asked the midwife permission to feed the baby a sweet (a drop of brown sugar). The sister‐in‐law explained that it was customary in Muslim families that “the first thing to touch the baby's mouth should be something sweet.” After the midwife agreed, the sister‐in‐law said a prayer. As requested by the mother, the baby was fed the drop of sweet. Breastfeeding was initiated within an hour postpartum. She reported exclusively breastfeeding from her birth until her 6‐week postpartum visit.

Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Infant Feeding Practices Among Rural Women in Eastern India

“…80% mothers had the knowledge of exclusive breast feeding while only 60% practiced it. A meta-analysis by Arun Gupta and Y. P. Gupta showed that more than half the children (54%) in the age group of 0-3 months were exclusively breastfed whereas this percentage was much lower (26%) for children in the age group of 4-6 months 13 .Though there is good knowledge about initiation of breast feeding and exclusive breast feeding in our study, its implication in terms of practicing it are not satisfactory Prelacteal feed is a popular custom in the society of giving honey, sugar water and water to the newborn 14 . Prelacteal feeds were given to 24% of infants in our study.…”

Factors associated with prelacteal feeding practices in a rural northern Nigerian setting

“…The odds of the practice if delivery was by caesarean section were lower (AOR = 0.62; The use of honey as a prelacteal feed as found in our study has also been reported in several communities. 9,12 The medicinal effects of honey have also been reported in several studies. 22,23 It remains to be explored whether the medicinal effect of honey could underpin the preference for honey as a prelacteal feed by some women; and also, establish whether the medicinal benefits of honey measure up to or outstrips its disadvantage as a prelacteal feed.…”

“…8 Most reasons given for the practice have no scientific basis. Such reasons include cleansing and preparing the baby's gastrointestinal tract for digestion, quenching thirst, flushing the bladder, affording mother enough time to rest, 9 insufficient breastmilk, unclean colostrum, prevention of dehydration and hypoglycaemia. 10 The types of feeds given vary, and can include plain water, glucose water, infant formula, 10,11 'ghee' (refined butter), honey, 12 herbs, black tea and dilute cow milk.…”

Determinants of the Introduction of Prelacteal Feeds in Rural Nepal: A Cross-Sectional Community-Based Study

“…Religious practice and traditions could be another explanation for a higher prevalence of prelacteal feeds because Sushruta Samhita (Hindu script) promotes prelacteal feeds as a major religious ritual after childbirth (6). Similarly Islam (Muslim) culture also promotes introduction of prelacteal feeds (23).…”