Dirty and 40 days in the wilderness: Eliciting childbirth and postnatal cultural practices and beliefs in Nepal

Pregnancy and childbirth encompass many physiological changes which social and cultural norms influence (Fig. 1). Every society has cultural practices, beliefs, superstitions or taboos concerning pregnancy and childbirth. These can translate into restrictions governed by the family, for instance what women can eat, with many cultures making distinctions between ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ foods, a distinction not necessarily related to temperature or how spicy a particular food is [1, 2]. Moreover, foods are deemed inappropriate (taboo) for consumption in pregnancy or during lactation; in some instances the new mother is perceived as not being hungry and is therefore not fed immediately after the birth [3]. Other examples include limitations on women’s mobility, such as being prevented from crossing a river during pregnancy, which can restrict access to antenatal care [4]. Therefore, traditions or cultural practices may restrict what new mothers can do. The culture or traditions remain very strong even among relatively highly educated women, as will be discussed in this paper.

In countries like Nepal, socio-cultural practices around childbirth include maternal seclusion after labour and birth. Moreover, cultural beliefs in a community play a vital role in non-utilisation of postnatal care (PNC) [5, 6]. Coverage of PNC in Nepal is inadequate, especially among the poorest women and those living in remote rural areas; a recent study suggested that only 21 % of new mothers receive any PNC whether they birth in a facility or at home [6]. Both the neonatal and infant mortality have declined over the past two decades, levelling off at 33/1,000 for neonatal mortality and 46/1,000 for infant mortality [7], while the maternal mortality is estimated at 258/100,000 [8]. It has been suggested that simply providing a postnatal check-up on the first day before women are discharged from the health facility could prevent up to 38.7 % of maternal deaths during that period [4].

This paper explores social and cultural practices that have health implications in the childbirth and postnatal periods of rural Nepali women; and places it in the context of the global literature on such practices. The study explores the extent to which such practices, especially in low-income countries, are part of the cultural adaptation of becoming a mother and identifies why women might not access services, particularly PNC.

The qualitative data indicate that in rural areas of Nepal, a purification ceremony is performed as birth is believed to be unclean. The naming and purification ceremony nwaran involves a day of cleaning the home, bathing the mother and baby, and choosing a name. The ceremony takes place anywhere between the 3^rd and 12^th day after birth. A priest performs the ‘baptism’ ceremony of “nwaran” at home, which includes the horoscope from the child’s birth details, and the mother and child are ‘purified’ (from their ‘past birth’, in the religious sense).

In the days before the nwaran ceremony, the new mother cannot go out. She should not visit the (Hindu) temple and no one will touch her or take the child directly from her, as a vaginal birth is deemed ‘dirty’. The mother-in-law will use her old sari or old clothes to pick up the child. In the past women would warm/cleanse their hands over the fire before holding the baby. Finally, fire is also used to burn the woven mat on which the Bahun women lie during and after childbirth.

The laughter seemed to be more about the perceived oddness of the situation rather than embarrassment.

Alongside nwaran, cow urine is used to purify the walls of the house. Family members of the newly born baby consume a drop of cow urine and cow dung is used with red soil to clean the house; as the cow is considered the national and holy symbol of Nepal.

The qualitative research conducted in Nepal highlighted that (a) birth was perceived as ‘polluting’; (b) postnatal women were perceived as being ‘polluted’; and therefore isolated and (c) cleansing rituals were required for mothers after the resting/isolation period. Consent was obtained from each participant, this was particularly important within a culture where most women have to ask their husbands. Although, the husband’s permission is needed, during the interviews and focus groups the discussions were ‘organic’, i.e., women openly spoke of their beliefs and practices.

In Nepal, it is considered lucky to cut the umbilical cord on a coin [15]. The treatment of umbilical cords is very ritualistic, and various household tools are used to cut and tie the cord. The qualitative research suggests that in rural areas the cord is often cut with a sickle or an unsterilized knife, a practice noted in similar communities in Bangladesh [3, 16].

Poor cord hygiene is a common issue in many low-income countries and particularly in births taking place outside of health facilities. For instance, in India the tool used is related to the trade among the caste; for example the use of a scythe by farmers, however tetanus is reported in new-borns [17, 18]. In Bangladesh, the cord is only cut after the placenta is delivered; the ‘cord cutter’ remains ‘unholy’ and cannot go for prayer for 41 days. The mother is already considered unclean due to having recently given birth, so she can cut the cord, as can a child that has not begun to pray as (s)he is also considered to be unclean [3].

In Nepal the placenta is generally buried, to protect the baby. If the placenta is retained the practice is to try to make the woman vomit to help expel it; while in other low-income countries accounts exist of massaging and sitting on the abdomen [19]. The practice in Mayan Yucatan is to treat a retained placenta with abdominal massage, applying hot water and alcohol, and then covering the woman with blankets [20]. In Malaysia, the midwife massages the mother’s abdomen after the birth to facilitate the expulsion of the placenta [21].

All of these are low-cost, but not necessarily low-risk, interventions to address the problem of a retained placenta. However, the placenta’s “low-resource” practices mentioned are not without risk, indeed as the literature shows sepsis remains the major cause of neonatal mortality in Nepal and the second leading cause of maternal mortality. WHO recommendations for achieving a clean birth include a clean surface for delivery, clean hands of the birth attendant, clean cutting of the umbilical cord, clean perineum, clean cord tying, and clean cord care, since use of household tool and substances may lead to sepsis [22, 23]. It has been estimated that these clean birth practices can avert 20–30 % of newborn deaths due to sepsis and tetanus [24].

In the literature, many cultures link the baby’s demeanour and future with the placenta. Placenta, the Latin word for cake, is referred to in France as a baked good; the ‘other’ bun in the oven [17]. Furthermore, a placental recipe from 1983 published in the magazine Mothering mentions the oxytocin contained within the placenta might prevent postpartum haemorrhage; placentaphagy benefits are known [17, 25]. However, we found no evidence of this in our study in Nepal.

From the data it seems that women were housebound for a number of days after the birth and the length of this period of seclusion varied by caste or ethnic group. This is a phenomenon found across the globe, including in high-income countries in the recent past. The length of time a woman is secluded or rested varied across different countries and the principles underpinning this isolation (to heal vs. being unclean) also seem to differ greatly. After the period of seclusion there is often a ceremony to purify women to publically accept them back into daily life. The literature supports the concept of a resting – a lengthy lie-in or lying-in period, a period of seclusion, as women need to rest in order to heal, yet it may mean that they are neglected. In Greece, birth customs include women and babies resting and being isolated for 40 days after birth, a period that is still observed [29]. The 40-day period is called the lochial period, from ‘lochia’ the normal vaginal discharge of cell debris and blood after birth. The Bible says “40 days” for the vaginal discharge resulting from involution and can also be described as the red lochia, lasting 4–6 weeks [29]. The lochial period is a time when the “woman can be cherished and pampered without feeling inadequate or shamed”, noted Mead and Wolfenstein, some 60 years ago [30]. As mentioned in the interviews, in remote rural parts of Nepal women are isolated made to birth in the cowshed ‘chhaupadi’; women menstruating or in labour are thought to be ritually polluted and must be kept at a distance from the family in these sheds [31]. Women in Zaire and India are also secluded in a hut [32]. For Muslims the period of postnatal seclusion traditionally lasts 40 days. The religious rituals are performed on the 40^th day and these include shaving the child’s head, as a vaginal birth is considered unclean. This act permits, what is considered, the growth of ‘new’ and ‘clean’ hair [33]. This ‘seclusion’ around the time of birth also occurs in Burma and in Turkey where it is believed that postnatal women are more vulnerable to evil forces and “the grave of women who have just given birth is open for 40 days”: postnatal women are at risk and can easily die in 40 days and in that period, mother and baby are not left alone, lactating women do not go out, they and their children are not bathed [2, 34]. This is in contrast to women in Nepal; where they are left alone. Purdah (female seclusion) is observed in Bangladesh lasting 5 to 9 days and there exist dietary restrictions that last up to 6 months [3]. Similarly, among the Negev Bedouin in Israel, a 40-day postnatal period includes seclusion (homestay), followed by congratulatory visiting, the reciprocal exchange of gifts and money, and observance of a special diet [35].

A number of cultures have beliefs, taboos and behaviours relating to women and newborns in the postnatal period, a period lasting up to 40 days. Among Mayans the period lasted 20 days and Japanese mothers remained in a birth chamber for 3 weeks [17]. In Chinese the postnatal period of rest is called the ‘sitting month’ or ‘doing the month’ and lasts for 30 or 40 days. This exists, according to Chinese traditional medicine, as postpartum women are considered to be in a ‘weak’ state, and the practice is still observed with primiparous women [1]. Keeping mothers together with their babies is medically important but also culturally: in southwest Nepal new mothers stay with their babies continuously for 6 days [36]. Higginbottom refers to a 40-day period after the birth in which particular foods are eaten [37]. Cassidy also refers to “the upsitting” where bed linens would be changed and on the 10th day the mother was allowed to perform housework, and that hard labour ought to be avoided in the weeks after birth for the risk of uterine prolapse [17]. Burmese women also observed rest in the postpartum period [2]. The 40-day period has often been put into practice as the ‘quarantine’ period for women, a period of rest and purification [17]. The word “quarantine” originates from the Venetian dialect quaranta giorni, meaning ‘forty days’ for the length of isolation of ships for detection of plague symptoms [38]. This separation of infected people was used to prevent the spread of disease, and is recorded as far back as the Old Testament [39]. Culturally and historically, birthing women are considered ‘unclean’ [2, 19]. In many cultures postnatal women are believed to be dirty and weak [16, 40, 41]. Moreover, the pollution of birth is detailed; for example in Nepal, Maori (Aetoroa/New Zealand), Japan, China, Inuits in Canada, Turkey, and Bangladesh [1, 3, 16, 17, 34, 40].

Evidence of isolating practices can also be seen in western countries. In Europe in the recent past women were considered ‘polluted’ and dangerous to men, so new mothers were not allowed to prepare or cook food for 40 days [17]. The immediate period after childbirth is referred to historically as the ‘lying-in period’ in English and “Wochenbett” in German or “week bed”. Browne and Browne refer to the lying-in period as 8–10 days after labour and birth; similar to the time it takes for the stump of the umbilical cord to fall off naturally [42].

Historically women in the British Isles were unclean after birth [43]. Purification as a ritual is likely to have at least some physical foundation, such as notion of infection control in modern medicine. The 40-day period presents vulnerability in mother and child which can be targeted in this time; as a frequently described postpartum problem is infection [3].

In the USA, self-help books on childbirth inform new mothers and their partners that the postnatal period lasts 6 weeks [44]. Six weeks is, of course, a different way of expressing ‘the 40-day period’. The explanation such self-help books give is that “the uterus has returned to a non-pregnant size and bleeding has abated” [44]. Similarly, one of the first UK guides for new mothers recommended that women visit their doctor at 6-weeks postpartum for a range of physiological check-ups (a period of 6–8 weeks for uterus and other pelvic structures to ‘heal’ the puerperium), [45, 46]. Eastman and Russell also suggested that energy demanding activities such as tennis, cycling, jogging and heavy housework/lifting be postponed until the “lochia has ceased” [29]. In the 1960s, Browne and Browne claimed that red lochia lasted 24 days and only after that time should women resume household duties, start going out again or drive a car, whereas the shampooing of hair could be done as desired [42].

Caring or nourishing of women during this period is seen in the literature. In Nepal, women can have a postnatal massage to the abdomen in order to promote blood circulation and therefore healing in the first weeks post-childbirth [36]. Mayan women get “one or more massages” from their midwives 28 days post-partum [47]. In Nepal, our findings were that traditional postnatal care includes baby massage with mustard oil, massaging the mother, and an emphasis on nutrition. In higher castes (Brahmin, Chhetri, Newar and Bahun; in Nepal Tamangs are lower caste) these tasks are performed by a birth assistant, who will stay in the house for a month to wash the child’s clothes and cook for the mother.

Similarly, Jewish women were allowed back into the temple 33 days after the birth of a son and 66 days after the birth of a daughter [17]. The notion of purification in the 40 days also denotes the temptation of Christ when Jesus was in the wilderness “And when he had fasted forty days forty and forty nights…” (The Holy Bible, Matthew, IV: 2) [57]. We must bear in mind that in The Bible 40 days may refer to a long period of time rather than exactly 40 days [58].

The literature discussed the role of food in the postpartum period. In Bangladesh on the first day after birth, to continue the healing of the birth passage, no food is given, and in the following days meals are nutritionally deficient consisting of rice only, as polluted women are not perceived to be hungry. Burmese women and women in Turkey who adhered to traditions of food restrictions and prescriptions during the postnatal period were traditionally not given any water to drink for 2–3 days after the birth [2, 34].

There are many references in the literature to hot and cold foods [40, 59]; and it is worth noting that hot in one country is not necessarily hot in another [60, 61]. For instance, China has the notion of ‘Qi’ deficiency and blood loss, ‘heat’ or ‘cold’, which may cause health problems like dizziness; thus ‘cold’ foods should be avoided ‘hot’ should be encouraged [1]. This notion of hot and cold also exists in Laos, whilst taboos include not bathing, no hair washing or teeth brushing and staying in bed between 18 h to 2 days [1, 2]. The notion of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ is not only related to the food, but can also relate to the stage of pregnancy and birth. In Malaysia pregnancy is ‘hot’ [59], in Cantonese China the pregnant mother is ‘cold’ and the foetus ‘hot’ [62], whilst in Vietnam both the mother and foetus change from ‘cold’ in the first trimester to ‘hot’ in the last [41]. The notion of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ with regards to pregnancy also exists in Laos [28]. In the literature however there was no indication of herbal aryuvedic medicine/food being harmful, suggesting a gap in existing evidence.

Dietary and breastfeeding restrictions exist; some offer women poor diets for a variety of days in Laos [28]. In Nepal, India and elsewhere in South Asia, colostrum is not given until a priest approves it, as it is considered to be pus [3, 17]. This is not unlike seventeenth century England when medical texts recommended against the feeding of colostrum [63]. In common with Nepal, the initial breastfeeding practice in Bangladesh is poor, as colostrum is not given, as it is deemed to be ‘dirty milk’ due to its pus-like appearance. Taboos are also evident in relation to the baby. In Bangladesh in the first 40 days breast milk is given; as is sweet water “misri pani”. The latter is thought to have benefits. While, in richer households goat or cow milk is given after 40 days, yet in poorer houses misri pani often leads to a high incidence of diarrhoea [3]. The breastfeeding diet is observed for 40 days. In Cairo, infants are breastfed exclusively for the first 40 days after birth [64].

The majority of women in the qualitative interviews reported that they discarded their colostrum, which they felt was inadequate in nutritional value. Whilst this is contrary to the World Health Organization (WHO) recommendation that breastfeeding should commence in the first hour after birth [65]; it is significant because it indicates that women were actively expressing colostrum. This is vital in terms of stimulating their breast-milk supply [66]. This may be why the practice of discarding colostrum as done in South-East Asia is not as detrimental as previously thought [67]. Although, this is less than ideal in terms of the beneficial constituents of colostrum and definitely harmful if other substances are given, such as honey, butter or unclean water. Breastfeeding rates are high in Nepal (although not necessarily exclusively breastfeeding) when compared with UK rates at 6 weeks and 6 months, but not on the first day or two, as is common in South Asia. Some authors have suggested that women in South Asia generally do not breastfeed on the first or second day; but they do stimulate their breasts for the milk supply [3, 33]. Breastfeeding statistics for the UK show reasonably high initiation rates (81 %) but at 6 to 8 weeks the prevalence is down to only 47.2 % [68, 69]. Breastfeeding is associated with reduced risk of infection (colostrum contains elevated concentrations of multiple antimicrobial proteins), prevention of dehydration and hypoglycaemia in babies and reduced risk of breast and ovarian cancer in mothers and increased mother-baby bonding. Breastfeeding has short and long-term health benefits for both baby and mother [70]. Potential long-term health benefits in children include reduced blood pressure, cholesterol concentrations, and obesity [67, 70].

The literature illustrates that alcohol plays an important role in both birth and the postpartum period. In Nepal the Tamang mothers drink jad during their pregnancy and post-pregnancy, similar to the ‘god-sips’. The term ‘god-sips’ is thought to have arisen because when a woman went into labour, her ‘gossips’ were sent forth to gather for merriment and to partake in a drink at the labour [71]. Indeed the drinking midwife is mentioned in Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night: “like aqua vitae with a midwife” [72]. In the Tamang community jad, an alcohol, is taken during pregnancy and post-pregnancy to celebrate the birth, and Gurung women may drink it to put the child to sleep during breastfeeding as alcohol will certainly pass into the breast-milk [68].

Alcohol and pregnancy are linked culturally, for instance in Africa rum was given to the Akan and Igbo child. Furthermore, the birth was celebrated with alcohol and at the naming ceremony [73]. Drugs passing into milk as cathartics were identified by Greek physicians and Gurung women use it to put the child to sleep [29]. Alcohol is also used in the protection of children; Malaysians bathe children in stout as they believe it protects babies and to help new-borns suffering from jaundice [32, 74].

This article has discussed that there are logical reasons for practices that are linked to the physiology of pregnancy, birth and the postpartum period. The umbilical cord if left alone typically falls off after six to ten days, whilst the lochia heal in about 40 days/6 weeks [75]. The latter ties in with the International Classification of Diseases’ definition of maternal mortality [76]. However, the origin of the 42 days limit is historical, i.e., in the old Anglican Church and the Jewish faith where purified women resumed attending prayers 40 days after childbirth, rather than medical. Clinically, the relevance lies in the first menstrual bleeding in non-lactating women occurring 6 to 8 weeks after parturition. The literature finds that the 42 day limit was not based on a study of the timing of maternally related deaths [14]. Some practices, however, clearly put women at risk; isolation may mean rest but if the woman is alone and suffers a postpartum haemorrhage, this may result in a preventable maternal death. Also unclean tools such as a scythe used to cut the cord may lead to infection, or fasting can lead to malnutrition, and most commonly the discarding colostrum may reduce the protective effects of early breastfeeding.

It is easy to forget that childbirth is a hazard for mother and child in many low-income countries; some traditional practices reduce and others increase the chance of dying. This article highlights that cultural practices exist universally between days 3–10 and 40, and that many of these can be linked to physiology. The timing of these important events means cultural influences play a role in postnatal practices [77]. In society, rituals develop over time to deal with the physiological and social aspects of birth and are internally consistent.

The study and literature within this article have shown that reproductive health is shaped by culture and women’s position may be influenced by social and cultural aspects rather than biological factors: The role and place of women in society is ‘lowered’ in a patriarchal society where historical social norms are maintained. Several studies refer to cultural sensitivity when dealing with women, focusing attention on improving the maternity services rather than on women and their cultural differences [12, 78, 79]. As social cultural practices are passed down from senior females to younger generations, postpartum home visits may play an important role in helping women to change behaviours [1]. Nepalese maternity care should focus on the rural population to be more sustainable and maternity nurses/midwives can use health promotion interactions during home visits [37].

Social cultural practices may prevent women from accessing postnatal care. Although there are physiological explanations that underpin some of the beliefs and practices around, for example, a new mother needing rest for a 40-day period, it is important to stress that not all practices necessarily have a physiological origin. The role and place of women in society probably have a much greater negative effect on postnatal women. Some of these influences are negative as they can prevent women accessing postnatal care in low-income countries and the more positive consequences of having a 40-day period come from a ‘socially enforced’ rest and seclusion.

FCHV, female community health volunteers; FG, focus groups; I, interviews; MCHW, maternal and child health workers; PNC, postnatal care; WHO, World Health Organization