Cultural Belief and Practices

among Post Partum Women in

Malaysia

In aspect of Food Intake

Members
ADMW 1/2013
GROUP 2.
AHLI KUMPULAN:
1. RABITAH BINTI MOHD YUSOF
2 ROHAYA BT HARUN
3. NORSAZILA BINTI SAHAK
4. NORSYARMILA SURIA BT ABU HASHIM
5. ROZAIDAH BT MASRI
6. DEVATHY A/P RAMAKRISHNAN
7. MULEIYAMALAR A/P SUBRAMANIAM

Introduction
Malaysian

Dietary Guidelines (2010),

lactating women should get plenty of rest,
adequate food and drinks to maintain
health

 Why

good nutrition intake is important?

- tissue healing
- avoid infections
- maintain a good health to the mother
- produce a quality breast milk.

lactating women needs more calorie

per day i.e 2500kcal/day

Malaysia Dietary
Guidelines (2010)
Calorie

intake in lactating mother

suggested by Malaysia Dietary Guidelines
2010 is listed in the table..

Category

Postpartum 2500kcal/day

Cereal

8 serving

Fruits

2 serving

Vegetables

3 serving

Meats

2 serving

Fish

1 serving

Nuts

1 serving

Dairy products

3 serving

A lactating mother should have a variety nutritious food intake as

in contain different nutriens. Below is the example of food source
of different nutriens.
Nutrien

Source

Calcium

Dairy products, rice, yogurt, bean curd

Iron

Egg, liver, oyster, meat without fat

Vitamin A

Liver, milk, egg, fruits, yellow and red vegetables

Vitamin B2

Nuts, meat, eggs

Vitamin E

Vegetable oil, nuts

Cultural Belief and Practices

MALAY

Fish
Allowed : haruan because can facilitate
a quick healing of wound and tissues.
Restricted : poisonous fish e.g seafood,
tongkol kembung, and tongkol =
believe
can cause itchiness
and allergic.
: salted fish = belief
can cause awful smell to
lochia
discharge and weaken they body.

Ulam
Almost all types of ulam is allowed. Serai,
lengkuas, Daun cekur, bunga kantan etc is
believed rich in vitamins and fiber and anti
oxidant.
Fruits and Vegetables
Restricted : all foods e.g spinach, petai beans,
pumpkin, cucumber, brinjal etc. mango, melon,
pineapple, guava, papaya, star fruits,
mangosteen, kuini etc = believed can cause joint
pain.

 Chicken/birds

Allowed: Hitam, didik, selasih are

the types chicken that are
recommended. It must be mixed with
ginger and honey to return their body
strength.

(AiminNadia,2011)

 Drinks

and Herbs
Water intake is restricted. However
postpartum mothers are allowed to
consume air akar kayu tonic, jamu
and makjun. These are the types of
herbs which they belief can restore their
energy and body elektrolit balance.
(Aishah@eshah Haji
Mohamed, 2012)

CHINESE
A strict confinement diet is followed
because they believe this can remove
the stale blood ( lochia) and wind (
intestinal gases) from mothers system.
Diet

is basically consists of heating

ingredients.

Old ginger, sesame oil, wine, black vinegar

etc. excessively used meal to heat the mother
body. Herbs such as Cordopsis root, Red
Dates, Dried Longan, Wolfberries, DOM
Benedictine liquor and Dong Guai are the
vital tonics believed to help body heal. Plain
water is strictly restricted because it is
believed can cause water retention =
replaced by Red Dates tea as a nourishing
tea.
2011,

Grace,

Below are they foods believed to be cold in nature and

should be avoided:
Meats
Duck egg, shellfish, cuttlefish
Fruits
Persimmon, pomelo, bananas, mulberry, star fruits, kiwi fruit,
sugar cane, watermelon, waterchestnut.
Vegetables
Kangkung, some edible fungus, brasenia, bitter gourd,
bamboo shoot, snake melom, seaweed, some mushrooms.
(Grace, 2011)

According to Raven J.H. ( 2007), Meat and

Egg are regarded as hot food and should
be take to heat up the body. This food which
are also viewed as full protein was thought to
enrich the blood, help mothers recovery
encourage expulsion of lochia and stimulate
production of breastmilk.
Similar to Lee M.T. (2003), boiled eggs should
be taken to warm as it is considered safe and
warm food.

INDIAN

Indian traditional foods mostly based on ghee, butter,

pistachio, almond and herb =believed to have hot
effect =restore energy to the mother that is lost during
labour.
Ramakrishna . J (1992) - consumption of milk, butter ghee is
encourged = belief that will increase the quantity and
quality of breastmilk. Other hot foods that should be
consumed is dried fish, brinjals, dhal, drumsticks and greens.
This foods are considered good for lactation
Garlic is one of the best vegetables to increase milk supply

Dhal is restricted = believed can cause wind.

Knipe, D.M. (1991) says that cereals such as dhal,
green peas, soya beans etc, lentils cabbage,
beans should be avoided because this can cause
difficult digestion and forms gases in the body.
Common food that are avoided include papaya,
brinjal, pumpkin, lemon, limes, oranges, bananas,
yogurt, oily food because these food are
considered cold.
(Ramakrishna.J, 1992)