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Cultural and anthropological factors in infant and maternal nutrition among the Baganda

The customs, practices and attitudes making up the local "culture pattern" have a profound effect on the interrelated nutrition of the mother and child.

This article provides you with cultural and anthropological factors in infant and maternal nutrition of the Baganda (Bantu people of Uganda) before the 1960s.

Food restrictions during pregnancy and childbirth:

• White ants (nswa)
  
• Head of fish and sheep
  
• Baked plantain (gonja)
  
• Certain types of yam
  
• Hot food (in the temperature sense)
  
• Salt, otherwise the newborn would develop ennoga, a cultural defined disease, probably made up of several skin conditions;
  

Special food during pregnancy

Clay earths, a variety of clay earths (emumbwa) were traditionally eaten during pregnancy, intermixed with various chopped leaves believed to have medical properties (Source of calcium, iron and other minerals).

Reference: Jelliffe, D. B. and J. F. Bennett (1961). "Cultural and anthropological factors in infant and maternal nutrition." Fed. Proc. 20: 185-187.

PAST: Lactation periods among Uganda's women

Ethnical group	Period of Lactation	Artificial feeding	Publication	Year
Baganda	First 12-14 months	An increased tendency to resort to artifical feeding was noticed in urbanized Baganda women after a few months of breastfeeding	Rutihauser	1963
Luo	18-20		Welbourn	1955
Acholi	Urban: 16-18 months	Was not as popular as in Buganda	PDF: The health of Acholi children Reprinted from Jelliffe, D. B., J. F. Bennett, et al. (1963). "The health of Acholi children." Tropical and geographical medicine 15(Community and child health studies in East Africa No. 5): 411-421, Copyright 1963, with permission from Blackwell Publishing	1963
Hadza or Watingdiga	Prolonged until next pregnancy	Non	Jelliffe et al.	1962
Karamojong	Prolonged until next pregnancy	Only, if mother had insufficient milk, child received supplements of undiluted sheep's milk;	Jelliffe et al.	1964
Bahaya (Haya)	Prolonged for the first year, by the age of 2 or 3 child was gradually taken off		Rwegelera	1963

References:
Rutishauser, I. H. E. (1963). "Custom and child Health in Buganda." Tropical Geographic Medicine 15: 138-147.
Welbourn, H. F. (1955). "Notes on differences between Baganda and Luo children in Kampala." E.A. Med J 32: 291.
Jelliffe, D. B., J. F. Bennett, et al. (1963). "The health of Acholi children." Tropical and geographical medicine 15(Community and child health studies in East Africa No. 5): 411-421.
Jelliffe, D. B., J. Woodburn, et al. (1962). "The children of the Hadza hunters." Tropical paediatrics 60(6): 907-913.
Jelliffe, D. B., B. F. J, et al. (1964). "Ecology of childhood disease in the Karamojong in Uganda." Archives of environmental health 9: 25-36.
Rwegelera (1963). "Tribal custom in infant feeding: among the Haya." East African Medical Journal 40(7): 366-369.

©Maryam Imbumi

CURRENT: Weaning food pracices in Central Uganda

Source: Kikafunda JK et al.:African Journal of food, agriculture, nutrition and development, Vol 3, Nr. 2; 2003 (online source: http://www.ajfand.net/)

This present study was undertaken to assess and document what food were fed to infants and young children, the weaning practices and the influencing factors in Mubende district, central Uganda. Over half of the children commenced the weaning process with cow' milk. The green cooking banana (matoke) represented the most dominate weaning food. Children from the rural area consumed significantly more pumpkin, papaya and matoke compared to children from the urban areas who consumed significantly more cow's milk, rice, sweet potatoes and pineapples than rural children.

Review on expectant and nursing mothers in 1945

PDF: Review of nutrition in Uganda 1945

Tribal customs in infant feeding among the Hadza hunters

This article highlights aspects on:

• Mother's diet during pregnancy and lactation
  
• The traditional way of feeding infants
  
• The management of premature infants
  
• Feeding of twins
  
• Weaning practices are outlined
  
• Galactagogues and wet-nurses were used by the Bahaya in exceptional circumstances
  

Reference: Jelliffe, D. B., J. Woodburn, et al. (1962). "The children of the Hadza hunters." Tropical pediatrics 60(6): 907-913.

The danger period during weaning

This article provides you with information on:

• Feeding customs in Buganda
  
• Brest feeding
  
• Mixed feeding
  
• Weaning from the breast
  
• Diet after weaning
  

A study of Baganda children who attended child welfare clinics near Kampala in the 1950s

• Weight chart on increases in weight after complete weaning from breast
• Intakes of various kinds of foods eaten by Baganda children of parents with two different educational levels
  
• Average daily intake of various foods and the daily intake of calories and protein
  

Summary:
During the first 6 month of life breast feeding fast the rule and supply was abundant. Breast feeding was usually inadequate from the filth month on and mixed feeding was introduced into the infant's diet which consisted mostly of carbohydrate foods. Most of the children were weaned completely from breast at 14 to 15 months. Weaning was usually very sudden and therefore women sometimes suffered from depression and anorexia. A small diet survey showed that after weaning the Baganda children had unbalanced diets which were mainly of carbohydrates and were poor in protein, especially in animal protein.

Reference: Welbourn, H. (1955). "The danger period during weaning." Journal of Tropical Paediatrics 1: 98-105.

How different were Baganda and Luo children in Kampala in 1954?

The following article summarized the main points raised a clinical meeting at Mulago hospital in July 1954.

The focus of the observation were: weight and heights, the incidence of infections and signs of malnutrition, as well as dietary habits among Luo and Baganda children who attended child welfare clinics.

Although the Luo children were dirtier, apparently less well looked after and more susceptible to infections than the Baganda, they were heavier in weight than the Baganda children and many of them were above the average weight for Europeans throughout the first three years of life.

Data and information on:

• Weight and length curves
  
• Signs of malnutrition
  
• Excess of disease attributable to dirt
  
• Breast feeding
• Diet after weaning
  
• Ethnical differences
  

Reference: Welbourn, H. F. (1955). "Notes on differences between Baganda and Luo children in Kampala." E.A. Med J 32: 291.

Created by Verena Raschke 2005 / Contact