Maternal and Infant Feeding Practices of 'HO' Tribe Women in Bihar

Arti Sinha and Hema Pandey*

The health and survival of new born baby is dependent upon the health status of the mother and care rendered to mother during pre and post natal stages. The quality or strength of childhood foundation is primarily determined by the kind of nutrition provided to the vulnerable segments of the population like infants, children, pregnant women and nursing mothers.  

Tribal group forms an important segment of Indian population which blooms in the isolated highlands and forest of India. Their settlements are scattered all over the country. The review of literature reveals that although a number of studies have been conducted on socio-economic status and cultural heritage of tribals, little is understood about their ways of bringing up their children. The present paper brings forth the maternal practices of 'HO' tribe residing in Bihar.

The study was conducted in the Chhotanagpur Division of Bihar state in west Singhbhum district. The multistaged sampling technique was adapted. In the first stage two blocks namely Jhinkpani and Tonto were selected randomly. In the second stage twenty villages from each of these blocks were selected again randomly, while in the third stage ten mothers in the age group of 18 to 45 years, with almost similar family background having at least one child below six years of age were selected purposely. Two hundred mothers constituted the sample of the study. The data on maternal and infant feeding practices of 'HO' mothers was collected with the help of in-depth interview with mothers. The data collected was further supplemented with the information gathered through the participatory observation. Each mother was interviewed in two to three sessions in either local 'Ho' language or in Hindi. Simple percentage analysis was done to know about maternal and infant feeding practices.

Demographic characteristics of the family

Married	86.50%
20 to 34 years age group	76%
Illiterate	71%
Nuclear family set up	66%
Families with <2 children	50%
Occupation (agriculture with cattle rearing & unskilled labor)	66.50%
Households with low income (<Rs. 500/- p.m.)	70%

Diet during pregnancy

Throughout pregnancy the growing foetus is entirely dependent on its mother. The mother's diet, her general state of health and the amount of physical work done by the mother had its own effect. Therefore, proper antenatal care throughout pregnancy is essential

An interesting observation was that during pregnancy the 'Ho' women did not observe any restriction in food. Only a negligible 8.50 per cent of respondents claimed that they consumed special food items such as fowl, fish seasonal fruits and pulses (black gram and lentil) during the vulnerable period to maintain good health.

Diet during lactation

Table I shows food items restricted and special food items included in the diet of nursing mothers and the reasons for the some.

TABLE I
FOOD ITEMS RESTRICTED AND SPECIAL FOOD ITEMS INCLUDED IN THE DIET OF NURSING MOTHERS ALONG WITH REASONS
Food items restricted	Percentage	Reasons
Non-vegetarian	1.5	Inadequate secretion of breast milk
Vegetables such as lady's finger, green leafy vegetables	5.0	Diarrhoea and colic pain in the child
Oil, spices and curd	8.5	Cold and diarrhoea
Restricted all the above, non-vegetarian, vegetables - Brinjal, Lady's finger, green leafy vegetables, oil, spices and curd	85.0	Due to all the above listed reasons
Special food items included	Percentage	Reasons
Mandi*, Sathavari herb and fermented rice	11.5	Help in milk production
Mandi*, rash**, papaya and sathavari herb	3.5
Mandi*, rash**, fermented rice, turmeric soup, black gram dal, papoya, sathavari herb and onion	85.0

*mandi - rice cooked with lots of water); **rash - top layer of rice beer

The data highlights the common foods prohibited and included during lactation wherein the traditional system of 'hot' and 'cold' foods was widely followed. Food taboos in lactation were practiced out of fear that the child would be adversely affected through the breast milk if the mother consumed certain foods. 

.Breast feeding

Breast feeding was a universal phenomenon amongst the 'Ho' mothers. The babies were usually put to the breast within 9 to 12 hours, But in the present study only 45 per cent of respondents could feed during this period. Thirty eight per cent and 17 per cent of respondents breast fed the baby after 24 and 48 hours respectively, because of lack of milk secretion. Rice starch (16%), cow's milk (6%), goat's milk (8.5%), honey mixed water (2%) were the pre-lacteal feeds introduced by about one third of respondents..

Feeding Of colostrum

Colostrum feeding was common in HO tribe. Reasons for colostrum feeding are given in Table II.

TABLE II
REASONS FOR FEEDING COLOSTRUM
Family practice	10.0
Good for health	7.5
Doctor's advice	23.0
Health worker's advice	42.5

 

TABLE III
BREAST FEEDING PATTERN AND DURATION
Pattern of feeding	Percentage response
On demand	89.0
Schedule	5.0
As per the will of mothers	6.0
Duration of breast feeding
One year	5.5
Two years	79.5
> 2 years	15.0

Summary and Conclusion

The findings of the study revealed that the restriction and Inclusion of certain food items were common practices during lactation period. The special food items consumed by the lactating mothers were mandi, rash, fermented rice, turmeric soup, blackguard dhal, papaya and sathaveri herb, to help in milk production. This paper recommends strategies for maintaining present pattern of breast feeding on demand basis and adoption of gradual weaning.

* Avinashilingam University, Coimbatore - 641 043.