Abstract:
Introduction: Food taboo is contributing substantial share to malnutrition in pregnant and
lactating women by restricting and limiting the frequency and variety of foods most of which are
nutritious and easily accessible. Nonetheless, the area is poorly investigated in Ethiopia.
Objective: This study aimed to explore foods tabooed for pregnant and lactating women and
adherence to the foods taboo if exists in Abala district of Afar region, Ethiopia.
Methods: Qualitative study was conducted from March 1 to 30, 2016 inductively. Participants
were selected purposively and written informed consent was sought. Two pregnant and lactating
women, one male elderly and one female elderly focus group discussions were conducted. Data
from focus group discussions were triangulated by eight key informant’s in-depth interviews.
Discussions and Interviews were audio taped, transcribed word by word and then imported to
Atlas.ti 7 software for coding. Analysis was done inductively. Triangulation and peer debriefing
were applied to assure data quality.
Results: The study revealed that foods tabooed for pregnant women were 1) eating a lot amount
of foods of any type, 2) fatty foods like meat, milk and Yoghurt, 3) solid foods including all
forms of bread and 4) cool/cold foods such as cold milk, cold meat and cold water. The latter
two were also tabooed for lactating women. Pregnant women were found to be adherent to the
foods tabooed throughout their period of pregnancy while lactating women adhere to the taboos
for the first six weeks after giving birth. The reasons mentioned to adhere with the foods taboo
for pregnant women were to avoid difficulty to deliver the fetus, to prevent disease like,
Gastritis, Diarrhea, Typhoid, and Abdominal cramp, and skin discoloration of the fetus while the
reasons for lactating women were to prevent diseases for the women and her child.
Conclusions and recommendations: Pregnant and lactating women in Aballa district avoid
eating numerous accessible foods because the foods are believed as tabooed for them. Further
studies that focus on the extent of food taboo and uncovering the understanding on how it is
being practiced were recommended.
