6.6 OTHER HARMFUL TRADITIONAL PRACTICES

1. During menstruation:

• No bath for the woman

• Menstrual cloth not to be dried in sun

2. During pregnancy:-

      -     Food taboos e.g. forbids eating meat, egg, snail or banana

      -    Eating for two. This may lead to obesity

      -    Not having sex to prevent albinism

3. During labour:

-    Not revealing EDD to prevent evil spirit from causing obstructed labour

      -    A woman is forbidden to disclose early labour so that enemies cannot cause obstructed labour.

      -      Asking women to carry heavy load on the head to hasten labour and delivery.

      -      Placing mortar on the abdomen to push out the baby.

4. Delivery of placenta: 

      -    Pushing an object down the throat to hasten delivery of placenta

      -    Traction of the cord or tying it to a heavy objection to help expulsion of retained placenta.

      -     packing the vagina with leaves or other medicinal drugs to stop bleeding after delivery.

5. Child Health:

      -     cutting cord with stone, knife, bamboo, etc

      -     Applying ashes or cow dung to cord

      -     Keeping a child with high temperature warm

      -     Female circumcision to prevent promiscuity

      -     Tribal masks

      -     Denying the child immunization

6. Postpartum care:

      -      Hot fomenting the body

      -      Preventing the newly delivered to taking oil, salt, or protein to prevent death of baby

     -       putting hot coal in the room no matter the temperature

     -       giving mainly carbohydrate diet e.g. Tuwo to make the woman strong and recover (this can lead to obesity)

7. Breast feeding:

      -      Expressing the colostrums

      -      Forbidden mother to have sex so that the baby will not swallow sperm and die

8. Family Planning:-

      -     Believe it encourages promiscuity 

      -     No consent given by husbands 

9. Early marriage:

         It is an act of giving girls below the age of 18years out in marriage. This practice is common in many pat of the country especially the north where girls are married off before or at menarche.

Health consequence of early marriage

• Malnutrition including anaemia especially during pregnancy

• Vesicovaginal fistula (VVF) or rectovaginal fistula (RVF) during child birth

• Low birth weight in babies and the risk of infant death

• Psychological problems as a result of unhappiness in age disparity and lack of communication

• Limited educational and vocational opportunities

Test item – Explain the different types of FGC and their health consequences

STUDENTS’ ACTIVITY

Topic: Female Genital Cutting

Learning outcome: The student will be able to

• Define Female Genital Cutting/Mutilation (FGC/M)

• Identify the types of FGC/M

• List the complications of FGC/M

• State the Strategy for Eradication of  FGC/M

• Identify the reasons for the practice of FGC/M

• Identify other harmful practices

Task: Each student to identify and explain health implication of a harmful traditional practice in his community.