Confinement foods include ginger and garlic.
Confinement is a period for your body to recuperate and recover from childbirth.
The confinement period lasts for different durations according to different cultures:
Many Asian confinement beliefs and practices originate from culture, with little or no scientific backup.
However, the goals of these practices, regardless of cultural background, are similar:
Chinese confinement diet
Common Chinese confinement dishes include:
Common Chinese confinement practices include:
Malay confinement diet
During confinement, new Malay mums are likely to follow a special diet where "heating" foods are encouraged and "cooling" foods avoided to restore the balance upset by the birth.
Some Malay mums have been known to take a special drink called jamu — this stems from the belief that the body's pores open during labour, potentially exposing it to chills, and jamu has properties to keep the body warm.
Another dietary practice is the drinking of air akar kayu or tonic drinks, made from medicinal plants.
Common Malay Confinement practices include:
Indian confinement diet
Like the Chinese and Malays, the Indian confinement diet also discourages the consumption of "cooling" foods especially tomatoes, cucumbers, coconut milk and mutton.
Indian mothers may also take garlic milk to prevent "wind". Foods are allowed and encouraged include:
Seafood and chilli foods are strongly discouraged. There is also restriction on fluids, fruits, and vegetable, as well as cold drinks and cold food.
Common Indian confinement practices
Indian mothers are discouraged from leaving their homes during confinement.
Bathing is also discouraged and if done, should be performed with special herbal preparations and turmeric powder. Bathing is only allowed between 11am and 2pm when the temperature is at its highest.
New mums are encouraged to splash warm water on their abdomen while bathing to expel clots from uterus.
Daily body massages with oil are also encouraged.
Other practices include: