Table 2.

Comparison between Traditional Practices for "Doing the Month" and Expected Diet and Lifestyle that We Advocated during the Postpartum Period

	Traditional practices for "doing the month"	Expected diet and lifestyle during the postpartum period
Dietary Habits	Eat plenty of food	Increase total amount of food in accordance with energy expenditure
	Meat-based diet components	Diverse food with both animal foods and plant-derived foods
	Eat "hot" or "Yang" food (referred to meat, sugar, eggs, chicken soup, et al)	Ensure sufficient protein intake from fish, poultry meat, lean meat and eggs Enjoy milk, soybeans, or their products daily Restrict fat intake from animal foods
	Avoid "cold" or "Yin" food (referred to fruit, vegetables, cold water, et al)	Eat more vegetables fruits and nuts in various species Drink sufficient quantity of water and juice every day Have liquid food, such as non-greasy soup, before or between meals
	Keep dietary taboos in mind	Advise the woman against dietary taboos about foods which are nutritionally healthy. Reassure the mother that she can eat any normal foods. Talk to family members such as husband and mother-in-law, to encourage them to help ensure the woman eats enough.
		Eat more foods rich in dietary fiber
		Supplement with vitamins and minerals
		Restrict salt consumption in diet
		Avoid drinking alcohol, strong tea or coffee
Other Health-related behaviors	Never brush teeth	Brush teeth twice per day
	Never bathe or wash hair	If possible, take a shower every day in a warm room and wash hair at least once a week
	Shut well all windows or doors all the time	Ventilate regularly, but avoiding the cold wind blowing directly to the mother and child
	Always lie in bed without any physical activity almost all day and night	Do maternal keep-fit exercises and increase physical activities gradually to maintain a healthy weight