Table 3.
Rationale for giving newborns fluids and solids other than breast milk
| Item | Mothers' statements about why to give (or not give) an item | Peri‐urban mothers* | Rural mothers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dill water | ‘Because of stomach problems’ | 3 | |
| ‘It helps’/‘It builds the body’ | 3 | ||
| ‘So that babies get good health/it is healthy’ | 3 | ||
| ‘This helps in digesting food’ | 1 | ||
| ‘Because it is medication’ | 2 | ||
| ‘A baby is not an adult, so he should not be given just anything’ | 1 | ||
| ‘To make small problems go away’ | 1 | ||
| ‘It soothes the baby’ | 1 | ||
| ‘We do not give those things to our babies’ | 1 | ||
| ‘I don't know/my friend, I have never heard of this’ | 11 | ||
| Water (plain or with glucose) | ‘This is a good thing, because the baby sees that it is something to eat/it is a drink’ | 1 | 2 |
| ‘Because he is thirsty’/‘breast milk has a lot of sugar so the baby feels thirsty and he needs water’ | 8 | 3 | |
| ‘So that he becomes healthy’ | 1 | 6 | |
| ‘To build the body/water is important for the body’ | 1 | 2 | |
| ‘It reduces the chance of getting minor illnesses’ | 1 | ||
| ‘When the baby is crying, once you give this to him, he feels better/when the baby is crying, and you do not have any tea or milk’ | 2 | ||
| ‘I don't know/perhaps you can help me out/what do you think?/I don't know that my friend, tell us why this is done’ | 9 | ||
| Powdered milk | ‘This makes the baby healthy’ | 4 | 4 |
| ‘When the mother's milk is not enough’ | 4 | None | |
| ‘It is good/it helps the baby's body develop/it builds the body’ | 2 | 3 | |
| ‘This is given when the mother works’ | 1 | 0 | |
| ‘This is given so that the baby can get used to the bottle/so that you can breastfeed the baby less’ | 2 | 0 | |
| ‘This is given when there is no cow's milk’ | 1 | 0 | |
| ‘This is food for the baby’ | None | 5 | |
| I don't know | None | 5 | |
| Cow's milk | ‘It gives the baby strength’/‘it builds the body’/‘it is healthy’ | 3 | 9 |
| ‘It is given when the mother's milk is not enough’ | 3 | None | |
| ‘It helps a lot/it is good for the baby’ | 2 | 2 | |
| ‘It is given when the baby is hungry or thirsty’/‘when the baby is crying’/‘when the baby wants it'/babies find it tasty’ | 2 | 2 | |
| ‘It is food for the baby’ | None | 1 | |
| ‘People like cow's milk a lot’ | None | 1 | |
| I don't know | None | 3 | |
| Shubili | ‘Maybe it's because swellings or sores but I am not sure’ | Question not asked | 1 |
| ‘When he has stomach aches/because it is medication, it makes diseases go away/because of problems with their bodies/aches and pains/it cures illness in the body/because they are sick’ | 20 | ||
| I don't know | 4 | ||
| Dates | ‘They build the body’/‘they are healthy’/‘they help’/‘they provide blood’ | Question not asked | 8 |
| ‘So that the baby can know the sweet taste (of dates)’ | 1 | ||
| Honey | ‘It builds the baby's body’/‘it is healthy’ | Question not asked | 4 |
| ‘So that babies begin to talk early’ | 1 | ||
| ‘It is used as medication’ | 1 | ||
| ‘So that the baby can know the sweet taste (of honey)’/‘Islamic law advises us to give babies honey immediately after they are born, if we have any’ | 2 | ||
| ‘I am afraid of giving this to my babies’ | 1 | ||
| Biscuits | ‘These are given to the baby when he is hungry’ | 8 | 2 |
| ‘These should not be given to a newborn’ | 3 | None | |
| ‘When the mother has no milk’ | 2 | None | |
| ‘This is food for the baby’ | 2 | None | |
| ‘So that babies can get strength in their bodies’/‘it builds their bodies’/‘babies become healthy’ | None | 6 | |
| ‘So that babies get proteins’/‘biscuits are nutritious’ | None | 2 | |
| ‘When babies cry a lot’ | None | 1 | |
| I don't know | None | 5 | |
| Oral traditional medicines | ‘When the baby is ill’/‘as a cure for stomach aches and pains’/‘when it is difficult to go to the hospital for treatment’ | Question not asked | 12 |
| Thin porridge | ‘The baby is not yet able to digest heavy foods’ | 7 | 1 |
| ‘To prevent hunger’/‘when the baby is not satisfied’ | 2 | 1 | |
| ‘This is food for the baby’ | 1 | 1 | |
| ‘The baby is given thin porridge so that he begins to get used to other foods’ | 1 | ||
| ‘Porridge builds the baby's body/provides strength/makes the baby healthy/it helps’ | None | 8 | |
| ‘Some babies like to drink porridge’ | None | 1 | |
| I don't know | None | 5 |
*
A mother can give more than one response; therefore, responses do not add up to 12 for the peri‐urban mothers or 26 for the rural mothers.