Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

Taboo During Pregnancy

Satisfactory Essays
489 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Taboo During Pregnancy
Taboo during pregnancy

Apart for the taboos in daily life, there are also has the taboos for pregnant in Malay culture. These taboos are important for the safety of the pregnant woman and her foetus.

There are several advice and taboos that must be followed by the pregnant woman. For example, they are not allowed to hit and hurt the animal because it is concern that it will cause the baby be handicap. Thus, pregnant women should watch their words while talking, they are forbidden to talk about the illness of somebody else. If she does so, the unborn baby will develop disabilities.

They are prohibited to use abusive language, quarrel, doing slander and fight with others especially with their mother-in-law, because those behaviours are believed to have an effect on the unborn baby, they will suffer difficulties when delivering their babies during childbirth. Malay community also believed that this can prevent pregnant women from having a complicated life in future if they comply with this taboo. In fact, the purpose of this taboo is to create the respect for the elders.

On the other hand, pregnant women are forbidden to go out at dusk to prevent from being disturbed by ghost. They are forbidden to see the moon or sun eclipse because it might make the baby handicap or have dark skin

Pregnant woman is not allowed to soak her clothes overnight as it is afraid her body will be bloated during childbirth. During pregnancy, woman are forbidden to make laugh, insult of other people, because they think that the characters of these people will be found in her new born baby. In addition, pregnant women are also not allowed to put off the embers of any fire as if is afraid her new born baby will have a dark future. Besides, they were also discouraged from going to a funeral or watching anything frightening, strange, so as not to shock the unborn baby.

Besides form the taboo stated earlier, there are also have taboos for husband of a pregnant woman, such as: husband of pregnant women are prohibited to blow flute or any other wind-instrumental, because it is afraid that the child will always cry if their husband play this kind of instrumental. Not only that, they are also forbidden to hit or kill the animal such as snake; because they think that the baby will be handicaps, disability and seems look like the particular animal which their husband had killed or hit those animal before.

About the taboo of food for pregnant women in Malay culture, they are not allowed to eat certain types of food like squids and ray fish. It is believed that these foods may poison the foetus of the baby. Other than that, pineapple and young papaya are also prohibited by pregnant women in Malay community, it is believed to cause miscarriage after eat this kind of fruit.

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Long before we had Obstetrics and Gynecology, many women of those times died in child birth. Most of the deaths from child birth could have been related to convulsion, dehydration, infection, etc… Being that most women of that time spent most of their adult lives pregnant and having multiple births, this increased the likelihood of their demise.…

    • 319 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    HSM 542 Week 3 Assignment

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In some ethical and legal respects a pregnant woman and her fetus can be considered separate. Both the woman and the fetus are ordinarily affected by the well-being of one another for as long as each of them live. The ethical and legal issues are challenged deeply in cases where the well-being of the fetus and the mother appear to be in conflict. Our society struggles with identifying cases where the pregnant woman’s interests and/or behaviors might put her fetus at risk. Criminal and/or civil commitments should be used to bar pregnant women from exposing their fetuses to risk.…

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Qualitative Critique

    • 2506 Words
    • 8 Pages

    AbstractAbstract covers the required information provide clear understanding of the topic explaining methods, finding, and basic purpose of the study and final comments given in concluding part. The information found within the research study is accurate but incomplete and outdated. An adequate critique on this topic of pregnancy and protection must begin ultimately from the socially radical recognition that the only scientifically verifiable differences between men and women are in the mechanics of biological reproduction, and that all other apparent differences are therefore caused by cultural and social conditioning.…

    • 2506 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Course of Pregnancy (length of pregnancy, delivery date, method of delivery, length of labor, complications, baby’s…

    • 2568 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are millions of people that populate our country and within these people there are several cultures. All of these cultures have their own set of values and beliefs when it comes to medial treatment. As nurses it is our duty to understand the specific beliefs of a culture and to respect their culture when giving them care. This paper discusses the specific customs of Chinese culture in regards to pregnancy with specific information on prenatal, labor and delivery, and postpartum rituals.…

    • 894 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    During pregnancy that are existing factors that can affect the development of the foetus and that can bring health and other problems when the child is born, which the child can carry for the rest of her/his life, these biological influences before birth can determinate our development throughout our life. Examples of this can be a mother that smoke’s while she is pregnant are more likely to have a child who weight less than normal and also the child might have learning difficulties. If a mother consume a large amount of alcohol it can affect the child as well, the consequences of heavy consumption of alcohol during pregnancy in the child are, they tend to be smaller and have head smaller than normal, also heart defects and learning difficulties, the consumption of drugs during pregnancy can also damage child in the womb.…

    • 1423 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Business of Being Born

    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages

    There is a culture of “women-only” that runs rampant in spaces for pregnant women. Much of the talk is about how valuable women find the support of other women. It also excludes men from the process and experience of pregnancy, as much as they can experience it. Overall the film focuses on the fact that women have been told they’re not responsible for their birth.…

    • 693 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Antebellum Period

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Women feared pregnancy and birth during the Antebellum era, contrary to the belief women hold in the twenty-first century. The physicians in the Antebellum South knew little regarding female reproductive health, and their ignorance resulted in many complications: puerperal fever, inability to breastfeed, and prolapse uterus. The fear was not only caused by after birth plights; slaveowners disregarded pregnancy and birth, heightening the previous fear. Owners forced slaves to work while pregnant and utilized whips on slave women (Sullivan 24, 26). Due to the stress induced by the slave owners, slaves endured a high rate of spontaneous abortions, stillbirths, and deaths after birth (Digital History 1). The impotent doctors of the antebellum period…

    • 286 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    For a vast majority of women, pregnancy is a magical time, one filled with awe and wonder. Pregnant women tend to take better care of themselves, making sure that they are providing the best environment for their growing child. Some women, however, do just the opposite and do not take care of themselves and thus harm the unborn child in their womb.…

    • 938 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Women’s health is a topic of actuality worldwide. Women from every nation are prone to follow their family traditions during their pregnancy and delivery of their babies. Sometimes these traditions leave both mother and babies in great danger. Upon assessment, those of the Haitian culture are often diagnosed as high risk cases when they seek prenatal care. The concept of “high risk” or “low risk” are based on observations, interviews, and interactions with people of a particular culture or group and statistics are used to compare them with other groups or cultures before drawing a conclusion. Analysis of Haitian women point out why they are considered as high risk during childbearing ages and inclusion of culture explain why midwifes often…

    • 1675 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    Punishing Women for their Behavior during Pregnancy: An Approach That Undermines Women’s Health and Children’s Interests. Centre for Reproductive Rights. September 2000. Web. 1May 2013…

    • 2287 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Pregnancy in the workplace is a fundamental human rights issue of equality of opportunity between women and men. Women should not suffer negative consequences in the workplace simply because they are pregnant. Workplace rules and job functions may affect a pregnant employee differently than other employees. For example, in this case, the employer refused to hire the job applicant who was pregnant for 7 months, because of the period of her pregnancy and that she would not be able to carrying heavy supplies from delivery vans into the kitchen, although she was willing to carry moderately heavy ones. This example shows the job applicant receiving differential treatment and negative consequences.…

    • 1393 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    However, in 1978, US Congress introduced the Pregnancy Discrimination Act. This newly passed law became an important aspect of civil rights. It requires employers to provide pregnant women with the same respect and consideration as other workers with medical issues. It regulates hiring/firing procedures, ensuring women that work will be available to them as long as they are healthy and able to perform their basic job…

    • 312 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Equality Act 2010

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Pregnancy and Maternity: Discrimination of women on the grounds of pregnancy or maternity during pregnancy and any maternity period is prohibited under the Act.…

    • 274 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Unit 18 Babies Development

    • 3936 Words
    • 16 Pages

    Antenatal factors are also important to the baby such as certain foods like Camembert cheese can severely harm the baby, other illnesses like rubella can be detrimental to the unborn child’s health in the first 12-16 weeks as it can cause a miscarriage, still birth and defects such as brain damage, hearing loss and cataracts. Narcotics and alcohol can damage the child’s development during pregnancy,…

    • 3936 Words
    • 16 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics