Can I wash my hair during the confinement period? What are the taboos during the confinement period?

After giving birth, women have to stay in confinement. There are many taboos during confinement, such as not being able to take a bath or wash your hair for a month, not being able to eat anything with eyes, eating sesame oil, and a series of other things. However, there is no such thing as confinement in the West, so why are they still very healthy? Do we really have to follow the taboos during confinement?

Can I wash my hair during confinement?

[1. Can’t wash your hair during confinement? ]

Traditional concept: Postpartum women are weak and their pores are dilated. If they wash their hair, it is easy for evil wind to invade their bodies. Especially since the head is where all the meridians converge, it is easy to get a headache commonly known as "monthly wind" when the cold wind blows.

Modern practice: Blow dry your hair immediately after washing it. It is best to dry it in the bathroom before leaving. In winter, you can turn on the heater and keep the indoor temperature at 26 degrees to avoid the occurrence of wind in the month.

[2. Should I drink rice wine during confinement? ]

Traditional concept: In the early days, water came from wells or rivers, and the water quality was poor. In order to prevent the mother from becoming weaker after drinking it, rice wine would be added to the water and boiled to disinfect it and keep the water clean.

Modern practice: Drinking water has a variety of choices such as RO water, activated carbon water, and negative ion water. They are all fully filtered and disinfected, so there is no need to worry too much about the quality. Just pay attention to warm water and avoid cold water. Water is very important for pregnant women, as it can promote the discharge of waste in the body and help metabolism.

【3. Should I eat sesame oil chicken during confinement? 】

Traditional concept: Sesame oil chicken can help the uterus contract, and ginger can warm the stomach and drive away the cold.

Modern method: Sesame oil chicken is generally hot and dry, so it is not suitable for everyone. In addition, the cooking process involves sautéing and quick stir-frying, which can have a negative impact on postpartum women. It can easily cause inflammation and affect wound recovery. It is best to eat it after all the lochia has been discharged, and in moderation.

[4. Is it better to drink more Shenghua Tang during confinement? ]

Traditional concept: Shenghua Tang promotes uterine contraction and helps discharge lochia. Many elders believe that the more Shenghua Tang a daughter-in-law drinks, the better.

Modern practice: Obstetricians and gynecologists usually prescribe uterine contraction drugs to mothers, so it is best to wait until the uterine contraction drugs are finished before drinking Shenghua Tang, and do not take them at the same time. As for how many doses of Shenghua Tang to drink, usually 5 to 7 doses are enough for natural births, and only 3 to 5 doses are enough for caesarean sections, but it is safer to consult a Chinese medicine practitioner for the correct amount.

It is safer to take supplements during confinement and consult a doctor based on your physical condition

If you need to take supplements during the confinement period, you must consider your physical condition. If you are deficient in Qi, you should take Qi supplements; if you are deficient in blood, you should take blood supplements; if you are deficient in spleen, you should take spleen supplements. Do not eat a certain ingredient immediately after hearing that it is very nutritious. It is recommended that you consult a Chinese medicine practitioner before giving birth, so that you can rest assured to adjust after giving birth.

What are the taboos during confinement?

1. Avoid eating too much MSG

In order to prevent zinc deficiency in babies, new mothers should avoid excessive consumption of MSG. Generally speaking, it is beneficial and harmless for adults to eat MSG, but it is not good for babies, especially those under 12 weeks old, if breastfeeding mothers eat excessive MSG while taking a high-protein diet, because the sodium glutamate in MSG will enter the baby's body through breast milk.

Excessive sodium glutamate has a serious impact on the development of infants, especially those under 12 weeks old. It can specifically combine with zinc in the infant's blood to produce glutamate that cannot be absorbed by the body, while the zinc is excreted in the urine, thus leading to zinc deficiency in the infant. In this way, the infant is not only prone to poor taste and anorexia, but also may suffer from adverse consequences such as intellectual impairment, growth retardation, etc.

2. Avoid taking ginseng in a hurry

Some new mothers are eager to take ginseng after giving birth to replenish their bodies. In fact, it is harmful rather than beneficial for new mothers to take ginseng to replenish their bodies. Ginseng contains a variety of effective ingredients, which can produce a wide range of excitatory effects on the human body. Among them, the excitatory effect on the central nervous system of the human body can cause the user to experience insomnia, irritability, restlessness and other adverse reactions. New mothers who have just given birth have consumed a lot of energy and physical strength and need to rest in bed. If they take ginseng at this time, it will be difficult to sleep due to excitement, which will affect the recovery of energy.

Ginseng is a medicine that replenishes vitality, promotes blood circulation, and accelerates blood flow. This is very unfavorable for new mothers who have just given birth. Because during childbirth, the blood vessels of the internal and external genitals are often damaged. Taking ginseng may affect the self-healing of damaged blood vessels, causing bleeding or even heavy bleeding.

Therefore, new mothers should not take ginseng within one week after giving birth. Seven days after giving birth, the wounds of new mothers have healed. Taking some ginseng at this time will help them recover their physical strength. But do not take too much. Ginseng is hot and can cause new mothers to get angry or cause babies to have food fever. It is best for new mothers to eat a variety of foods to supplement nutrition.

3. Avoid drinking a lot of boiled water

Generally, new mothers will experience edema in the late stages of pregnancy, and the postpartum confinement period is the golden period for physical recovery. During this period, all the accumulated water in the body should be discharged as much as possible. If you drink a lot of water, it may not be conducive to physical recovery.

If the mother who has a cesarean section may need to take some medication, she still needs to drink an appropriate amount of water, but do not drink a large amount of water at one time. Instead, drink the appropriate amount in several times.

4. Avoid sour and salty foods

Acidic and salty foods can easily cause water to accumulate, which affects the body's water elimination. In addition, the sodium ions in salty foods can easily increase the viscosity of the blood, which affects metabolism and slows blood circulation. It is best for new mothers to avoid acidic and salty foods during confinement.

Some new mothers drink vinegar to lose weight quickly. In fact, this is not a good idea. Because all parts of a new mother's body are relatively weak, they need a recovery process, and they are very vulnerable to damage during this period. Acidic foods can damage teeth and leave new mothers with the legacy of easy toothache in the future. Vinegar contains about 3% to 4% acetic acid. If it is only used as a condiment, the contact time with teeth is very short, so it will not cause any adverse effects in the body, and it can also promote appetite. Therefore, there is no need to contraindicate vinegar as a condiment. Overly salty foods have the effect of reducing milk production. Today, when breastfeeding is advocated, new mothers should have a lighter taste.

5. Avoid eating too many eggs

Medical research shows that it is best not to eat eggs within a few hours after delivery. Because during the delivery process, the new mother consumes a lot of physical energy, sweats a lot, lacks body fluids, and the digestive ability decreases accordingly. If you eat eggs immediately after delivery, it will be difficult to digest and increase the gastrointestinal burden. Within a few hours after delivery, it is advisable to eat a semi-liquid or liquid diet. During the entire puerperium period, according to the national nutritional standards for pregnant and new mothers, about 100 grams of protein is needed every day. Therefore, eating 3 to 4 eggs a day is enough. Excessive consumption of eggs will also increase the gastrointestinal burden and even easily cause stomach problems.

6. Avoid hard, rough, and cold foods

The spleen and stomach functions of new mothers have not yet fully recovered. Excessively cold food will damage the spleen and stomach and affect digestion. Raw and cold food can easily cause blood stasis, which can cause abdominal pain and postpartum lochia. In addition, new mothers should try not to eat leftovers that have been stored for a long time. New mothers should also avoid eating foods that are prone to allergies, such as seafood, otherwise they are prone to allergies or bacterial infections, which will directly affect the health of breastfeeding babies. However, fresh fruits are not included in the "taboos". Fruits have the function of promoting appetite, helping digestion and excretion, so there is no need to avoid eating them because they are "too cold". In addition, fruits placed indoors will not be so cold as to stimulate the digestive organs of new mothers and affect their health.

7. Avoid eating too much brown sugar

Brown sugar is rich in nutrition, releases energy quickly, has high nutrient absorption rate, and has warming and tonic properties. After giving birth, new mothers lose some blood and are weak, so they need to quickly replenish a large amount of trace elements and proteins such as iron, calcium, manganese, zinc, etc. Brown sugar also contains "Motherwort" ingredients, which can promote uterine contraction, discharge postpartum intrauterine congestion, and promote early recovery of the uterus. After giving birth, new mothers lose a lot of vitality and are weak. Eating some brown sugar can nourish qi and blood, strengthen the spleen and warm the stomach, dispel wind and cold, and promote blood circulation and blood stasis.

However, new mothers should not eat too much brown sugar because it has so many benefits, thinking that the more the better. Drinking too much brown sugar water will not only damage the new mother's teeth, but also brown sugar is warm in nature. If new mothers drink too much brown sugar water in summer, they will sweat faster, make the body weaker, and even suffer from heat stroke. In addition, brown sugar water should be boiled before drinking, and should not be used immediately after boiling, because brown sugar is prone to bacteria during storage and transportation, which may cause diseases.