"The main reason women continue to lay-in for a month after childbirth is tradition,”said Dr Zhou Li, an obstetrician from Beijing United Family Hospital. "China has 5,000 years of history, and traditions are very strong.”
If women do not receive sufficient nutrition, she added, a pregnancy can drain their bodies of what they need to remain healthy. So, it is very important that a woman take good care of her health during the month after childbirth. “Previously, women may not have had the facilities to bathe at home, or heating or hot water, so they risked getting ill if they washed in such conditions while they were still weak.”
The tradition of not leaving the house during that month has great medical value suggests Dr Zhou. "In the past, few dairyproducts were available in China, and many Chinese are lactose intolerant,’‘she said. "Therefore, during pregnancy and after childbirth, women lack calcium. That leaves them vulnerable to osteoporosis later in life. Not being out in the cold or the wind protects them while they are particularly vulnerable." She continued "During pregnancy, hormones change in a woman's body. Her muscles and ligaments become loose to prepare for delivery, and so it is true her joints are not well protected after childbirth. It is easy for her to get hurt. Bed rest is a way to ensure good heath." Chinese women's living conditions have improved a lot, particularly in the big cities, and many women have healthy, nutritional diets, but the tradition of not washing or going out or a month remains.
