Lying-in

I was on a subway with some of my Chinese friends when one of them grabbed his camera and shot the picture to the right. “It looks like you just had a baby!” he said with a roar of laughter. I had absolutely no idea what he was talking about. Was he still drunk from the night before? Did I look fat? Was it the way I was standing or the expression on my face? Did I have placenta hanging out of my pocket? Nope. It turns out that basically the only people in China who wear hats like the one I was wearing that day are post-partum women. Still confused? Well, let me introduce you to the traditional convention of 坐月子, also known as the ‘month of confinement,’ ‘lying-in,’ or literally, ‘to sit for the month immediately following birth.’

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) is a set of theories and principles, body of knowledge, and system of healing that has been around for thousands of years and still remains mainstream across much, if not all of China. The TCM ritual of - and practices surrounding - the month of rest after birth is a great example of this ancient philosophy at work in modern China. Young mothers today, in urban as well as rural settings, are apparently still quite likely to follow the advice of the 坐月子 period. Recommendations, which are taken from this website and corroborated by many friends, include (in Chinese):

1）不能吹风，因为产后气血虚弱、筋骨松弛，风寒湿邪易趁虚而入，引起感冒、风湿、关节酸痛、腹泻等疾病。
2）不能洗头，着凉以后容易头痛。
3）不能流泪或长时间大量阅读，否则会伤害视力。所以阅读时姿势要正确、时间不要太长、光线要充足，不看悲伤、火暴或是情绪激烈的内容，最重要是不影响休息，因为若没有适度的休息，容易造成出血难止、腰酸腹痛、精神不济。
4）尽量不沾水，也不能吃稀饭、牛奶、果汁等，不然将来会患风湿病或神经痛。
5）不能吃生冷的食物。因为产后体质较差，生冷食物吸收不好容易影响身体恢复和通过母乳影响婴儿肠胃。

A quick translation into English of these recommendations:

1) Don’t catch a chill or rest in breezy places. Your vital energy is lacking and your body is weak during the post-partum period, so it’s easy to get cold, which in turn will generate symptoms such as rheumatism, sore joints, diarrhea, etc.
2) Don’t wash your hair; after getting gold it’s easy to get a headache.
3) Don’t cry or read for a long time, otherwise you will hurt your eyesight. Also, while you read, be sure to sit with correct posture and have ample light. Additionally, don’t read anything with content that’s sad, fiery, or emotionally intense. This is all because you don’t want to negatively affect your body at this time and if you don’t get appropriate rest it’s easy to start hemorrhaging, have abdominal pain, and lose energy.
4) Do your best to not come into contact with water or eat/drink porridge, milk, juice, etc. Otherwise, you will likely suffer from rheumatism or neuralgia (pain produced by a change in neurological structure or function).
5) Avoid eating anything raw or cold. Your body is especially weak after birth; eating raw and cold foods will negatively affect your body’s recovery and will potentially cause your breast milk to disturb your baby’s intestines and stomach.

Apparently, part of the first recommendation above is to wear a hat at all times during this period. This online forum illustrates one expecting mother’s distress at the idea of being forced by her parents to wear long pants, a long-sleeve shirt, and a hat during the summer. However, thankfully so, those responding to her worries remind her it’s not the hat that is so important, but rather staying warm and avoiding open windows, air conditioning, electric fans, etc.

It’s truly amazing how divergent Western and Eastern philosophies of medicine and health are. I believe it’s only of benefit to apply the scientific method of inquiry to these ancient Chinese beliefs/traditions and adopt what works. The future of health will be found at the interface of these two bodies of knowledge. While advanced medical technologies are indispensible in our battle against illness and pursuit of longevity, sometimes a hat is all you need. There’s no denying that ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.’