Exploring Traditional Weaning practices in North Western Nigeria; Food, Knowledge and Culture: A Step towards Safeguarding Community Food Security

Abstract

For many women in Nigeria who practice exclusive breast feeding, the weaning period is a crucial time. This is when children are introduced to solid food and such dietary change can be challenging for them, but also for care givers who are saddled with the responsibility of providing sufficient and nutritious food that would support healthy development. At this period, many women in rural communities utilize traditional foods of various kinds as weaning food. This paper highlights traditional food used by care givers in Makarfi Local Government Area (LGA) during weaning and the cultural teachings attached to weaning practices. Semi-structured interviews were conducted for 60 women who were purposefully selected from the ten districts in Makarfi LGA in Kaduna state, Nigeria because of their status as care givers. Results show that 95% of the participants derive their knowledge about foods used for weaning through cultural teachings that has been passed down through generations, while 5% got information from health practitioners. Some of the traditional foods used for weaning purposes include gyeda (Arachis hypoaea) and gero (Sorghum bicolar). This study reinforces the importance of traditional food and knowledge; and the need to take into consideration cultural practices when making food security policies.