Birth practices of Nigerian women: A literature review

Abstract

This literature review was carried out in the UK to explore the cultural practices of Nigerian women during pregnancy and childbirth both within and outside their indigenous community, in order to highlight aspects of birth practices that may serve to enhance their health and wellbeing or to constrain these. Literature was sourced from journals of related disciplines. To encapsulate current knowledge and broaden the scope of the literature review, only articles published within the last 2 decades were selected for this review. Themes drawn from the literature review sum up core beliefs and practices of Nigerian women in childbirth and uncover existing knowledge on the topic in relation to: beliefs and traditions through the birth continuum, the influence of culture on birth practices and beliefs within and outside their indigenous community, challenges of culture to maternal adaptation and/or transition to motherhood in terms of migration and acculturation, the value of motherhood and children in Nigerian culture, social support or the lack of it, religion and spirituality and the interplay of these in their birth experiences. These themes bear relevance to Nigerian women's experience of pregnancy, birth and maternity care experience both within and outside of their home country.