Comparative Analysis on Safe Traditional Practices by Iraqi and Philippine Mothers in the Treatment of Newborn Health Problems: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Background: Traditional practices are usually derived from the relationships with the environment and human attitude towards nature. Various societies, especially in developing nations, have unsafe traditional practices for newborns, traditionally associated with poverty, low educational levels, religiosity, culture, and by word of mouth intergenerationally handed over advice by elders in the families. Objectives: This narrative review points out the prevalence, cultural significance, and health implications of unsafe traditional newborn care practices in Iraq and the Philippines. Methods: Literature was searched in PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Google. All iterations searched literature among mothers whose neonates were at issues, favoring traditional techniques rather than modern medicine—a total of 51 articles to be reviewed from articles published from 2019 to June 2024. Results: The following ten critical themes of unsafe practices were identified: care of the umbilical cord, feeding, traditional healing, bathing rituals, circumcision, swaddling, and treatments for gastrointestinal, respiratory, and eye problems, besides newborn isolation and practices of exposure. All these practices are comparatively prevalent in the rural setup and are ingrained in the fabric of cultural beliefs and traditions. These could include exposure to infection, complications, developmental delays, and neonatal mortality. The practices have also been associated with the perpetuation of poverty, low literacy levels, and cultural backgrounds. Conclusion: This review indicates that interventions towards these problems have to be multi-faceted. Multiple dimensions can be integrated into evidence-based interventions to improve education and economic opportunities, engagement with religious and cultural leaders, health system strengthening, fomenting research, and community engagement to develop culturally relevant solutions linking tradition and evidence-based care to improve newborn health outcomes.