Abstract

PIP: Anthropologic research conducted among the Wagogo, a semipastoral people in central Tanzania, elaborated the critical role that mothers play in the growth and development of their infants during the periods of breast feeding and weaning. 114 mothers recruited from a local health facility were interviewed. Most breast-fed infants are provided with additional foods after 3-4 months, but breast feeding on demand continues. The first traditional baby food is a thin soup of millet flour and water. Over time, more ingredients are added to the gruel and it is thickened. At about 12 months, the infant is given uwugali--a stiff sorghum or millet porridge that is the staple of the adult diet. Many children are completely weaned at 24-30 months for a range of reasons: desire for another pregnancy, the general developmental level of the child, the mother's assessment that her milk supply is dwindling. The weaning process lasts just 1 day. Mothers often place noxious substances on their breasts to repel the child or tell the child an animal defecated on her breasts. When possible, weaning occurs during the rainy season when more food is available. Immediate weaning also occurs if a mother violates the postpartum sex taboo and becomes pregnant again.