The misbeliefs and food taboos during pregnancy and early infancy: a pitfall to attaining adequate maternal and child nutrition outcomes among the rural Acholi communities in Northern Uganda

BACKGROUND: In developing countries, the practice of food taboo is pervasive. The types of foods considered as taboos and the reasons attached to taboos vary from society to society. Food taboos have been recognized as one of the factors contributing to maternal undernutrition in pregnancy, especially in rural settings. In the rural Acholi community where malnutrition is prevalent, very little is known about these food taboos and misbeliefs. This study, therefore, aims to explore various misbeliefs and food taboos in the time of pregnancy that can influence maternal and child nutrition outcomes in Acholi. METHODS: A community-based qualitative cross-sectional study was conducted between April and May 2022 in five districts in the Acholi subregion. Focus group discussions (FGDs) and key informant interviews (KIIs) were used to collect data. Data transcription was done verbatim, organised into themes, assigned unique color codes, and manually analysed thematically. RESULTS: Upon scrutiny of the transcripts, three themes were eminent. The first theme focused on foods that are considered taboos in Acholi community and the reasons linked to them. Participants indicated offals, chicken, wild birds, smoked meat and fish, sugarcane, garden egg (‘Tula’), groundnut, bush meat, mushrooms, honey, sour fruits, or meals (oranges, mango, passion fruits, lemon, tamarind, ‘Malakwang’), goat’s meat, ‘Lalaa’ (the bitter green leafy vegetable), and ‘Lamola’ (Hyptis spicigera) as the major taboo foods. The second theme was the reasons underlying the adherence to the food taboos and misconceptions. Cultural dictates, individual characteristics, and societal context were the main reasons for the adherence to food taboos. The third theme looked at the misconceptions and other taboos during pregnancy. It was found that pregnant women are not allowed to touch grave soil, shave their hair, walk over an anthill, slaughter chicken or birds, have sex during pregnancy, sit on animal’s hide or skin, and/or touch needles. CONCLUSIONS: Nutritional counseling and education should focus more on addressing food taboos. The mode of delivery of the nutrition message should be inclusive, targeting pregnant women and their spouses, school-going children, adolescent girls, and cultural leaders at their respective points of contact. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s40795-023-00789-8.