Food taboos and their perceived reasons among pregnant women in Ethiopia: A Systematic review, 2022

Review question / Objective: The objective of this systematic review was to synthesize the available evidence on food taboos and their perceived reasons among pregnant women in Ethiopia to posit comprehensive and precise evidence for decision making. The systematic review has addressed the following two questions: What are the various foods considered taboos by pregnant women in Ethiopia? What are the perceived reasons for food taboos by pregnant women in Ethiopia? Condition being studied: Undernutrition among pregnant women has been one of the serious public health challenges in Ethiopia. Food taboos prevent eating certain food items thus compromising one’s dietary diversity and quality which, in turn, would lead to poor health and nutritional outcomes. Evidence shows that food taboos are largely associated with maternal and fetal malnutrition during pregnancy and could have consequences on the mothers and their children later in life. Realizing such associations between food taboos and maternal undernutrition which in turn has fatal consequences, this systematic review synthesized evidence on food taboos and their perceived reasons among pregnant women in Ethiopia.