Sitti’s Secrets: Tips for Infant Care from the Palestinian Matriarchs of My Life

For a really long time, knowledge about childcare was passed down intergenerationally, in familial close circles with cultural habits and customs growing surrounding these practices. Before the rise of digital platforms that expedited the sharing of information on an unprecedented scale, caregivers, primarily new parents relied on the wealth of knowledge passed on through generations to care for their new child. Palestinian culture has wealth of knowledge regarding childcare, and with most of it being passed down matrilineally, I was introduced to tips & tricks for childcare from the great matriarchs in my life: my mother, both my grandmothers, my husband’s mother, and his grandmother- all of whom provided me with a plethora of tips & insights that had been passed on to them from their own mothers, and that they have in turn used in caring for their children. I followed almost every piece of advice passed on to me so far, and I wanted to write down and share my absolute favorite tried & tested tips for postpartum & childcare, so that new parents everywhere can perhaps learn from the rich Palestinian cultural heritage in caring for their own little ones.

Right after I gave birth to my now 11-month-old baby boy, I had family around at all times, with my mother staying particularly close to my side in a true Areej fashion. The list below discusses my favorite postpartum and childcare tips that I have used up until this point, all of which I was in desperate need of at the time.

The Value of a Good, Hot Bath

I remember this tip from when my mother had my youngest brother, Feras- his first bath was almost ceremonial with my mother and grandmother present. It was the first tip shared by my mother: the best way to get a baby, especially an irritated baby, down for restful sleep, was to give them a hot bath, rubbing their chests Olive Oil (more on that next), followed by feeding them on your chest, or with a bottle. It is almost like magic, and 9/10 Arafat would fall asleep after feeding, and stay asleep for a while. This is one of my all-time favorite tips, and have resorted to it many time, especially in those early weeks, when I was still meeting my brand new baby.

Remember! The bath water temperature should be extra warm but certainly not scolding. Make sure to test it with your elbow before bathing your little one.

Olive Oil, For Everything

Okay, not really, but almost! If you are a Palestinian reading this, you are probably accustomed to using Olive Oil for much more than just cooking, and childcare in Palestinian culture is no different. I had grown up using Olive Oil for personal care & felt very comfortable trying these tips, and they all worked!! I would not be surprised if Olive Oil had many more uses that I have yet to come across.

To Soothe a Newborn

I grew up with my Mama telling me to rub Olive Oil on anything that ailed me. She would respond to almost any of my physical complaints with: “ادهني زيت زيتون” (rub Olive Oil), and I did, on myself and now on my new baby. This tip went hand in hand with the hot bath, as I would always bath him, rub his chest and stomach with warm Olive Oil, wrap his chest, dress him and breastfeed him. This gave my baby such long, restful sleep. The key word here is restful, because if you know newborns, you know often their sleep is quite eventful, which is perfectly fine, but it is great to help your baby get restful sleep every once in a while.

Using warm Olive Oil on a baby’s chest and stomach is also great to soothe mild gastrointestinal discomfort and I recommend it as an addition to any home remedies for cold symptoms in a baby.

An additional tip I will put here, is to keep a newborn chest & stomach wrapped at all times, especially at night. Even if they are dressed for for a warm day, separately wrapping their chests and stomach helps keep them soothed. I am not sure why, or how, but it works, so I am passing it on to you!

To Clear a Newborn Cradle Cap (newborn dandruff)

A newborn Cradle Cap is an oily, scaly crust that can sometimes form on a baby’s scalp. It is referred to as baby dandruff because essentially that is what it looks like. It is not painful for a baby, and usually clears up on its own in the first 12 months, but there are many home remedies that can expedite the process, as well as prevent it from growing further.

Arafat’s cradle cap covered only the top-facing third of his head but after it did not show signs of clearing up in the first few months, I decided to take preventive measure and remove it. Per everyone’s, and i mean everyone’s, recommendation I tried Olive Oil, and within two baths, it was completely clear.

To try this, just cover your newborn’s cradle cap with almost a tablespoon of Olive Oil, or until it covers the whole area without creating any excess that will spill on your baby’s face later. Leave it on for a few hours, then carefully brush off the dandruff. The key to this is to leave the Olive Oil for as long as possible, as it will loosen the dandruff helping it come off with no resistance once brushed. I used the Chicco Comb Teeth Brush, but any other baby comb brush will work, just make sure it has rounded ends, so it does not hurt your baby’s scalp.

Remember! There should not be any resistance as you are trying to remove the dandruff, but you may need to find something to occupy your baby before you start. I placed Arafat in the mini ball pit that is his bed, and the brushing took close to an hour and a half as I carefully brushed the dandruff out of his hair.

Cumin for Newborn Colic

One of the hardest things for me as a new Mama was watching my little baby experience any kind of pain and Colic pain was one of the hardest. Colic is an all-encompassing term, referring to episodes of baby discomfort that are occurring in an otherwise perfectly healthy baby. Colic can be caused by different things and looks differently in each baby, but for Arafat, it was clear that his colic was gastrointestinal. At that point I was still exclusively breastfeeding, and I knew that any interventions that had to be done, had to be on my diet. Khalid’s mom then told me to try eating one tablespoon of Cumin before breastfeeding & it worked literally from the first time, I tried it! I could see that it was soothing his colic almost immediately and I loved it because it was a quick, rather tasty intervention. His colic slowly subsided, and we do not see it these days, but i used this trick often, especially since a spoonful of cumin is a surprisingly good snack.

Remember! while Cumin is a perfectly fine spice for babies to eat, it is definitely not recommended to be fed to a newborn.

Baby Stretches for Newborn Gas

Newborns are gassy, not a lot but there are many times when you will find your newborn bloated which can cause them mild discomfort. A great way to alleviate this comfort in newborn was introduced to me by Khalid’s grandmother, who I have since witness do this technique on every baby that sits on her lap.

To try this, place the baby on your lap, or on a bed across from you, and slowly and carefully fold their legs in an upwards motion towards their stomach, then slowly releasing them back. Babies will generally release gas right away, or after a few attempts.

Remember! Newborns, while resilient, are delicate, so be careful not be too forceful, and if gas is not released take a break and try later.

Superfoods for Breastfeeding

Transitioning into breastfeeding was probably one of the most overwhelming parts of my motherhood experience, it was new, and it was happening inside my body and I had to make adjustments accordingly. One of the most important adjustments I had to make, especially at the beginning, was watching what I eat and drink, and trying to focus on foods that will help me in producing the amount of milk my baby needed. Below are my favorite tips for boosting and maintaining my milk supply, which I used at various stages. These all-work magic, but I must say, I did not stick to these too strictly as time went by and today, at the 11-month mark, while I still breastfeed through the night, my focus is just on having a diverse diet.

Moghle

Moghle is a rice pudding spiced with anise, cinnamon & caraway. The dish is native to the Levant region and is traditionally prepared to celebrate the arrival of a new baby, and breastfeeding mothers are advised to continue eating it as they breastfeed, mostly because it contains caraway & anise seeds, both of which help boost a breastfeeding mother’s milk supply.

I remember walking home after my birth, and my mother had filled my entire fridge with little bowls of Moghle, which she insisted I eat for its benefit, even though Moghle is not my personal favorite. I do not have my own recipe, but I found this wonderful Moghle recipe if you want to try it!

Qizha

Qizha is probably the most Palestinian dish on this list. I struggled to find a way to explain its unique taste, but I will borrow this surprisingly accurate description I found which distinguishes Qizha as “a richly bitter and pungent shiny black paste of roasted nigella seeds with just a hint of sweet creaminess that surprises all the senses.” And that is exactly what it is. Nigella Seeds are referred to here as Habet Al-Baraka, or the Seeds of Blessing, and are widely believed to have medicinal properties, and so you will find people here consuming Qizha all the time.

My grandmother prepared me Qizha in celebration of my birth, a tradition on both sides of my family. I had grown up with it and never really liked it, but I gave it another try, and while I still struggled to digest the flavor, its effect on my breast milk supply was evident, so I definitely recommend you give it a shot! Here is a fun video with the recipe for Qizha Pie, one of the best ways to eat Qizha.

Halawe, or Halva

Halawe is another dessert native to the Levant region, and widely popular amongst Palestinians, with Nablus city being particularly famous for its rendition of the delicious classic. Halawa is similar to fudge in texture and its star ingredient is Tahini paste or ground up Sesame Seeds which provide new Mamas with a source of Calcium, Omega-3 & Protein that are easily absorbed by the body. It’s almost like a superfood for new Mamas! In fact, new mothers in Palestine are encouraged to eat a tablespoon of Halawa mixed with a tablespoon of Qizha every day for its nutritional value, particularly in the first few weeks postpartum.

I do not have a recipe for Halawe, but I found this great video that looks delicious! In fact, I might just head over to my fridge right now for some Halawe, because it is so delicious, I always have some around.

Lactation Cookies

Lactation Cookies are in not particularly Palestinian, but I want to include them in this list because they were my go-to superfood for boosting my milk supply. They were quick to make, with my sister also making me batches of them sporadically, and therefore were my favorite. Lactation cookies are basically just Oatmeal cookies made with Whole Oats and contain Flaxseed, both of which help boost milk production. I will be sharing my sister’s DELICIOUS recipe for Lactation cookies in my next post, so be on the lookout for that!

These are just some of the many many Palestinian traditions for childcare, and as Arafat gets older I sure I will encounter much more of this rich cultural heritage. While I tend to approach tradition with (not-so-quiet) reserve, I found so much comfort in the practices I described above; they truly helped me which is why I am sharing them with you today, in the hopes that many more can learn from this wonderful and rich Palestinian cultural heritage.