🇨🇳 China's Super Mums | 101 East

Video Statistics and Information

Video

Captions Word Cloud

Captions

Oh welcome to 101 East I'm Steve chow after giving birth in China many new mothers and their babies spend weeks behind closed doors in an age-old tradition known as confinement strict rules govern this sensitive time but in modern China confinement is become big business and families are willing to spend thousands of dollars to ensure the ritual if done right on this episode Ella Cowan goes inside the private world of Chinese mothers to find out if confinement is medically proven or just superstition in downtown Shanghai the stage is being set the team needs to work quickly their clients fussy if he misses lunch today baby ear knees one month old and he's about to be presented to the outside world so good he's quite used to the fuss he's been cared for in an exclusive hotel for babies and mothers since the day he was born soon he'll be going home with his parents for the first time every lock of hair is kept as a memento of this special occasion it's all quite exhausting welcome to the world of luxury postnatal care in China where tradition is carried out in style nearly 1.4 billion people live in China but the birthrate is surprisingly low only twelve point three babies are born for every 1000 people having a baby is a big deal usually a once-in-a-lifetime event but you won't see mothers here showing off their newborns for at least a month a strict practice known as confinement means they're expected to stay indoors hi you kitty yeah what's your name Leila nice to meet you Laila this is Kitty Boo and her family she's our assistant producer she's not your typical Chinese mum she has two children and a third on the way do you think it's a boy or another girl I think it's another girl yeah I think here China's strict one-child policy was relaxed a couple of years ago you can officially have two kids if you're an only child yourself in Kitty's case it doesn't apply because her husband is foreign can you see the baby she said all the brain activities are normal she said the growth is good but that's the elbow Leila and hand kiddies family aren't sticklers for tradition but her mum says she never questioned the need for women to do confinement after giving birth to some woman what a mama mama-mama Telugu shadow you got shouldn't he'll shout shiny look auntie Neela though you'd sir literally means sitting the month it's deeply embedded in Chinese culture as well as staying inside women are expected to follow a strict set of rules including eating special food but kitty refused what does he really offer Samantha summer was your wife somewhere hi Sheena shimano Chinese yo no se on unless you're poor you're cheated on yeah after a bill about so what send here are you going to let go doll Halle tarantula yeah - Sheila kitty is an anomaly even today most women in China do confinement they believe their health will suffer if they don't and a growing industry is devoted to answering their every need we've come to the far outskirts of Beijing to see what confinements like it took Kitty a long time to persuade anyone to meet us it's very sensitive you know they protect the baby from anything potentially harmful no put masks I'll get up at mask so shoes off shoes off anything else I should know not to sneeze or cough and then when shall way is a confinement lady or as I like to call her a professional super mum she's hired to help new mothers do this properly and has barely left this two-room flat for 28 days she's busy preparing breakfast for the new mum soon as I said Joshua yeah y'all ready here five heads your say on tight y'all your G's you sure yeah how do you let you that I know according to traditional Chinese medicine a mother's Qi or energy force is badly depleted after childbirth and certain food helps to restore it then gone why not allow Guadalajara and how ma you go see the nigger you would have do you yeah I'd see you guys over there little bit to the crash site up se out her to other hip and cheese at all we're talking now we'll have your part in her car bomb Isis oh it's not only about food cold water is off-limits through time oh you're here is new mothers especially those who give birth naturally shouldn't touch a drink or water so pain it will affect your health because it's not good for digestion and will be a burden on their kidneys I have trouble following all the different confinement rules there are just so many but the important thing to know is that they're taken very seriously hold us home many mothers when looking back on the confinement realized they didn't pay attention to it before we Israel mijo that's why they get sick later your whole town like pin in the licks and join we are we like stomach trouble and kidney disease yo William lizard SI da Yong Yong Yong ha ha is the new mother even though it's a warm spring day she's wearing thick clothes and a woolen hat the belief is that getting a chill could lead to joint problems when she's older traditionally shatters mother-in-law would have moved in to help her with confinement but this generation of Chinese mothers don't want to live with their parents who are legitimate rain yet I think the confinement lady is professional our parents took care of babies almost 30 years ago it's been a long time and they only have experience with one child therefore living conditions and ideas of that time were different from nowadays isn't that doggone Booya Shaka relies on MS when to help her with everything even getting up in the night us all you might think confinement ladies have easy jobs but this is a really really hard job especially the first 10 to 15 days you only get to sleep 3 to 4 hours a day and it's not let you get a full stretch of sleep she costs three meals a day she doesn't have to worry about the shopping but then she does all the big thing and then the feeding also the medication for the baby when the Sun is out she also has to bring the baby to the Sun hand washing the cloth diapers cleaning up the kitchen doing the mopping she sleeps with them too she doesn't see him so she gets up in the middle of the night for each and every feed when the mother needed any help she'll be bringing water changing diaper if there's dirty clothes she'll has to change the baby everything she's doing I'm noticing she's washing in boiled water she can't use tap water yeah that's right tap water is seeing as basically not clean right so if she's rinsing dishes before she serves that to the mom she has to rinse it with fully boiled water despite all the pampering Shasha hasn't been outside for almost a month and it's starting to get to her uh looking outside the window every day but you can't go out yeah I think next week I couldn't go outside next week next week yeah do you miss being outside yes that's not the worst of it during confinement women are not supposed to shower wash their hair or brush their teeth shatter admits she only followed those rules for ten days what could hurt this awkward I think these rules are based on the living conditions of the old days in the past in China when it's cold there was no heating or hot water and a new mother was weak she might get sick if she took a bath or washed her hair corset aloha new mothers are really weak while i chat with Shasha kitty is getting the lowdown from is when well I ain't seen you it's a harmless yo irritate Leah yeah never knew her you're not higher than your heart some haha what thought our body there's your hula ILO's you hold on tight with your hard-on yeah yeah hey olan like a kind of AA nigga woogie boy we'll get a pilot Cecilia oh you then you bring it I soon fall over there no younger you are nigga yeah we're beijing the curve would you yell some local ella hole I'd have clobbered in a time no part of global is easily oh oh my ido feeding me order get through our yet it idea how some her Oh Chico Guerra okay channels look hey Lila Lila ha ha about me Shasha and her husband payments when the equivalent of two thousand six hundred US dollars for the month that's two and a half times the average salary in Beijing good confinement ladies are in high demand and Miz when has a really long waiting list these are photos of the kids I've taken care of over the past years a lot very does it go tonight all of these babies were cared for by me say my Narcy my Beijing when I started in Beijing I felt really upset when I had to leave the family I mean although now I'm more used to it it's hard for me with every single baby there's a I know they have some kids are now six or seven years old and their parents are still in contact obvious I miss them so much it's time for us to leave it seems Kitty has been won over by Miz when and the benefits of a confinement lady what do you think now do you want one I do I do I didn't want one before but after today I think I will ask her are you available yeah to have someone doing all that for you yeah maybe a right it's just easier it really is easier and also you know you meet someone like this and you know she's being properly trained and she really plans your day which means you get the biggest luxury as a new mother which is you don't have to worry kitti might be convinced but if having someone move into your home is not your thing some women choose to sit the month as only China's newly rich cat Shanghai is at the center of a growing trend luxury hotels for women during confinement kadhi Neha hello good morning Ellen good morning welcome to our postnatal Center Teresa new is the marketing manager of cheerful postnatal care center this is to make sure that everyone comes in is not having fever or anything to potentially harm the mom and child for any mom whose wish to prolong her stay in the security of a maternity ward look no further a fleet of nurses are on standby to care for the babies 24/7 behind a soundproof glass wall see the blue one the one with blue stickers our boy okay with pink one is a girl and they're all wearing uniform uh-huh the sheriff all cheerfully - so how many babies at the moment 3 6 9 12 here as if I have okay all are treated to daily massage and yoga this is olive oil edible that means even if the skin absorbs the oil that's it that is perfectly healthy so it's really like these babies are looked after by the nurses yes and then the mothers get a break yes can I ask how much parents okay yes currently it's about 36,000 and we beef to 50,000 muv okay between 6,000 and 8,000 500 US dollars hi Tracy congratulations Tracy has been here for 19 days after having her baby boy her husband Brian emigrated to Australia but they came back to China mostly because they can get so much help here what's his name Ethan Ethan well baby Ethan is being said Tracy and Ryan take us on a tour of their room home for 30 days great it's like an apartment yes like hotel or home for 30 days yeah yeah please sit down yes we type we're not so experienced we don't know how to take care of a baby and the professional people here are like giving us the knowledge and also help us and then had some hands-on experience before we actually like take off so both Tracy and Ryan were the only child in their families this is their first experience with the baby nanny girl has the giallo shushanna dirty lasagna with Chantal o swooshes Whitaker kolitar okay cool I can you are like when they are done done to annuals she jus Sasha no Papa has reaching out reaching way de Ajo Ranta like like Hawaii gtr2 what such a change in the water no wonder why you were tell me about your - Oh Chico save me you're pitching to do you imagine we're in charge or toy it's a hoarder sure you're seen actual actual chocolate comin coming power waged lunch in Botswana the show sitting at a bar - mom a curly Padre this gives Tracy time for other stuff like getting back into shape there's a term used in China Lama which means spicy mum or hot mama it refers to women who slimmed down as quickly as possible after having children cheerful offers a quick fix for this as well so you're me I can't automate routine July are now the chief nurse is going to demonstrate how to help chasey to do some light exercise you're gonna roll that on her we're going away and so a lot of women come here especially for this reason yes yes part of the reason not only the baby but also the mother themselves they want to restore themselves speaker and live a healthier life I'm not sure within that she came out to lie I think that you can watch I'm Carolee on the oh yeah mama yeah what I did is me and Ben okay it's already happened ex I don't know how you know but you didn't sell talk down to the ID window and it wouldn't be a proper confinement without the proper food gong her tongue delivers meals to new mothers including those at cheerful this is the most traditional dish for mothers during confinement pigs feet soup it's said to stimulate milk production dr. Frank Chung is famous for helping celebrity mothers get back into shape after giving birth so the broth they use is a special broth base of a soup base so these are based on some theory that I'll help you to digest quickly so you can eat a lot and still keep slimming dr. Frank's kitchens carefully measure the calories needed during confinement based on principles of Chinese medicine please see it's all some Geppetto sentiment so see how they eat during breakfast yeah goose liver for breakfast Wow to me this looks like an enormous amount of food each day for one woman but dr. Frank says it's nutritionally balanced so that women don't gain weight they're trying to make a variety of different food because there's a common belief in China that if you eat a large variety of foods per week that you have like 40 50 60 different types of food per week then you can ensure a very balanced diet in take up different attrition the average meal plan is four and a half thousand US dollars for the month but the luxury menu including abalone and lobster and a private nutritionist costs up to ten thousand a month please where's Martin Lewis dr. Frank says it's all based on science so his idea is through eating these things it helps the organ he'll go back to the old place so you don't really need the extra fat to support your organs but how do you eat to make sure the organs go back Lucas or shortly someone young Panama a pan sanguine that be over here hi wait how's your chin Eun dong Tommy Montoya consumer is much larger in size well I'm printing a sort what your language to conquer without bein away so Nate a medallion at awaits little boy on him at all you that the fan to 23rd I'm not so sure but he has a long list of celebrity clients who say it works back at cheerful Tracey and Ryan are preparing for baby Ethan swimming lesson the new parents will have to start learning how to bathe and feed Ethan they'll need to do it themselves when they check out in just over a week so do you feel ready to take him home yeah I guess so I guess we could have a train yeah it's the talking Sheba watch the postnatal Center is a place for you to have some rests and to learn yoga but eventually you have to take responsibility yourself you can't live here forever I wish I could go for the final week Traci will keep even in her room much more often and she'll have no shortage of help from her mother and mother-in-law yeah did you pick Amaya yeah cheerless and I found this out okay that's what's it's always on you I wonder what is like for them to take the baby home and all of a sudden this whole squad of people is gone hmm it's like delayed onset Parenthood yeah oh the mama so y'all should do the day yeah it really is a Disneyland for the parents I think in a way they don't really get in quick contact with reality of having a new addition of the family because everything is taken care of but this isn't the experience for the majority of women in China I think in first tier cities it's becoming more and more I mean I obviously wouldn't say that it's the majority people's choice but um it's becoming more and more common okay somehow taking care of the baby is related always to money now whereas in the old days you know it's you putting in time and efforts but now it's like I need other people and help I need money to be able to do this well uh-huh as families adapt confinement to suit modern China tradition seems to be giving way to rampant consumerism kiddies doctor is an obstetrician in one of Beijing's top hospitals I asked her which of the confinement rules make sense for mothers today no exercise I accept that this one from the science well think the uterus after baby come out is bigger then we won it become smaller and smaller with the time but if you exercise make the uterus come down with cart is kind of prolapsed and also in the asian time they say you cannot shower but cannot don't do the rash that just before you know before we see because the building before that they say is the room is not so warmer so so so that's they won't keep the woman woman what about pigs feet soup pardon the pig feet soup pit fits okay I have the soup every day fish soup our Pig fish soup oh I have no choice family cook for you to just give you soup we believe that can help but is truth maybe not choose before leaving China I go back to meet shush up for a coffee she's finally allowed outside or tried to home go further I was really happy to get out on the first day the air felt fresh and it looked pretty outside but there is one big difference compared to before now I'm always reminded of the fact that I have a little one at home so I can't stay out for too long don't worry I'm had I'm always worried about him if he's hungry if he's crying so the feeling is different anything I got a little bit hye-young shutter wasn't ready to let her confinement lady miss when leave yet she asked her to stay another month deepened it will be hard when she leaves I think that because you're getting used to having up people around you and to help you staying indoors skipping showers and pigs feet soup might not be everyone's cup of tea but confinement also means that mothers in China can expect full-time support for at least a month after childbirth and that sounds like one tradition that's worth keeping you

Info

Channel: Al Jazeera English

Views: 936,124

Rating: 4.7623296 out of 5

Keywords: Asia-Pacific, mothers, traditions, Super mums, Al Jazeera English, al Jazeera, jazeera, 101 East, asia, China, #mothersday, mothers day, mom, mother's day, happy mothers day, mommy, mother, mothers day 2017, mothers day video, mothers day ideas, 101 east china, 🇨🇳, china's super mums, 101, super, mums, china super mom, zuoyuezi, zuo yuezi pronunciation, zuo yuezi, Chinese culture, Chinese baby, chinese traditions, China's Mums, Comigama, confinement lady, confinement, Chinese mothers

Id: tgP-Qv-wlwU

Channel Id: undefined

Length: 25min 30sec (1530 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 04 2015

Reddit Comments