‘ MSU LIBRARIES RETURNING MATERIALS: Place in book drop to remove this checkout from your record. FINES wiII be charged if book is returned after the date stamped be10w. 1h“ ‘ . 5:1 I ‘ .— .1 ;( 2/1": \ 1 THE PROBLEM OF BREAST-FEEDING AND WEANING IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD By Renate de Kleine A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Geography 1983 © Copyright by RENATE DE KLEINE 1983 ABSTRACT THE PROBLEM OF BREAST-FEEDING AND WEANING IN THE DEVELOPING WORLD BY Renate de Kleine This study addresses the problem of infant ‘nutrition and health in the developing world, and is set in Belize. Specifically, it investigates the attitude and behavior of Belizean mothers towards breast-feeding and weaning and the relationship between these and one major cause of infant morbidity and mortality, gastro-enteritis. The study presents data obtained from a survey of five major culture groups: Maya, Creole, Carib, Mestizo and Mennonite. Data on infant nutrition and weaning are organized to show the sequence of specific feeding behavior of 181 mothers during the first year of life of their babies. Data are analyzed both within and among the five culture groups, and with reference to a set of socio- cultural variables. Weanling diarrhoea was found to be affected by weaning age, but also by weaning practice, such as the choice of foods. The effect of specific foods is presented in terms of how they prevent or promote good health. The study data confirm that early introduction of starchy foods, common in Belize, leads to a higher incidence of gastro-enteritis. For the children of Belize iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many people have contributed to the realization of this study. I should like to take this opportunity and give special recognition to those individuals to whom I am particularly indebted. First and foremost I thank my advisor, Dr. John M. Hunter, for his never-ceasing encouragement and support throughout the entire time of preparation of this study. Without his personal counsel and professional guidance the experience of this work would not have been mine. I also thank the members of my committee, Dr. Daniel Jacobson and Dr. Gary Manson, for their helpful comments and suggestions. I deeply appreciate their continued interest. J. Michael Lipsey, Staff Cartographer of the Department of Geography, prepared the maps for this study. I acknowledge the quality and art of his contribution. I thank Dr. and Mrs. John Snell for their many expressions of hospitality and their helpful advice about Belize. They generously shared their intimate experience 0f Belize with me, as did Mrs. J. Jervis Jones. I am.particu1arly grateful for the support of Mr. IDavid Gibson, Assistant Permanent Secretary of Health in iv Belize, who granted approval for the study and introduced me to other divisions in the Medical Department. I express my appreciation for helpful suggestions and assistance to Dr. William Hawley, Medical Officer; Nurse Grace Collymore, Principal Public Health Nurse; Nurse Joyce Findley, Inspector of Midwives; Nurse Patricia Benguche, Assistant Principal Public Health Nurse who also generously shared the results of her own research with me; Mrs. Elaine Clarke, Medical Statistician; and Mr. James Waight, Census Officer. During the course of my field work I encountered many people who not only made the work possible but helped by providing valuable insights. I acknowledge the assis- tance of Mrs. Arzu; Nurse Innocenta Chun, P. H. N.; Mrs. Bernadette Corneho; Mr. Ray Davis; Nurse Mary Lewis; Mr. Eugene Martinez, Mayor of Punta Gorda; Nurse Dorla McKenzie, P. H. N.; Miss Lourdes Navarette; Nurse Meli Osorio, R. H. N.; Nurse Carmela Palma, P. H. N.; Mr. Martin Petillo; Nurse Elisabeth Reimers; Nurse Armandina Simmons, P. H. N.; and Miss Margaret Zuniga. I also thank Nurse Meli Osorio and Miss Lourdes Navarette for their assistance with translation. For most generous hospitality I am sincerely grate- ful to Mrs. Eva Maheia in Punta Gorda, the Martin Penner family and the Tony Plett family in Spanish Lookout, the Osorio family in Orange Walk Town and Mrs. Armandina Simmons in San Ignacio de Cayo. V tits. Emerita Vasquez, Dietitian of the Belize Medical TDepartment, provided me with advice not only during the course of the field work but also graciously agreed to read the manuscript. I thank her for her infinite care and interest in my work. While acknowledging the contributions of the above- named persons, I retain full responsibility for the contents of this thesis. One lady helped me and my study in ways too numerous to mention. She guided me through my Belizean experience from the first day to the last - Mrs. Peggy Fuller Menzies. Thank you for everything! I am grateful to my parents, Dr. and Mrs. W. K. Herbert Schuster, not only for their interest, but also for their financial contribution in carrying out the study. Finally, I thank my husband and my children, Angie and Annette, for sharing me for so long with 181 Belizean babies. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page LIST OF TABLES . . . . . . . . ix LIST OF FIGURES . . . . . . . . xi CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . 1 Historical Development of Infant Feeding 1 Composition of Breast Milk and Cow's Milk with respect to Infant Feeding . . 4 Statement of the Problem . . . . 14 II. LAND, HISTORY, PEOPLES, AND ECONOMY A BRIEF OVERVIEW . . . . . . 21 The Land . . . . . . . . 21 The History . . . . . 40 The Pre- Columbian Period . . . . 40 The European Period . . . . . 44 The Peoples . . . . . . . 56 The Economy . . . . . . . 79 III. FIELD METHODOLOGY . . . . . . 93 IV. INTRA-ETHNIC ANALYSIS . . . . . 103 Profile of the Maya . . . . . 103 The Maya Sample . . . . . . 120 Profile of the Creoles . . . . . 131 The Creole Sample . . . . . . 145 Profile of the Caribs . . . . . 162 The Carib Sample . . . . . 169 Profile of the Mestizos . . . . 179 The Mestizo Sample . . . . 189 Profile of the Mennonites . . . . 202 The Mennonite Sample . . . . . 213 vii Chapter Page V. INTER-ETHNIC ANALYSIS . . . . . 221 Breast-Feeding and Weaning Behavior . 228 Weaning and Castro-Enteritis . . . 242 Weaning Foods and Castro-Enteritis . 246 VI. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . 253 Recommendations . . . . . . 263 ANNEX QUESTIONNAIRE . . . . . . 272 BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . . . . . 280 viii Table \OG)\l0\U1-l-\UON n: he rd P‘ rd rd ha ha id P‘ rd c: \o (w \l 0‘ Ln .b u) ho rd <3 LIST OF TABLES Distribution of Interviews by District and Group Maya Parity Maya Deceased Children . Maya Breast-Feeding/Weaning History Creole Parity Creole Deceased Children Length of Hospital Stay Creole Breast-Feeding/Weaning History Creole Glucose Distribution Carib Parity Carib Deceased Children Length of Hospital Stay Carib Breast-Feeding/Weaning History Carib Glucose Distribution Mestizo Parity Mestizo Deceased Children Length of Hospital Stay Mestizo Breast-Feeding/Weaning History . Mestizo Glucose Distribution Mennonite Parity ix Page 99 121 122 126 148 149 152 154 157 170 171 173 175 177 190 191 193 196 198 214 Table Page 21. Mennonite Deceased Children . . . . 215 22. Mennonite Breast-Feeding/Weaning History . 217 23. Sample Composition . . . . . . 222 24. General Characteristics of Sample . . . 223 25. Distribution of Glucose Feedings . . . 241 26. Distribution of Castro-Enteritis . . . 243 27. Weaning Patterns and Castro-Enteritis . . 247 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Map of Belize 2 Climograph for Belize City 3 Mangrove Forest 4 Flambuoyant Tree 5. Cohune Palm 6 Areas of Maya Culture 7 Spanish Exploration in the Bay of Honduras 8 Logwood Cutters' Settlement in Belize 9 Milpa Agriculture 10. Street Scene in Belize City . 11. Little Garifuna Girl 12. Chicle Collection 13. Signs of a Baby in a House 14. Interview Distribution 15. Belize Population Map 16. Maya Dwelling 17. Outside Kitchen . 18. Grinding Masa 19. Ruda 20. Maya Weaning History 21. Belize City Home xi Page 23 28 28 36 39 43 47 53 59 63 74 91 97 102 105 108 110 115 119 130 136 Figure Page 22. Public Faucet . . . . . . . 138 23. Water and Refuse . . . . . . 141 24. Creole Mother and Child . . . . . 147 25. Creole Weaning History . . . . . 161 26. Carib Bakery . . . . . . . 166 27. Carib Weaning History . . . . . . 180 28. Mestizo Homes . . . . . . . 184 29. Tortilla Bakery . . . . . . . 187 30. Mestizo Weaning History . . . . . 201 31. Mennonite Farm Yard . . . . . . 206 32. Little Mennonite Girl . . . . . . 212 33. Mennonite Weaning History . . . . . 220 344 Breast-Feeding History of Entire Sample . 229 35. Breast-Feeding of Five Sample Groups . . 230 36. Bottle-Feeding History of Five Sample Groups 237 xii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Historical Development of Infant Feeding Biologically speaking man is a mammal, a classifica- tion based on the way the females nurture their young with the secretion of milk from the mammary glands. This trait is the primary distinction of the class and predates a sec- ond characteristic that is shared by almost all mammals, that of giving live birth to the young after carrying them in the womb. Even though man's food habits are different from place to place and have changed over time, the feeding of human infants at the breast has been universal and con- sistent (Hambraeus, 1977: 17). Infants were not necessarily nursed by their biolog- ical mothers. It was customary to have orphaned or found- ling infants nursed by a substitute mother, which is referred to in the old testament (Exodus 2:7). Also, until this cen- tury, employing a wet nurse was common. The reasons for such a practice were varied and ranged from one as whimsical as a mother's social standing to one as desperate as the loss of the mother. The latter was not a rare occurrence; umny women died in childbirth of puerperal fever (identified 2 by Ignaz Semmelweis about 1850). Unless a baby could be breastfed, either by the natural mother or another, his chances for survival were very poor (Hambraeus, 1977: 17). The 19th century brought the Industrial Revolution and one result was that a growing number of women accepted employment outside the home. The need for an alternative to breastfeeding was intensified and patented milk producers were striving to come up with a food that was as close to human milk as possible. Infant formulas were developed and continuously improved in terms of quality and safety and they increased the survival rates of babies that could not be breastfed. But even though bottle feeding removed the immediate threat to the life of those babies who were not nursed, there were warning voices already at the beginning of this century and thoughout the following decades that artificially fed babies had a higher incidence of disease and mortality than breastfed babies.1 However, artificial feeding reached a standard where infants did well enough for bottle feeding to become widely accepted, particularly in North America and other industrialized countries (Mann- heimmr, 1955: 138; Jackson, 1977: 64). Eventually the practice of formula feeding spread to the developing nations. And there infant morbidity as well 1For a literature review of this subject, see Edgar Mbnnheimer, "Mortality of Breast Fed and Bottle Fed Infants: A Comparative Study," Acta Genetica et Statistica Medica, vol. 5, 1954-1955, pp. 134-163. 3 as mortality rose dramatically and many babies appeared to be wasting away. The marasmus syndrome amongst children of pre-school age was not unknown but the fact that it appeared in increasing numbers among infants was a new phenomenon (Jelliffe and Jelliffe, 1975: 556-61). At the same time it was found that where mothers breastfed their babies six to twelve months or longer, children were healthier and symp- toms of malnutrition, if they appeared, occurred at a later age. This was true even for babies who were constantly ex- posed to an unsanitary environment. Nevertheless, the con- ditions surrounding formula, such as improper home prepara- tion or insufficient care of the utensils, were blamed for the increase in infant morbidity, rather than artificial feeding itself. But in the meantime much research had been done and it was clear that there were factors at work that went beyond cleanliness and precise instructions.2 Studies of the com- position of mother's milk revealed that there were qualities to human milk that laboratories so far have been unable to duplicate; for example, antibodies that are passed from the mother to the baby or the fitness of mother's milk to the particular nutritional needs of her infant for his optimal 2For a thorough review of the literature on the protective effects of human milk against infections, see 0. H. Braun, "Uber die infektionsverhfltende Wirkung der Mut- termilch und deren mBgliche Ursachen,"'Klini8che Pfldiatrie, vol. 188, 1976. PP. 297-310. 4 development (Goldman et al., 1982: 563-567; Goldman and Smith, 1973: 1082-1090; Jackson, 1977: 64-65; Hambraeus, 1977: 25). The major cause of the rise in infant morbidity and mortality in the developing countries was due to diarrhoeas, either diarrhoea alone or diarrhoea and vomiting (gastro- enteritis). The observation that this condition was much less apparent among breastfed babies led to increasing in- terest in human milk. Even though knowledge of breast milk composition is still incomplete, enough has been learned to explain some of the protective effects of breastfeeding (Stoliar et al., 1976: 1258; Hambraeus, 1977: 20). Composition of Breast Milk and Cow's Milk with respect to Infant FeEding The milk that is produced by mothers varies in com- position from species to species. These variations corre- spond with the particular needs posed by a combination of factors, such as individual growth rates, activity and the environment the species live in. Virtually all milks contain carbohydrates, fat, pro- tein, minerals and vitamins. But there is a difference in the proportion in which these nutrients occur. The fat con- tent, for example, is very high in the milk of sea lions and reindeer, but comparatively low in that of camels and humans (Kretchmer, 1972: 73). The former live in polar and arctic regions where the extra fat provides necessary energy for warmth, whereas the latter live in warmer zones or, in 5 the case of man, have found various other means to compen- sate for the cold. The young of animals and man alike experience a dra- matic growth period right after birth. The reindeer doubles its birth weight in one month, the cow in one and a half, and the horse in two (Hambraeus, 1977: 19). The human in- fant, however, requires about six months to double a much smaller birth weight. The most distinct growth in early human life occurs in the central nervous system and the brain, not in body volume (Hambraeus, 1977: 17; Brown, 1977: 247). A child grows new brain cells until he is about eight to twelve months old. After that any increase in brain size and weight is due to cell enlargement, not to an increase in the number of cells. Animal studies and autop- sies of deceased infants have revealed that early malnutri- tion results in irreversible growth retardation of non- regenerating organs, such as the brain (Winick, 1971: 970, 975). Considering the different rates of growth, it is not surprising that the milks of the species vary, as different nutrients are necessary for the development of the central nervous system than for other body tissues. Apart from breast milk, cow's milk is of major con- cern here since most infant formulas, commercial or homemade, are based on it. The following comparison will concentrate on the composition of these two milks and in so doing focus 6 on those aspects that seem to have special relevance in the prevention of malnutrition and infant diarrhoea. Lactose A breastfed child receives his first carbohydrate in form of lactose, also called "milk sugar." This is a di- saccharide that is broken down with the aid of the enzyme lactase. If this enzyme is lacking, the body cannot digest and utilize the lactose and may have a severe reaction to it. In fact, the majority of the world population is lactose intolerant. The minority, which tolerates lactose, is found among those populations that have a pastoral and milking tradition. This circumstance is attributed to natu- ral selection and genetic transmission (Kretchmer, 1972: 73, 76-78; Simoons, 1969: 831). Yet, infants of milk drinking societies as well as infants of societies without a milking tradition have been raised on breast milk without suffering ill effects due to lactose intolerance, even though human milk has the highest lactose content of all milks. It seems that lactose is particularly important in the development of the brain, for the lactose content of various mammalian milks increases with the relative brain size of the species (Jelliffe and Jelliffe, 1975: 558). As brain cells are added in early life the utilization of lactose as a brain food has to take place then. Thus, the enzyme lactase shows up in the fetus towards the end of the Pregnancy (in Europeans from the third month of gestation), 7 it is most active right after birth, and then diminishes gradually during lactation (Kretchmer, 1972: 72-73; Cook, 1967: 527). Therefore the older child may become unable to digest lactose once he is past the weaning process. Lactose is split into the simple sugars glucose and glactose in the small intestine. Some of the glucose is ab- sorbed immediately and some is released into the bloodstream together with the galactose (Kretchmer, 1972: 71, 75). This happens at rather a slow pace so that the glucose level in the blood does not rise too quickly (Whittlestone, 1975: 103-104). Because of its higher lactose content human milk is the sweetest among mammalian milks. But it is still not very sweet when compared to a sucrose flavored formula. Sucrose breaks down much faster and releases its glucose into the blood at a faster rate than lactose does. This re- sults in higher blood glucose levels than a baby's system is ready to cope with. Lactose also promotes the growth of beneficial or- ganisms in the digestive tract, whereas sucrose furthers that of undesirable bacteria (Whittlestone, 1975: 104, 106). Protein Protein is necessary for growth and repair of body tissues. Until recently human milk was thought to contain about 1.1 g protein per 100 ml. But these measurements had been derived from total nitrogen content in the milk, in- cluding both protein and non-protein nitrogen. The newer 8 analyses reveal the protein content in human milk as amount- ing to about 0.9 percent, whereas in cow's milk it is about four times as much (Hambraeus, 1977: 22). However, this is not a case where the higher amount is more conducive to growth and more efficient in tissue repair, as the protein composition is different between the two milks. The human milk protein has a whey to casein ratio of 2.5:1 and that of cow's milk is 1:4 in favor of casein. There is further differentiation in the composition of the whey and casein proteins. Human whey consists mostly of a-lactalbumin and lactoferrin to the total exclusion of B-lactoglobulin, the most prominent protein part in bovine whey. 0n the other side, bovine whey is virtually devoid of lactoferrin and only contains some o-lactalbumin (Hambraeus, 1977: 22-23). The low protein and high lactose combination together with the bifidus factor in human milk is thought to encourage the growth of lactobacilli in the infant (Goldman and Smith, 1973: 1082-1083; Hambraeus, 1977: 26). Lactobacillus bifidus in turn produces lactic acid which is unfavorable to the growth of pathogenic bacteria. Lactoferrin, an iron-binding protein, is highest in human milk. Since it occurs mostly in unsaturated form, it binds free iron which at the same time is needed for growth by various pathogenic bacteria, for example, Escherichia coli (Goldman and Smith, 1973: 1084-1085; Hambraeus, 1977: 23-24; Bullen and Willis, 1971: 341-342). Therefore 9 lactoferrin is credited with playing a major role in the prevention of infective diarrhoea in the infant. Epidemiologic studies have shown that diarrhoeal dis- eases are rare in the breastfed child, and correspondingly, that the disease is much more prevalent in the artificially fed (Mannheimer, 1955: 143-159; Mata and Urrutia, 1971: 93-108). Another protein, lysozyme, is 300 times higher in breast milk than cow's milk and its benefit appears to be twofold. It dissolves bacterial cells and also aids other immunological factors such as IgA (Goldman and Smith, 1973: 1084; Hambraeus, 1977: 24). Milk contains immunoglobulins that differ, however, from.those contained in serum. The most important one is secretory IgA (SIgA) with two others, IgG and IgM, being present in much smaller concentration. The amount of IgA in colostrum is even higher than that in serum, but it decreases during the first three months of lactation (Goldman and Smith, 1973: 1083; Hambraeus, 1977: 24). Recent findings indicate that after this initial decline the concentration of IgA and lactoferrin stabilizes for the duration of lacta- tion (Goldman et al., 1982: 563-567). IgG is mostly trans- ferred to the baby before birth and provides him with anti- bodies to the diseases that the mother has been exposed to. But after birth SIgA, produced in the mammary gland, will also provide antibodies against disease agents that may be present in the environment during the lactation period 10 (Goldman et al., 1982: 563-567; Whittlestone, 1975: 105). Immunoglobulins are also present in cow's milk, but there the dominant one is IgG, and at any rate, it is doubtful that the immunity which is useful to the calf offers any to a baby. The role of SIgA in the protection against both vi- ruses and bacteria is not fully understood, but it is cur- rently thought that it prevents the attachment of the patho- gens to the mucosa. Whatever the mechanism, SIgA is quite effective in the treatment and prevention of infant diar- rhoea (Stoliar et al., 1976: 1258-1261; Mata and Urrutia, 1971: 106). 23; This is the most concentrated source of energy and human milk contains about four percent fat with the amount varying between individuals (Hambraeus, 1977: 19, 21). One characteristic of the fat in breast milk is that unsaturated fatty acids predominate, whereas in cow's milk the saturated fatty acids are more abundant (Hambraeus, 1977: 25; Whittle- stone, 1975: 102-103). It is noted that if the mother's diet contains large amounts of carbohydrates, her milk will have a higher proportion of saturated fatty acids (Hambraeus, 1977: 25). Two of the fatty acids in human milk are considered essential for the infant's well-being: arachidonic acid for normal brain development and linoleic acid in the prevention ll of skin lesions (Hambraeus, 1977: 25; Jelliffe, 1977: 53; Slater and Jelliffe, 1977: 5-6). Fat is broken down by lipase and it is an important aspect of human milk that it contains large amounts of it, since the infant has very little of this enzyme in his own system. On the other hand, the utilization of fat from cow's milk is limited (Whittlestone, 1975: 103). At the same time the particular composition of the human milk fat together with the high lactose content in breast milk facilitates the absorption of calcium.(Whittle- stone, 1975: 103). Thus, even though the amount of calcium is much higher in cow‘S'milk, the infant absorbs more of it from breast milk, and there have been cases of hypocalcemia in the artificially fed (Whittlestone, 1975: 103; Slater and Jelliffe, 1977: 9; Jelliffe, 1977: 52). Minerals On the whole, cow's milk contains minerals in about three tmmes the amounts present in human milk and even seven times as much in the case of phosphorus (Hambraeus, 1977: 21, 26; Slater and Jelliffe, 1977: 9-10). This fact, to- gether with the higher protein content in cow's milk, has frequently been used in negative comparisons with breast milk (Hambraeus, 1977: 30). However, this high concentra- tion of minerals and protein places a great strain on the infant's kidneys and has now been established as a cause for the faster weight increase in the artificially fed child 12 (Hambraeus, 1977: 26, 29-30; Jelliffe, 1977: 52). The over- load of minerals may actually lead to hypernatremia (Jelliffe, 1977: 52). One intriguing aspect of human milk is its great variation in composition. Not only does it differ from mother to mother, but the milk that a mother produces in the first days after birth is very different from that which she supplies towards the end of the breastfeeding period a few months later (Goldman et al., 1982: 563-567; Hambraeus, 1977: 25, 29; Slater and Jelliffe, 1977: 12). Furthermore, the first milk in the morning is much higher in fat content than that later in the day and it is also richer in the last minutes of a feed, hindmilk, than the first, foremilk (Dorea et al., 1982: 80-83; Hambraeus, 1977: 25; Hall, 1975: 779-780; Jackson, 1977: 64-65). This is seen as an appetite control- ling mechanism, for the stronger a baby sucks, the more pro- lactin is produced and this appears to be the signal to the mammary gland to increase the fat production (Hall, 1975: 779-780; Slater and Jelliffe, 1977: 12). The most striking difference in the milk of any one mother is in that of the first few days of lactation and the milk of the following weeks and months. The early milk, or colostrum, has a much higher protein content and consequently more of the disease preventing proteins, such as the pre- viously discussed lactoferrin and IgA, which provide the in- fant with a strong boost of immunization while he begins to develop his own defense. Thus, milk is a highly specialized l3 entity, closely matched to a particular individual at a par- ticular time. It appears that each mother, human or animal, provides her baby with a pabulum.that best suits his needs for thriving. An intriguing thought is that it applies to mothers of premature infants who have a most crucial need for certain nutrients to overcome the disadvantage of having their development in the womb cut short. There are parallels in the animal world, as for example with the kangaroo. The kangaroo mother can nurse pups of different ages at the same time and provide each with a different milk, specifically suited to the stage in development that the babies are in. Malnourished mothers and high parity mothers tend to have smaller babies, and there is always anxiety surrounding the feeding of premature or low birth weight infants to have them make up as fast as possible what they missed in the uterus. It would seem that the obvious answer is to put the baby straight away to his own mother's breast, or to pump the mother's breast and feed him that milk, instead of high protein formulas or pooled breast milk from milk banks which collect milk from donor mothers in various stages of lacta- tion. Atkinson determined from her study of premature ba- bies that the pre-term mother's milk has greater fitness to the premature baby's nutritional needs than does either pooled full-term milk or formulas that are based on mature milk composition. The pre-term milk fed babies showed 14 faster regain of birth weight than did those fed formula or pooled breast milk.3 Statement of the Problem The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the in- cidence of diarrhoeal diseases in relation to weaning prac- tice by geographical area and by ethnic group. The weaning period and the time right after it are so often marked by diarrhoea that this intestinal disorder has actually become known as weanling diarrhoea (Gordon and Scrimshaw, 1970: 1501-1502). It has also become the leading cause of death among infants in developing countries (Stoliar et al., 1976: 1258). It has been found that the incidence of weanling diarrhoea is not only a function of weaning age but also of weaning practice(Gordon and Scrimshaw, 1970: 1503; Latham, 1975: 563). Thus, the crux of the matter to be investigated in this study is not only whether early versus later weaning has an effect in terms of weanling diarrhoea incidence, but also whether different types of weaning foods influence the morbidity picture and prevent or promote good health. Feed- ing children is a complex decision that is influenced by a mother's background, beliefs, available techniques, available 3Atkinson, Stephanie, "The Importance of Human Milk for the Premature Infant, " Paper presented at the Eighth International Physicians' Seminar on Breastfeeding, Chicago, 23- 25 July 1981, sponsored by La Leche League International, Inc. , Department of Continuing Medical Education, Franklin Park, Illinois. 15 foodstuffs and other factors. The feeding and, consequently, the weaning pattern, is the result of many decisions and it changes from month to month, even from week to week, not only between cultural groups, but from mother to mother. The actual "why" behind the decision often cannot be answer- ed, but the behavior can be observed. The study is done in Belize, a country where diar- rhoeal diseases are a major cause of infant morbidity and mortality and where ethnic variation is a characteristic of the population. The research includes a study of the land, history, peoples and economy of Belize and a local survey of the attitude and behavior of Belizean mothers towards breastfeeding and weaning. Weaning means to accustom a young one to food other than breast milk. Strictly speaking, then, a baby, who is not exclusively fed breast milk, is being weaned. Eating anything, whether milk, sugar water, cereal or juice, gives a baby calories and thus makes him less hungry. The less hunger he feels, the less he will suckle the breast. There- fore, the introduction of any food other than breast milk can be considered the beginning of the weaning process. There is evidence of premature weaning being prac- ticed in the newly independent country of Belize, the former colony of British Honduras. In 1958 it was determined from Child welfare Clinic data that twenty-nine percent of the primiparous and thirty-three percent of the multiparous mothers adopted bottle-feeding within two weeks after birth l6 (Losonczi, 1958: 208). As recently as 1980 the country's Medical Report listed gastro-enteritis as one of the five leading causes of hospital admissions and deaths among in- fants and young children (Belize Medical Report, 1980). This indicates that early and unsatisfactory weaning is still in practice. Belize was chosen to investigate infant feeding practices, especially early weaning patterns, because the country is characterized by fascinating variety in environ- ‘ment, culture and nutrition. The population numbers less than 150,000 but is composed of eight different culture groups, namely the Maya, Caribs (Garifuna), Creoles, Mesti- zos, Europeans, East Indians, Arabs (Lebanese), and Chinese. The various groups differ in their approach to agriculture, nutrition and health. It is expected that infant nutrition reflects the variation in dietary habits from one culture group to another. More specifically, it is hypothesized that weaning practices affect infant health. This hypothe- sis can be supported if it can be shown that early weaning and the choice of certain foods tend to result in a higher incidence of gastro-enteritis. At the same time, if a lower incidence of gastro-enteritis tends to be associated with delayed weaning, this would suggest the importance of breast milk in decreasing infant morbidity. Health and health care delivery make particular de- mands on developing and newly independent nations because of 17 their limited resources. Even the most basic requirement of good health, good nutrition, can be difficult to meet. Frequently, the agricultural and economic situation does not provide a nutritionally adequate food supply for the entire population, or the high cost in terms of price or distance to the market may make it prohibitive; sometimes cultural tradition and lack of information result in the neglect of sound feeding patterns (Jelliffe, 1974: 46; Brown, 1977: 241). Whatever the reasons are for a poor diet, in the long run, it will have the same effect: malnutrition. It has been said that in medicine there is practi- cally no one cause which by itself is capable of producing an effect (Rothman, 1974: 385). This implies that it takes at least two or more variables to bring about the destruc- tive effect that lies dormant within a disease cause. The relationship between these multiple factors may be synergis- tic, where the combined action of the individual factors ex- ceeds their sum, as has been observed between malnutrition and infection (Jelliffe and Jelliffe, 1975: 557; Brown, 1977: 241; Latham, 1975: 561, 563). Small children and infants are particularly suscep- tible to the damaging effects of a poor diet. Diseases, and foremost among these, diarrhoeal diseases, can hasten the progress of malnutrition because of the poor absorption of nutrients during bouts of diarrhoea (Jelliffe, 1974: 46; Brown, 1977: 242; Latham, 1975: 561). When vomiting accom- panies the diarrhoea, indicating that both the upper and 18 the lower reaches of the gut are involved, the term gastro- enteritis is used to describe the condition. Whether diar- rhoea or gastro-enteritis, it results in a depletion of nu- trients in the body and robs it of much of its immune de- fense (Brown, 1977: 245; Latham, 1975: 563). The decrease in nutrients also has a weakening effect on cells, which facilitates the penetration of body tissues by pathogens (Latham, 1975: 563; Gordon and Scrimshaw, 1970: 1497-1499). Castro-enteritis is a broad term that covers a whole range of diarrhoeal diseases, that are either due to infec- tion by a variety of pathogens, to the intake of foods that cannot be properly digested or to poor nutrition. In the tropics, where one finds the majority of the developing countries, the disease is thought to be mostly due to bac- terial infection. Furthermore, it is the most frequent cause of illness in that region (Jelliffe, 1974: 58; Stoliar et al., 1976: 1258; Gordon and Scrimshaw, 1970: 1501-1503; Latham, 1975: 563). At the same time it is especially the malnourished child that worries mothers and health officials alike in the developing nations (Latham, 1975: 561). Infant health is influenced by mother's health, early feeding practices, child care and sanitation as the primary factors. One of the best and easiest ways to provide in- fants with good nutrition and health protection is through breastfeeding, because mother's milk gives babies the nec- essary nutrients and natural immunity. In those developing countries where mothers tend to nurse their children for 19 extended periods, infants' health is not so much cause for concern as toddlers' health (Jelliffe and Jelliffe, 1975: 557). There the effects of malnutrition show up as the ma- jor health problem for the young between two and five years of age. Generally, the younger the child, the more threat- ening is the cycle of malnutrition and infection (Latham, 1975: 563). A baby is most vulnerable when he leaves the ultimate of protective environments, the womb. To ease his adjustment to a wider, more threatening environment, his mother provides him with colostrum.which is high in protein and immunoglobulins. The mother's milk offers all that he needs for at least the next six months. The importance of nursing is dramatized when nursing is discontinued prematurely and inadequate nutrition is sub- stituted. When a baby first leaves the womb, his digestive tract is not a very sophisticated system. His liver and gut have to mature and gradually learn to process diverse foods. Therefore, the age at weaning would appear to be of conse- quence. The weaning period represents a time during which the infant experiences three drastic changes: he has to cope with a new diet, the loss of passive immunity, and the de- velopment of his own active immunity. There also is a more subtle change in the loss of the only control he has held over his environment, namely when and how much food he took in at the breast. This study demonstrates the importance of weaning behavior, that this behavior represents a complex set of 20 decisions made in a sequence over time. It is necessary to examine closely this sequence--week by week, month by month--to determine the actual weaning pattern and its re- sult. The study presents data obtained from a survey of the five major culture groups: Carib, Creole, Maya, Menno- nite and Mestizo. Information on agriculture, diet and nu- trition is summarized in a general profile of each group, followed by data on infant nutrition and weaning organized to show the sequence of specific feeding behaviors of 181 mothers during the first year of life of their babies. A comparison of the feeding patterns and the incidence of diarrhoeal diseases among these 181 babies confirms the re- lationship between the two. CHAPTER II LAND, HISTORY, PEOPLES, AND ECONOMY A BRIEF OVERVIEW The Land On the globe Belize fits roughly between the 16th and 18th northern latitudes and the 88th and 90th western longitudes. It is the second smallest country in Central America after El Salvador and lies immediately south of the Yucatan peninsula. The border between Mexico and Belize follows the natural division of the River Hondo and the Strait between Ambergris Cay and the southern tip of the Mexican state of Quintana Roo (Figure 1). Both the western and the southern border are with Guatemala, but whereas the southern border also follows a river, the Sarstoon, the western line leads with treaty- table straightness from the Gracias a Dios Falls on the Sarstoon past Garbutt's Falls on the Belize River to the Blue Creek branch of the River Hondo. Along its eastern side Belize opens to the Caribbean Sea. Almost the entire length of the coast is parallelled by a string of small islands and cays that accompany the longest Barrier Reef in the western hemisphere which is 21 22 FIGURE 1 Map of Belize This map shows the major physical features and largest communities in Belize. Source: adapted from Carr, David and Thorpe, John, From the Cam to the Cays (London: Putnam, 1961) p. XVI. 23 1o 20 go MHOS Corqza! _- .'..:_"'u :1.- l I I 20 40 Kilometers 0- no I! 2‘s. Mangrove Swamp Coral Reefs I I 18°— . ,. . . . '.°'.A"--------‘.-‘-“-0----.. 17°— _Stann Creek! Glovers Reel Q; .5‘ a : 32:: (Dangriga) ' . . ‘ :1 g ’1’ ': "' Ii . ‘0 I, ’0" .4" \ 0 ~ _ % *tf: _ : .‘."'l ‘ \ I Maya Mountains‘ w 1‘ «a .f.“ \ ——:l’-.—\\‘ :‘é: ,. \v \\\ \ «J'- )_ ‘e - T“\\’«‘\\T\ ."MI\\1/m\m\ \\ 0 \._ . "41“ . § \ s "\ “7 _;,\.3\$ \ \\\’\‘ \‘\ \' " — 344;“ .§ \ \\ , \\\ ‘ A}, :-:,~=~:~\\ \ -\\.- , ‘4- ' ‘-\\ \\\\\\ I”! \\ \ \ \ , ‘ \ \ \ \\ \ e \\ dflimlkh‘\k\\ j... I I \ 3,, ”Mo .. ., / Map of Belize r \\ _ . II o '2 .' ' I \e \ ‘ 2% \ \\ . : I” l ‘\ r\-~\\\\\ \. ~~. . -. . x \\ « ...- .- ~. ,, w. u w \ _ _. : Pupta Gerda ~ “18" e \ \ \ 31. '. k . - . . . . . , “\‘N' \ ‘\ \ .3. .21.: i ' : 3:... {.z '.--- . ° . * 16°— Figure l 24 second in length only to the Great Barrier Reef of Australia. The country measures about 174 miles at its longest distance and 68 miles at its widest east-west extension. Topographically and climatically Belize can be di- vided into a northern and southern half with the dividing line to be imagined roughly between Mullins River in the east and Benque Viejo in the west. Along the coast, both in the north and in the south, the land barely rises above sea- level and is marked by swamps and mangrove forests. The principal city and seaport of the country, Belize City, is located at the mouth of the Belize River in just that marshy region; parts of the town are built on landfill. In the north the low-lying land gradually increases in altitude to become a 500 foot plateau towards the west. In the south the rise from the marshes is much more immediate and dramat- ic. Here the coastal plain is but a narrow band between the Caribbean Sea and the Maya Mountains. Whereas all other Central American countries are dotted with numerous volca- noes and benefit from the lava enriched soils, Belize is of a different geologic make-up. The Caribbean Cordillera, which arches from the Golfo Dulce in the south-east corner of the Gulf of Honduras in a northwesterly direction to the Bay of Campeche, separates Belize, the Peten region of Gua- temala and the Yucatan peninsula from the heavily active earthquake and volcano zone (Ower, 1927: 380). The whole of Yucatan, including Belize, is a low-lying appendage to the Mexican highlands. 25 During the Cretaceous period most of Belize was be- low sea level so that the paleozoic rocks (slates, sand- stones, quartzites, schists and intruded granites and por- phyries) became covered by a thick layer of white limestone. In the northern, lower lying part of the country, this is overlain with later limestones and chalks, but in the south the Cretaceous limestone is being eroded, exposing the older paleozoic formations in the Maya Mountains (Flores, 1952: 404-405, 408; Ower, 1927: 374-375; Ower, 1923: 494-509). These mountains are a granite and quartzite forma- tion and the name of one of its ranges, the Cockscomb Range, testifies to its sharp relief (Oliphant and Stevenson, 1929: 136; Ower, 1928: 503). In the case of the northwestern ex- tension of the Maya Mountains, the Mountain Pine Ridge, the name is not similarly descriptive of the topography. "Ridge" here does not indicate a narrow elevation standing out in the landscape, for this region is a hilly plateau that averages about 2000 feet in elevation. In Belizean terminol- ogy "ridge" applies to a vegetation zone in which one plant species is dominant, as in a cohune ridge the cohune palm is conspicuous (Ower, 1927: 373). Thus, the Mountain Pine Ridge denotes a coniferous forest. In the extreme south, running in a more or less west to east direction, is another distinct geologic feature, the Toledo Beds, a shale formation (Ower, 1928: 501). The climate of Belize is characterized by year-round warm temperatures, averaging 79 degrees Fahrenheit, and 26 seasonally heavy rainfall. This combination puts Belize generally into the sub-tropical and more specifically into the trade-wind littoral climate. This is described by the country's location on an east coast that is subject to the influence of the trade winds. These winds are a result of air flow between the subtropical High and the equatorial Low pressure zones. With respect to Central America these air masses develop over the warm Caribbean Sea and they there- fore can hold much moisture which supplies Belize, proceed- ing in a north to south direction, with increasingly abun- dant rainfall. The mean annual precipitation ranges from about 60 inches in the north to about 180 inches in the south. Seasonal variation shows a dry season between Febru- ary and April, and in some years an additional "little dry" in August (Figure 2). However, sometimes it rains as much during the dry period as it does during the rainy season (Belize, 1964-1965: 100-101; Strahler, 1973: 178). An additional climatic factor which can add substan- tially to mean annual precipitation is the peculiar geologic arrangement of North America where the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachians are aligned in such a way as to form a giant funnel through which cold polar air may flow towards Central America (Portig, 1959: 301). This circumstance finds expression in the infamous "northers,' severe winter- storms that frequently are accompanied by torrential down- pours (Stoddart, 1962: 164). 27 FIGURE 2 Climograph for Belize City This graph shows the average temperatures and precipitation throughout the year for Belize City, Belize, indicating the small annual temperature range and the dry season from February through April. Source: Strahler, Arthur N., Introduction to Physical Geggraphy, 3rd ed. (new York? John Wiley and Sons, 1973) p. 178. FIGURE 3 Mangrove Forest Dense mangrove vegetation grows all along Belize's coastline and along the rivers as they approach the sea. The maze of aerial roots makes it difficult to penetrate the jungle. Source: Strahler, Arthur N., Introduction to Physical Geography, 3rd ed. (New York: John Wiley and Sons, 1973) p. 256. 28 —. I. -A‘ Warm. rainy Less ram . » ¥——-~Ai-‘ Rahge 9F' (5 C') 1 I , I v » I Figure 2 ' 5:75." '1' 17 IV" I" ' Iv . ‘ ,. .. g '8 29 Temperatures vary slightly thoughout the country with the extremes being somewhat more pronounced further in- land, away from the moderating marine influence. This cli- mate neither guarantees year-round precipitation nor does it withhold torrential rains, and Belize has suffered the dis- astrous effects of both droughts and floods. But by far the most devastating local climatic occurrences are hurricanes. These cyclones do not strike Belize as often as other areas in and around the Caribbean but when they do sweep over Be- lize they make up in fury what they lack in frequency. Since there apparently was no record of a hurricane in Belize for over a century previous to 1931, people were of the blissful assumption that Belize was safe from these tropical storms. But this myth was shaken in 1931, 1942, and 1955 and it was finally shattered on October 3lst, 1961 when hurricane Hattie destroyed so much of the country and Belize City, which was then still the capital, that it was decided to build a new capital, Belmopan, about 50 miles in- land on the Western Highway (Dobson, 1973: 4-5; Gregg, 1968: 109-120; Kearns, 1973: 147-148). Belize is dissected by numerous rivers almost all of which empty into the Caribbean Sea. Many head directly for the coast while some wander to the sea via other streams. This somewhat more roundabout course of action happens in the northern part of the country where the rivers follow a northern and northeastern direction and in this way appear to take advantage of the depressions between escarpments 30 that run parallel to the coast. But the mountain-fed streams of the rain rich south generally rush straight to the shore. The most important waterway of the country is the Belize River. Beginning in the Peten region in Guatemala, it collects the waters of numerous smaller rivers and creeks that rise in the Mountain Pine Ridge and from other sources along the way. But the Belize River is denied a glorious entry into the Caribbean Sea due to the shallow water at its mouth. Large ocean-going ships have to anchor offshore in deeper waters and the normal wharf activities of loading and unloading are taken over by smaller craft. The River Hondo and the New River are the major riv- ers in the north and they flow parallel to each other about ten miles apart towards Chetumal Bay. Immediately south of the Belize and parallel to it runs the Sibun River, and both of these hold great historic as well as economic signifi- cance. Below Mullins River the other creeks and streams form a rather successive pattern of equally short water veins and the notable ones among them are North and South Stann Creek, the Sittee River, the Monkey River, the Rio Grande, the Moho River, the Temash, and finally the Sarstoon. Some of Belize's rivers, particularly those in the south and the Mountain Pine Ridge, abound in rapids and wa- terfalls that add to the picturesque scenery but are a hin- drance to navigation. Others are navigable for quite a way 31 upstream, but because of shallow draft they cannot accommo- date large vessels. From the early days of logging and settling, these rivers and streams have been humming with activity since they were the main lines of communication be it by canoe, river boats, flat bottomed "pit-pans", or eventually small motor boats. The escarpments of the northern plain are not spec- tacularly steep formations; they are the remnants of old reefs that have been incorporated into the land by means of geologic uplift and deposition of alluvium. This process of linking reef to land is exemplified by the location of Belize City on a former cay, where the area behind the town is still a swamp (Ower, 1927: 376). Where Belize and Mexico are separated by only a nar- row channel, Boca Bacalar Chico, "there commences the most remarkable reef in the West Indies." When Charles Darwin made this statement in 1842 he was not ready to classify this feature of Belize's coast as a barrier reef, but in the mean- time it has claimed its prominent place as such (Darwin, 1896: 272). Coral reefs develop in clear tropical waters since the tiny coral forming animals need a warm environment. They flourish in areas of strong wave action which is the case at the Belize reef where the trade winds blow the sea into a constant vigorous surf. Belize exhibits two types of reef: the barrier and atoll reefs. The barrier reef stret- ches in a rather straight and solid crest from the north in- to a more open and capricious line towards its southern 32 limits. Proceeding north to south the barrier runs parallel to the coast at a distance of about ten to twenty-five miles and thus forms a long protective lagoon between the low Be- lize coastline and the Caribbean Sea. The lagoon is quite shallow in the north but becomes deeper in the south, and this is thought to be a possible explanation for the in- creased fragmentation of the southern stretch of the reef as the coral has to grow up from greater depths and takes longer for the filling in process (Stoddart, 1962: 161-162). On the seaward side of the barrier reef are three atolls or circular coral reefs that enclose shallow lagoons. These are the Turneffe, Lighthouse, and Glover's Reef and they are between fifteen and thirty-five miles long. The crystal clear la- goons, the one formed by the barrier reef as well as those of the atolls, are liberally dotted with cays. This is a derivation from the Spanish word for island or sand bar "cayo" and is pronounced "key.' The cays are grown with var- ious trees, especially the cocnut. Many of these islands are too small for human habitation but the largest, Ambergris Cay, supports a permanent population of about 800 people. About ninety percent of Belize is forested and there is a surprising number of different species for such a small area. The regional variation in vegetation is due to the variation in topography, parent rock and local climatic dif- ferences as well as human interference in the natural plant formations. 33 The major areas of alluvial soils are between the Belize and Sibun Rivers and the coastal plain at the foot of the Maya Mountains. There are also some alluvium accu- mulations in the north along the rivers but for the most part the northern plain is characterized by calCareous soils. Apart from the alluvial zones two other fertile soils are those that have developed on the old cays in the northern plain and especially the material that is derived from the Toledo shales in the south between the coastal alluvious and the Maya Mountains. The major vegetation zones are in the mangrove for- est of the shore, the inland swamps and marshes, the pine- lands and barrens, the quasi-rainforest of the north and the rainforest of the south (Lundell, 1942: 169). The mangrove forest is typically found in saltwater lagoons or brackish swamps. It grows all along the Belize coast, on some of the cays and also in some inland swamps that still have a high salinity content. The mangrove is a tropical tree of somewhat bizarre appearance, for it looks as if it had been planted on stilts (Figure 3). This is be- cause of the aerial roots which are actually seeds that ger- minate in the air and which the tree seems to drop like an- chors to the ground where they eventually take hold. As the tidal activity in these coastal regions keeps a lot of sedi- ment in suspension and fine particles attach themselves to the roots, the tree tends to act as a land builder. The most prominent species in Belize is the Red Mangrove (Rizophora 34 Mangle), whose bark has a reddish tint to it from the algae growing on it (Standley and Record, 1936: 19; Money, 1978: 210-212). The inland swamps and marshes have developed in the limestone depressions in the northern half of the country and are subject to flooding. This is the area where the historically important logwood tree (Haematoxylon campe- chianum) grows (Ower, 1927: 383; Lundell, 1942: 169). The pinelands are regions of poor soils on which the Caribbean pine (Pinus Caribea) flourishes in the company of some oaks and palmetto palms (Standley and Record, 1936: 20; Lundell, 1942: 169). Fire and natural exhaustion of the soil due to nutritional demands by the plants are often the cause of the pinelands' demise. In fact, there are many treeless barrens, known as dry savannas, that result from these causes. The pinezones have an open park-like appear- ance since they are free of undergrowth except for wetter areas along rivers and creeks. The best known pineland is the Mountain Pine Ridge in Cayo District bordering on Gua- temala. This is an area of hilly terrain with rushing streams, cascading waterfalls and a rich palette of orchids. The Mountain Pine Ridge is now a National Forest Reserve and fire lookout points have been set up to protect this natural treasure of Belize. By far the most luxurious vegetation is that of the quasi-rainforest of the north and the rainforest of the south. Due to the difference in rainfall and edaphic 35 conditions the plant association varies somewhat between the northern and southern rainforest. 0n the lime rich soils of the north the predominant trees are the Sapodilla tree (Ach- ras Sapota), Mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla), Santa Maria (Calophyllum brasiliense), Breadnut (Brosimum Alicastrum), and the Bayleaf palm (Sabal) to name just a few (Lundell, 1942: 169; Standley and Record, 1936: 21-24). In the south one finds combinations of most of the trees of the northern forest together with another important hardwood, rosewood (Dalbergia Stevensonii), and an overall greater diversity of species (Standley and Record, 1936: 24). Throughout the country grow the cotton tree or Yaxche (Ceiba pentandra), one of the largest trees in Central America, and the Flam- buoyant tree, whose bright yellow, orange or red blossoms add much color to the landscape (Figure 4). Among the palms the most common is the Cohune (Orbignya Cohune) whose some- what dishevelled appearance is a familiar sight in Belize (Figure 5). The forests are generally secondary growth since they had been cleared for agriculture already during Maya times. The gigantic trees like Ceiba and Mahogany are char- acterized by immense buttress roots and forests display what constitutes even for rainforests and incredible variety of vines, bromeliads orchids, and other epiphytes (Standley and Record, 1936: 24). Belize's vegetation is distinct from the pattern of Central American flora. Not only does this small area have a large number of species, many of them endemic, but also 36 Anamuwouonm m.uocu: was we HHo3 mm ouwmznucooo onu ca .oNHHom usonwoousu women on and menu maze mops ucmzosnamam a mmDUHm 37 q madman 38 FIGURE 5 Cohune Palm The Cohune is the most common palm in Belize; its kernels of oil hang like a huge cluster of grapes from the base of the palm fronds. This tree is also a favorite resting place of Belize's most feared snake: the fer-de-lance known as Tommy Goff. (Author's photograph) 39 Figure 5 40 some that are found only in the West Indies. The prime ex- amples of the endemic species are the logwood tree, which is confined to Belize and the Campeche Bay area, and the sapo- dilla species whose native distribution extends into Guate- mala. The presence of species also found in the West Indies is attributed to a former land bridge existing across the An- tilles between Central America and the Guyana region in northern South America. Typical examples of West Indian flora are the Caribbean pine and the breadnut tree (Lundell, 1942: 169; Standley and Record, 1936: 52-55). History The Pre-Columbian Period It is now widely accepted that the original inhabit- ants of the Americas came from Asia via the Bering Strait land bridge to Alaska and then spread through North, Central, and South America. These people were hunters and gatherers, and estimates of the beginning of their migrations to Ameri- ca date as far back as 20,000 years ago (Thompson, 1966: 43). The groups that wandered into Central America and remained there eventually cultivated maize, squash, beans, chili pep- per and cotton. Later on they added to this list the avoca- do, papaya and cocoa. But in terms of animals they appar- ently only domesticated the dog and the turkey and kept bees for honey (Coe, 1966: 140: MacNeish, 1964: 29-30; Morley, 1946: 156-158, 448; Thompson, 1966: 45, 184). 41 The Maya Two distinct civilizations crystallized out of this Mesa-American culture hearth, the Mexican of the Mexican up- lands and the Maya of the Central American lowlands and Gua- temalan highlands. The Maya civilization comprised the area of the Yucatan peninsula, parts of the Mexican states of Ta- basco and Chiapas, Guatemala, Belize, and parts of Honduras and El Salvador (Coe, 1966: 17-27; Morley, 1946: 3). The distribution of Maya civilization is illustrated in Figure 6. The Maya achieved one of the most magnificent pre- Columbian civilizations of the New World. They accomplished this with a highly disciplined society that adhered to a strict division of labor. All advanced knowledge was held by the religious elite and the peasantry was responsible for food production for the entire society. Beyond that the peasants were also required to do construction labor on the elaborate ceremonial centers that served religious as well as social and marketing purposes (Morley, 1946: 441-455, 168-176; Thompson, 1966: 171-182). Generally, one distinguishes three stages in the Maya history: the Formative Period from about 500 B.C. to A.D. 300, the Classic Period from A.D. 300 to A.D. 900, and following that the Post-Classic Period (Brainerd, 1954: 12; Morley, 1946: 4; Thompson, 1966: 50). The most recent find- ings from Belize at the Cuello and Cerros sites put the Formative Period at a much earlier time, but the dating pro- cess has not yet been completed. 42 FIGURE 6 Areas of Maya Culture This map shows the distribution of Maya civilization in Yucatan (Mexico), Belize, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. Source: Coe, Michael D., The Ma a (New YorE: Praeger, 1966) p. 21 43 j I l 93C 90“ 87° Areas of Maya Culture _21: I .. . fill 210a ' ‘ ‘ YUCATAN ' . Gulf of Campeche . '. '\. ’1' CAMPECHE "\ GUATEMALA 1oo Milesi‘l'fija- 0 100 Kilometers .1 Limits of Maya Area “-— International Boundaries 93" l Figure 6 44 The cause of the decline of this civilization is still a matter of speculation and many ideas have been pro- posed as possible explanations. Various archaeologists and historians have suggested that the end was brought about by disease, invasion, soil exhaustion or an uprising by the lower class against the established order (Morley, 1946: 69-70, 102; Coe, 1966: 115; Thompson, 1966: 102, 105). Whatever the cause, the intellectual activities in the Southern and Central zones, including Belize, ceased during the 10th century. The already diminished population was further reduced by migration into northern Yucatan, where Maya culture experienced another flowering in the 13th and 14th centuries. But when the Europeans arrived, the Maya civilization no longer existed. Only their peasant way of life had survived. The European Period The Spaniards Christopher Columbus named the Bay of Honduras for the depths in this part of the Caribbean Sea (Spanish "hondo" translates as "deep”). He reached the Cape of Honduras (Ca- bo de Honduras, Republic of Honduras) during his fourth voy- age, in 1502, and claimed the land for Spain (Cohen, 1969: 284-286; Wells, 1857: 449-450; Winsor, 1891: 441-444). Cortes was apparently the first European to set foot in Be- lize when he led an overland expedition from Mexico to Hon- duras between 1524 and 1526. This march as well as later 45 expeditions by other Spanish explorers proved to be exhaust- ing and depressing due to swamps, mountains, almost impene- trable jungle and a forbidding marshy coast (Herrera y Tor- desillas, 1973: 314-315; Saville, 1918: 436; Diaz del Casti- llo, 1966: 393-419; Prescott, 1890: 398-416; Dobson, 1973: 42-44). These disastrous first impressions may partly ex- plain why the Spaniards never really attempted to settle Belize (Fig. 7). The English The report of the first English ship in the West In- dies dated that event about 1527 (Oviedo y Valdes, 1944: 127). It was soon followed by numerous vessels from other European nations. But the Spaniards considered this part of the world entirely their own and regarded the arrival of the English, French and Dutch as an intrusion. Already by 1529, the Spanish commanders in the Caribbean drew up plans on how to protect themselves from these "pirates", as they called the ships of other nations (Burney, 1891: 36-39). The English in particular were incensed over the Pope's division of the non-Christian world entirely between Spain and Portugal, and that this was to exclude English trade and settlement in those regions of the world. Thus, when the King of Spain complained to Queen Elizabeth that her seafarers were not only sailing in Spanish waters but furthermore raiding Spanish ships, she let it be known that the Pope could not give away what he did not possess in the 46 .me|.a Amman .ammnnnnao seawaoa ”coucoqv onwaom woNHODmHm < .muumz .cOmnoa ”mouaom .monm mom cuoummo onu mo ucoaoauuom :mwcmem ca nouanmou mommao> omonu mo osoz .onwaom oucfl whoSMDOH muoumuoamxo mo Hones: m monocsma mvumwcmmm osu .moma CH owwao> nunsom .mananaoo nuHB moaccawom mmusuaom mo hem can :a coaumuoaaxm smHGon n mMDUHm 47 m ouswfim .a a / as as _ _ _ a T __ mesoEo§ 8m 8m _ o S F Ly p n r b b P L n 'L 1.2 A $80 0.5qu 8:2 can . emu . 814 4 io 0 C 0 «-59 .m__>wn_ 8:02 .I I H mmmw .2252 830:9“. U m 3N9 seesaw 8:8 0 at 525530 85m M so . v-83 .omm>o> 550“. .255200 l.l . 830 . 321111118185 8.8 9:320: 9% 230 if! .2. 0::th saw‘ EOSEQW 2m N » a: o \. on (II-"Illa, 002wa .\ 38:30 00.=82 xohaw z<~ _ OKNJ awesome... he 23 of E cotmeoixm '3?QO a? &% 3% a3 &% «' ‘1 55“ 6" ('1 (I) [I J " 1 48 first place, and that the Spaniards better take physical hold of the lands they wanted to remain free of foreign ex- ploration (Burney, 1891: 40-41). The Buccaneers The immediate result of England's strong stand was a veritable armada of privately owned ships making for the West Indies with the tacit approval of the English, French and Dutch governments. The men sailing them came to be known as the buccaneers, a name that distinguished them as the aristocrats among freebooters. The term buccaneer orig- inated from the manner in which these men preserved meat for their long journeys. They learned this process from the Carib Indians who cut pork or beef into strips and then smoked it over a "boucan," a wood-fire (Burney, 1891: 48-49; Esquemeling, 1967: XXV-XXVI). The buccaneers used the island of Tortuga, twenty miles north of Hispaniola (Haiti), as a base for their operations (Burney, 1891: 32,39; Esquemeling, 1967: 6-13; Pope, 1977: 9). Since the French, English or Dutch could not mine the gold and other precious goods themselves, they concentrated their efforts on relieving the Spanish galleons of their cargo before they reached Europe. The many islands of the Caribbean region and the innumerable cays between the Barrier Reef and the Belize coast provided ideal lairs for the buccaneers. 49 Despite this advantageous situation for privateering, the English realized that in order to get a foothold in the New WOrld they had to establish permanent settlements. This they did with some of the West Indian islands and on the mainland in Belize (Dobson, 1973: 48). These first European communities in Belize were the logwood cutters' encampments. The Logwood Cutters One of the items the Spaniards tried to ship to Eu- rope was logwood, and the buccaneers made forays into the Bay of Campeche to intercept these vessels (Esquemeling, 1967: 56). Logwood, a tropical tree native to Central Amer- ica, was then a precious commodity because of its dye haema- toxylin. For a long time the Spaniards held the monopoly on it and thus were able to drive the price up to one hundred pound Stirling a ton (Caiger, 1951: 37). The English start- ed to cut these trees themselves and eventually the Spanish authorities made concessions and granted cutting rights. Belize was particularly rich in logwood, something the buc- caneers knew better than the Spaniards. Belize According to numerous reports the first European settlers in Belize were a few shipwrecked seafarers who went ashore at the mouth of the Belize River about 1638 (Caiger, 1951: 29; Dobson, 1973: 51-52). Another popular version is that the buccaneers apparently were driven off Tortuga in 1640 and a Peter Wallace led them to Belize. This man is 50 credited with the founding of Belize City in 1640, and the name Belize is supposed to have evolved from Wallace (Caiger, 1951: 31-37; Dobson, 1973: 51-52). This point is argued, however, since the Maya language contains the word "belize," meaning "muddy waters", which is a truthful description of the Belize River (Belize, 1964/1965: 103; Dobson, 1973: 52). In 1667 buccaneering was outlawed by treaty between Spain and England, which caused some of the buccaneers to settle down as logwood cutters. In another treaty of 1670 the Spaniards recognized as English possessions all those territories that England held then in the New World, without making any specific mention of Belize. But later the Span- iards decided to retain the logwood monopoly and made for- eign logwood cutting strictly a licensed business (Caiger, 1951: 45; Dobson, 1973: 57-58; Waddell, 1961: 9). The Eng- lish logwood cutters in Belize saw no problem with that de- cree; they considered themselves on British held ground since they had established some loggers' camps in Belize well before 1670. Nevertheless, the Spaniards made numerous efforts to stop their activities. The settlers, or Baymen, as they came to be called, remained steadfast and finally, in 1717, Britain decided to defend the logwood cutters' rights wherever land was not actually settled by Spain (Dobson, 1973: 59, 61-62; Waddell, 1961: 9). 51 The Bay Settlement The Peace of Versailles of 1783, following the Amer- ican War of Independence, contains the first boundaries of the British logwood cutters' settlement in Belize. The treaty permitted the English to cut logwood between the Be- lize and Hondo Rivers, and fishing was restricted to the coast on the Eastern border of this area (Dobson, 1973: 64-67). See Figure 8 for the treaty boundaries. The Convention of London in 1786 extended the Bay settlement south to the Sibun River and also allowed the cutting of another native wood of Belize, which by that time had gained far more importance than logwwod: mahogany (Figure 8). Spain still maintained sovereignty and did not permit that land be brought under cultivation by the set- tlers apart from planting small gardens. This way Spain wanted to ensure that the Baymen only cut wood and did not carry out any ideas of making Belize a British colony (Dobson, 1973: 73, 82-86; Waddell, 1961: 10-11). A clause of the London Convention stipulated that the English vacate the Mosquito Coast (Nicaragua), and this increased the Bay population by 2250 people. The settlers were pretty much on their own as far as governing was concerned. The Spaniards never established any direct representation in Belize. And far from being a British colony, the Bay settlement came under remote British supervision by way of Jamaica. 52 FIGURE 8 Logwood Cutters' Settlement in Belize This map shows the first boundaries within which British loggers were permitted to cut wood in the Bay area. This agreement was part of the Peace of Versailles of 1783. The hatched area shows the extension of the Bay Settlement in the Convention of London in 1786. Seurce: Asturias, Francisco, Belice, 2nd ed. (Guatemala City, Guatemala, C.A., I941). 53 l '- 18° ~17° Gracias Rio Sarstoon a Dice 1 89° 3.0 Miles j 40 Kilometers . O '- \ 3.’ o / Belize El Cayo Anglo-Guatemalan Tree , 1859 Garbutt Falls . Punta Gorda MEXICO ' N e .- was: .. :q. .5. Y‘s-j 9;. "‘ . e Wi‘il-é'w“-5’.H‘ ' '. p.:.-‘ . ' . gar-2'7 _ . - fir' .QQI'pzal .. - :- ' .‘1‘ 411-. . , .- o "q "a. , . a , .x'u - - - ..n' f” / 4}"- " ' '~::-‘:-'.. I V ‘2. if? h. ‘ .-’ I“... Orange Walk Treaty . - ., IL".- x-- . - - 1‘ . _ of Versailles, . - - .4 “ 4 1783 ‘ ' .53, l.‘ 1.3.:- :3 u . . ,. . 'I 04' ..'......-b . ', - 'g 0' 0'“. Sr. - s . e u u o a s A'rnbergris . Island 18° -< Georges ,o' . Cay ’ I I 5 Turneffe , '\ Islands .IDO".‘ \ 3“; I" 0 r o ,' x 033/ f.- ° ‘ 0‘ o"'."~': (b 0 El: Q 17°— ' I I, ‘ ,. \ i' . .e. ' I i l’-..--.‘ k . o . I ‘04. 'I I; l , l, x i “b I l I I .' ' : ° ' 0' 0 C) . ' ,' I, 'n' n' ,I' , 4.x l I I Q 0 \ \ \ \ \\ Jo--- Logwood Cutters' Settlement in Belize '. :63 Tamash GUATEMALA 89° .. Figure 8 54 In September 1798 the Spaniards sailed down from Yu- catan and attacked strategic St. Georges Cay opposite Belize City. But they were fought off and after two and a half hours of battle on September tenth, the Spaniards withdrew. This turned out to be the last military effort by the Span- iards against the Bay settlement (Caiger, 1951: 96-100; Dobson, 1973: 77-78; Gregg, 1968: l3-15; Humphreys, 1961: 8; Waddell, 1961: 12). At the beginning of the 19th century the huge Span- ish Empire broke into smaller units. A number of independ— ent republics sprung up all around the Bay settlement. As the Central American republics gained independence, their boundaries formed generally along the previous boundaries of the Spanish administrative districts. Since Belize had been under the jurisdiction of the Governor of Yucatan, Mexico attempted to include this territory in her nation. However, the Anglo-Mexican Treaty of 1826 basically reaffirmed the London Convention of 1786 and that Mexico would not interfere in the British settlement in Honduras (Bloomfield, 1953: 14; Humphreys, 1961: 26-29). Neither side established sovereign- ty over the settlement. That claim was put forward by Guatemala. The Brit- ish considered Guatemala's claim without basis since, even though a couple of military offensives by the Spaniards against the Bay settlement had been launched from the Peten, the Belize territory had never been under the jurisdiction of Peten. 55 In 1859 Britain signed the Anglo-Guatemalan Treaty which established the boundaries for Belize along the Sar- stoon River in the South to Gracias a Dios Falls and from there north to the Mexican border along the River Hondo. The ColOny of British Honduras In 1862 the Bay settlement was declared the Colony of British Honduras, remaining under the authority of the Governor of Jamaica. Finally, in 1884 British Honduras re— ceived her own governor (Bloomfield, 1953: 50; Dobson, 1973: 212-213, 217). During the second half of the 19th century civil war had broken out in Yucatan. This was the brutal War of Races, Caste War, or War of Colors, in which Indians fought anybody of European descent, be they white or Mestizo. The Baymen supplied one of the Indian tribes with arms, and the fight- ing spilled over the Mexican border into British Honduras. Some of the war victims took refuge in the Colony and estab- lished a number of sizable settlements in the northern area. The Anglo-Mexican Treaty of 1893 fixed the boundary between Mexico and British Honduras and recognized Ambergris Cay as part of British Honduras (Bloomfield, 1953: 20; Dobson, 1973: 222-228; Gregg, 1968: 135; Humphreys, 1961: 148-149). One result of the War of Races in Yucatan was an in- :flux of refugees, Indian as well as Mestizo, into British Honduras. The 1861 census revealed that almost fourty per- cent of the population had been born in Yucatan and most of 56 these people settled in the Northern District (Dobson, 1973: 134, 251; Waddell, 1961: 53, 249-250). Belize Belize achieved internal self-government in 1964, but her external affairs and national defense remained Brit- ain's responsibility as Guatemala threatened to invade Be- lize. On September 21, 1981 Belize became fully independ- ent. However, the British Forces remained as a protective measure on Belize's request since Guatemala still had not given up her claims. The Peoples Of all Central American countries Belize has the smallest population, but smallness in numbers has not limit- ed racial diversity. The Belizean people form a highly com- plex society that includes the major races of the world. The main population groups are the Creoles, including those of African descent, the Mestizos, the Maya, the Caribs, the Europeans, the East Indians, the Arabs and the Chinese. The reasons for this varied composition is the country's geographic location and its colorful history. The Maya The only people of Belize that are indigenous to Central America are the American Indians, the Maya. But the Maya living in this country now do not represent a direct 'link in the uninterrupted occupance of Belize by the same 57 Maya tribes as first cultivated this land more than a thou- sand years ago. Most, if not all of them, are in fact rela- tive newcomers to the Belize scene and many of them still wander about the Maya Mountains and the Peten region of Gua- temala feeling no confining restraint on their movement by such modern institutions as political boundaries. Three Maya groups can be distinguished: the Yucatec- ans of the north, the Mopan in the west-central area of Cayo and Toledo District and the Kekchi of the south. Of the three groups the Maya of the north are the most integrated into the Belize population. The farther south one gets the stronger becomes the adherence to the traditional way of Maya life, because of the remoteness of the Maya communities in the south. The Kekchi Indians, whose villages are in close proximity to each other, came to the Toledo District from the Vera Paz area of Guatemala beginning towards the end of the last century (Dobson, 1973: 253; Huck, 1971: 262; Jones, 1970: 262-263). The Kekchi still hold to the ancient Maya way of agriculture, a shifting cultivation system.in which they clear a piece of land out of the forest and after raising one or two crops that pretty much exhaust the soil, leave these fields, or milpas, in search of newer more fertile ground (Kellman and Adams, 1970: 323). Milpa agriculture is illustrated in Figure 9. The Maya grow mainly corn, beans and some rice, and some still employ a simple pointed stick in the planting 58 .Anmmuwouona m.uo£un 0mH< .smsn onu mo uno vmumoao coon o>m£ .mmaHHa no .mpHon one .namuwouonm oz» mo unwwu maouuxo onu ou manflmfl> ma mcwsu one mo upon muofinumfia ohmo aw noficnuamcsx mo ouHm who: ucowocm onu Ham: cowum>HuHsU wcwumwnm onnuanofiuw< mafia: m MMDUHm 59 m onnwflm 6O process as did their forebears. In terms of livestock they raise poultry and pigs which are fed surplus corn. Since the Maya do not work the same fields year after year but rather move about in their pursuit of farming, they are not very keen on land ownership but like instead to lease land for a limited period only, even though it means sometimes that they have to walk many miles from their village to their farm plots. As the Maya are re-immigrants to Belize from Guate- mala and Mexico, their first contact with European culture had been under Spanish rule and with Roman Catholicism. Originating from.a deeprooted tradition of highly organized community life and further bolstered by a period under strict Spanish administration the modern Maya still lead a rather ordered village life. For the most part they embraced the Roman Catholic religion but managed to combine Christian be- lief with ancient Maya religion. This finds expression throughout the agricultural year as they implore various gods from seeding time to harvest season to bless their fields with bounteous crops (Dobson, 1973: 292). The Creoles Even though their name implies that they are the lo- ca1.population, the Creoles are a grand mix of the descend- ants of people from Africa, Europe, and a few other places thrown in for good measure. The Spanish "criollo" (French "creole"), meaning domestic or locally bred, was applied to 61 those who were born to white as well as black settlers in the West Indies. In Belize, the Creoles are the descendants of the buccaneers, the Baymen, and their slaves. They com- prise the largest group among the people of Belize and are probably the ones who are most confident about their own identity. They hold the leadership position by number and seniority alone (Fig. 10). The Creoles can date their existence in Belize back to the 17th century and this holds true for both the white and black element in their people. The Africans were brought to the West Indies as laborers since the harsh Spanish rule had decimated the indigenous population to a point near ex- tinction. African slaves replaced Caribbean slaves to per- form the difficult work in the mines and later the planta- tions that the Europeans did not want to do themselves in the hot and humid climate. As the Baymen went about their laborious logging operations in the Belizean forests they depended increasing- ly on the strong black slaves for the hard physical labor. Since these slaves had to be entrusted with machetes and .axes, it is easy to see why they were treated on a more equal basis than the West Indian plantation slaves. The ‘hard work in an entirely masculine atmosphere that was shared by the Baymen and their slaves in the forest for months at a time was conducive to a somewhat more egalitar- ian work relatioship than was generally enjoyed by slaves i1: those times. The Baymen's confidence went so far as to 62 .Anmmuwouosa w.uo£u: no Coxmu mm3 mHSuon mane huwo onwaom cw oaoom uoouum OH MMDOHh 63 Figure 10 64 put guns into the slaves' hands and having them fight against the Spaniards. Judging from the accounts of the Battle of St. Georges Cay the victory over the Spanish ag- gressors was in no small part thanks to the fearless and fervent fighting by the slaves (Dobson, 1973: 145-151; Gregg, 1968: 15-17). It was the work in the forests that gave the slaves a measure of dignity and set them apart from other slaves that were employed merely as physical laborers and often with no difference between their treatment and that of beasts of burden. From this it can be understood why the black slaves of Belize clung to their jobs in the logging camps and did not show much interest in assuming responsibilities that carried less status than a woodcutter's. The Creoles hold the largest percentage of adminis- trative positions in Belize today and they generally are town dwellers working in skilled trades or business. A num- ber of them are still employed in forestry and few make a living as farmers (Dobson, 1973: 256-257). Their language is English or a quaint Creole dialect which is reminiscent of a pidgin English and takes some practice to understand. The Mestizos Numerically the Mestizos are the second largest group and comprise about thirty-two percent of the population. The Mestizos came to Belize during the second half of the 19th century under the most violent of circumstances. These 65 people were refugees of the "War of the Races" that tor- mented Yucatan. This war was an uprising of the Maya against the descendants of the Spaniards and went so far as to include people who were of mixed Maya and Spanish- European parentage. But their vision of regaining their ancestral land for a purely Mayan race was eventually de- stroyed when the war ended in favor of the Mexicans with the result that the Maya also fled south across the Hondo to es- cape the retaliation of the Mexicans. So, curiously, the two enemies ended up living side by side in Belize which they could not manage to do in Yucatan. The major contribution of the Spanish, Mestizo and Indian immigrants was their agricultural knowledge acquired under Spanish rule. They had been farmers in Yucatan and they wanted to farm in Belize. They settled mainly in Coro- zal District and Orange Walk District where soil and climat- ic conditions are quite good for agriculture and they built up a sugar industry that is still expanding. Sugar has be- come an export item of increasing importance. The Mestizos represent the Spanish element in the Belizean community. They speak Spanish and they are devout Roman Catholics. Recently the Spanish segment of the Be- lizean population has been increasing at a faster rate than the other groups. This may be partly due to a possibly lrigher birth rate among the Mestizos. But the main reason for this increase is the immigration of citizens from other Central American countries, especially refugees from El 66 Salvador. At the same time this in-migration has increased the number of people in skilled professions, as some of the refugees are doctors and dentists. The Chinese The first Chinese immigrants were brought to Belize in 1865 under a settlement plan to develop agriculture in the colony. At the time about five hundred Chinese inden- tured laborers were hired by a few lanowners in hopes of cultivating their land. But the Chinese endeavor did not work out, partly because many of them died of diseases con- tracted in the unfamiliar environment and partly because they defected in large numbers to side with the rebellious Maya in Yucatan. At any rate, three years after their ar- rival only 211 were left. They had originally been taken to Corozal District, but shortly afterwards were resettled ianoledo District because of friction with the Mestizos in the north (Setzekorn, 1975: 24). The few that survived in Belize eventually assimilated, mainly with the Indian seg- ment of the community (Waddell, 1961: 18). But as the 20th century censuses reveal, Chinese are present in Belize today. The breakdown of the population by place of birth in 1946, for example, lists fourty-two citizens as born in China. These new immigrants are mainly shopkeepers and are concentrated in Belize City and Punta Gorda. With their families they were thought to have in- creased to about two hundred in 1968 (Dobson, 1973: 251; 67 Gregg, 1968: 125; Setzekorn, 1975: 25). The East Indians In 1958 the English Parliament tried to kill two birds with one stone: the British Honduras colony needed sugar plantation workers and the Bengal soldiers, the Se- poys, had staged a bloody uprising in East India that threat- ened British rule there even though the British managed to put down the rebellion. Consequently, one thousand Sepoys and their families were expatriated to the Caribbean to help defuse a tense situation. Their descendants still provide labor in the sugar plantations and rice fields in Corozal District in the north and Toledo District in the south (Dobson, 1973: 250; Holdridge, 1940: 380, 383-384, 392; waddell, 1961: 74). The "Syrians" Even though termed "Syrian" the Mideast community is actually Lebanese; at the time that they first emigrated to British Honduras the state of Lebanon did not exist, hence the "Syrians.” Some families have been in the country for about three generations but there are also more recent arrivals. Most of them are involved in trade (Dobson, 1973: 254; Gregg, 1968: 75,125). The Europeans This category is self-explanatory, comprising obvi- ously the British and other European nationalities. But 68 this group also includes the North Americans, a large number of whom arrived during the late 18603 as a result of the Civil War. Most of these were refugees from the Confeder- ate States persuaded to leave war torn America and try a new life in the colony of British Honduras. The promotion of the move to Central America was done by Young, Toledo and Company that had established an office in New Orleans. They represented a large landholding group in Toledo District and therefore this colonization effort near Punta Gorda became known as the Toledo settlement. The American settlers had to clear the bush before they could consider planting crops and the combination of disease and lack of laborers caused many of them to return to America. Nevertheless, in 1893 the Americans and their families numbered about two hundred people, between them they had twelve sugar mills and nine hundred cattle, six hundred acres were planted and worked by three hundred 1a- borers (Holdridge, 1940: 382). But the settlers had con- centrated all their efforts on one crop, sugar, and as Eu- rope increasingly filled its need for this commodity with beet sugar, the demand and price for cane sugar dropped. Being devout Methodists, the settlers could not reconcile it with their conscience to enter the lucrative rum produc- tion which would have averted some of the impending economic doom. This, together with the circumstance that the set- tlers sent their teen-age children to the United States for ‘their education, caused many repatriations among subsequent 69 generations. Yet, American immigration continued and Belize still has strong ties with the Southern States, particularly Louisiana (Holdridge, 1940: 376-393). The Caribs (Garifuna) Another group of Belizeans with a most fascinating history are the Caribs, or more precisely, the Black Caribs. These people originated in northern South America and, being fine boat builders and navigators, they made their way from the mouth of the Orinoco through the islands of the Lesser Antilles and towards the Greater Antilles. Apart from the Maya they were the only other people of the Caribbean region to use sails with their boats (Conzemius, 1928: 197, 199). However, they did not become famous as the accom- plished seafarers they were but instead their name came to denote a rather unpleasant habit some humans have: eating other humans. In the Carib language their name signifies ”brave people.” The Spaniards corrupted the word into Carib- ales and Canibales and subsequent to the discovery of the Caribs all people that ate human flesh were named Cannibals. Their major domicile and base for their trading ex- cursions was the island of St. Vincent, so named by Columbus in 1498 when he discovered it on the day of St. Vincent, January 22nd (Conzemius, 1928: 183). The original inhabitants of the Antilles Islands xwere the Arawak Indians and the Caribs made short shrift of them but did take the Arawak women with them. In this 70 fashion the Carib culture acquired a second language, for the captured women retained their Arawak tongue and passed it on to their daughters whereas the sons eventually spoke their fathers' language. This division in the language has survived till today. By the time the Spaniards appeared the Caribs were beginning to leave their mark on the Greater Antilles and had actually conquered part of Puerto Rico (Conzemius, 1928: 186). The Caribs were making their way through the Carib- bean Islands, but the extinction of the Arawaks in the Great- er Antilles was carried out by the Spaniards. Many of the Arawak tribes were of rather delicate constitution and did not survive for long the slave labor in the mines. That left the Caribs. But, being mindful of the odious distinction of these brave people, the Spaniards then resorted to imported slave labor from Africa. Nevertheless, starting in 1624 the Caribs had to re- treat from some of the islands until they finally held St. Vincent, St. Lucia and Dominica (Conzemius, 1928: 187). Then their culture received a new infusion in 1975 when Afri- can slaves were shipwrecked off St. Vincent and mixed with them. Thus the "Black Caribs" came into being. The origi- nal pure Caribs used to paint their bodies red or yellow. In order to differentiate between the new and the original ,groups, they were called the "Black", "Red”, and "Yellow" Caribs, respectively (Conzemius, 1928: 188). 71 In 1763 the British took st. Vincent but there cer- tainly was no peaceful coexistence between the Europeans and the natives. There was continuous strife and a final war which the British settled in 1795 in their time-honored tra- dition of deporting the dissident element. Only few of the Black Caribs managed to escape the dragnet and they remained in St. Vincent. About five thousand of their people were taken to Ruatan Island in the Bay of Honduras from where they soon followed an invitation by the Spanish governor of Honduras to settle in Trujillo. But when the Central Ameri- can states went through their seesaw periods between monar- chies and republics the old fighting spirit awoke in the Caribs and they joined the effort of the Royalists. When they found themselves on the losing side many of the fled to British Honduras where they settled the town of Stann Creek (Conzemius, 1928: 189-190). Even though the Caribs spread from Stann Creek, they never settled far from the sea or a watercourse leading to it. They still are deft carpenters and boatbuilders, and fishing is a major Carib occupation. Because of their phys- ical strength they supplied for many years the labor force in the mahogany cutting industry. Among the Caribs the women always were the ones who did.most of the work in the fields from planting through lmarvesting with the men more or less just clearing the bush. ITnis is contrary to the Central American Indians where the men traditionally do all the planting, in some tribes out of 72 fear that the crop will not do well if put into the ground by women. When a missionary once questioned some Caribs why they did not help the women more with the hard field work they told him: "You have yet to learn that women know how to bring forth and we don't; if they plant, the maize stalk gives two or three ears of corn, the cassava plant yields two or three baskets of tubers, and similarly everything is multiplied. Because the women know how to bring forth and they know how to make the grain bring forth; therefore they do the planting as we don't know as well as they" (Conzemius, 1928: 194). This attitude together with the Creoles' oppo- sition to farming has formed a major obstacle to the devel- opment of agriculture in Belize (Fig. 11). The Mennonites Even though these people are of European stock, they represent such a distinct group in the Belizean community that they warrant a separate entry. The Mennonites are the latest addition to the hodge-podge of people in Belize, most of them.having arrived between 1958 and 1961. They are mem- bers of a religious sect that was founded early in the 16th century in Europe as an offshoot of the Reformation. Their doctrine insists on a literal interpretation of the New Tes- tament and stresses separation of church and state, pacifism, baptism.not of infants but only of adults, refraining from delivering oaths and adherence to a simple life (Sawatzky, 1971: 1-2). These strict laws that ran counter to the 73 .Anmmumouonm m.uonud .um was mwosa .um .moficwaon mo mpcmamw Hanan mzu paw mNHHom aw o>wH mucmccoomop Hausa mo xuwuomma_m£u hmnou use .mnwumo man Eoum mama mow poumoum coflwmu vcmamfi oHHqu oak .mucmHmH moaaflua< onu nwsounu tumudm tam moHHoE< nupom cw cowwou ooocwuo onu CH voumcwwwuo 0:3 mnflnmo pom mnu ohm mnoummocm no: wcoa< .kumwum> oflcnuo umme m.oNHHmm mo camamxo Seams m ma auww mauufia mane Huao mesmaumo «Huang AH mmeHm 74 Figure 11 75 established Church's rules caused a lot of friction for the Mennonites and they moved to the rural areas where they would be less conspicuous. Thus, farming became almost the exclusive occupation of the Mennonites. Various rulers in Europe and Russia made amends to attract the quietly industrious Mennonites but sooner or later differences arose, generally because of attempts to incorporate the sect into the community of the host country. That always was the signal for the Mennonites to move on. Eventually they came to North America, especially to Penn- sylvania and Canada (Sawatzky, 1971: 10). As the Canadian authorities pressed for public schooling of the children, many Mennonites moved to Mexico beginning in 1920 and stayed in Chihuahua and Durango until familiar troubles stirred them once more into pulling up stakes and following an in- vitation to the colony of British Honduras. Both sides, the Mennonites and the representatives for the Crown, signed the Privilegium which grants the Mennonites special concessions that permit them to live life as their religion dictates (Bushong, 1960: 308). The highlights of this agreement are, for the Mennonites, exemption from military duty and social security taxes and the right to their own churches and schools in their old German language. For their part of the commitment the Mennonites have to pay property taxes and income taxes and must assume their community's welfare care and furthermore produce surplus food for the country's needs as well as for export. This agreement was signed in 1957 76 on December 18th and the Mennonite families started to set- tle in their new home in 1958. If one expects the Mennonites to be a tight-knit group in face of so much adversity from the rest of the world, one finds that even here are enough differences to fragment the union. In the course of their history the Men- nonites hve adopted varying degrees of permissibility. Dif- ferent factions have bought five separate tracts of land in Belize. The "Kleine Gemeinde”, the most flexible group among the Mennonites in Belize, settled at Spanish Lookout in Cayo District (Sawatzky, 1971: 336-337, 363). Despite the fact that they are excellent farmers the Mennonites experienced a number of failures with agriculture in Belize. To begin with, they had to clear the bush and adapt their agrarian techniques to the local soil and cli- matic conditions. The more progressive community members at Spanish Lookout, who employ some machinery which more con- servative Mennonites consider forbidden, combined some of the Maya techniques with their own and were quite successful with their bean and peanut crops. They also developed a poultry industry that had a great impact on the local econ- omy and substantially reduced the need for import of poultry products. Beyond that they are in the process of improving a.cattle breed that will have greater resistance to the 10- cal insect pests and tick-borne diseases. But locally pro- ciuced fresh milk is now replacing some of the heretofore cnnly imported tinned milk. The Mennonites have established 77 the Mennonite Center in Belize City, the town that is their main market (Dobson, 1973: 255). It is obvious that Belize's population is anything but homogeneous. Some of the components have a higher af- finity for mixing than others. The Maya, Caribs and Menno- nites are quite conscious of their racial, ethnic or cul- tural distinction and so far this perception of themselves has prevented their assimilation. The crystallization of these elements does not have a disruptive influence, but rather lends greater variety to the mosaic of the Belizean people. However, Belize is in the process of building a na- tion and therefore searching for unifying elements instead of extolling the exclusive qualities of some of its people (Crosbie and Furley, 1967: 56). Generally, such factors as a common language, cul- ture, or education and sometimes religion are shared by a 4 people. But Belize has not been able to benefit from such normal national bonds. Its population comprises many cul- tures and languages and the Protestant as well as the Roman Catholic religion have been influential in the country. From the inception of the educational system the churches controlled the schools and they have retained this power un- til now. Both the ruling party and opposition agreed to this situation because of the very limited public funds available for education (Dobson, 1973: 320). Since the Protestant schools tended to teach English ethics while the (Satholic schools tended towards Latin American attitudes, 78 education emphasized differences instead of stressing unify- ing cultural elements. But the government and the churches are attempting to overcome this now and instituted an inter- denominational school in the new capital of Belmopan. In 1975 Belize had a population of about 140,000 people and the population density then was fifteen people per squaremile.1 However, the actual geographic distribu- tion is quite lopsided with about one-third of the entire population living in Belize City. One other city, Belmopan, seven towns and 160 villages and settlements hold the rest of the population. The towns and villages are clustered between Orange Walk Town and Corozal Town in the north, along the Belize River and the road between Stann Creek and Punta Gorda, and the northern cays, particularly Ambergris Cay, hold a large proportion of the population involved in the fishing industry. The average annual rate of increase in 1975 was 2.8 percent, which is among the highest in the world. Whether the population growth will result in a filling in of the empty regions and a more homogeneous population, only the future will tell. But it will have to be accompanied by improved agriculture if all these people are to be fed ade- quately. 1All population data for 1975 are taken from Quick Facts AbOut Belize, published by the Belize Tourist Boar , 1975. 79 The Economy Belize was settled by Europeans because of its riches in timber. Until the 20th century its forestry re— sources remained its only raison d'etre. But once the de- mand for logwood and mahogany had experienced a global de- cline--the one because cheaper synthetic dyes had greatly diminished its value and the other because different furni- ture woods had become more fashionable--the need for new export products arose. The natural turn of events should have been a more intensified production of tropical cash crops that were in demand on the European market. However, agriculture in British Honduras was a very minor industry. Historically the Spaniards had suppressed farming in the British settle- ment from the very beginning since they wanted to prevent other Europeans from gaining a foothold in Central America. Numerous treaties between Spain and England spelled out tight restrictions for the Baymen as far as their agricul- tural activities were concerned. But apart from these po- litical considerations there were cultural and social rea- sons why agriculture remained undeveloped in British Honduras. When Belize's economy finally had to become more diversified, Belize's people had developed very definite opinions as to what constituted proper gainful employment and had strong antipathies against what they considered occupations beneath their dignity. Forestry had not only 80 formed the basis of the economy, but employment in forestry had also represented a respected standing in the society. The nature of the forest industry made particular demands on the physical strength of the people involved in it and also required them to be away from home for months at a time. This left the women, the old and the weak to tend to the food production. Small wonder then that agri- culture never amounted to much more than subsistence farm- ing and for most items the country's production did not even meet its own needs. Thus Belize had never been anywhere near self- sufficient and had become dependent on imported food long ago. A large proportion of its national expenditure went for food. In 1967, for example, more than a quarter of its imports consisted of foodstuffs (Setzekorn, 1975: 239). When logwood sold at a hundred sterling pounds a ton these payments were not difficult to meet but once Belize had nothing of great value to offer on the world market the very necessities of life became luxury items. To build a viable economy against the complicated historical and social background of Belize was, and still is, an arduous task. There were other factors to be reck- oned with, such as the small population and the lack of infrastructure within the country. Communication between 'the various sections of the country has been hindered by the very rudimentary road system. There are only three umajor roads: the Northern Highway between Belize City and (‘5 81 Chetumal in Mexico, the Western Highway leading from Belize City to Benque Viejo on the Guatemalan border, and the Hum- mingbird Highway between Belmopan and Stann Creek and con- tinuing as an all weather road to Punta Gorda. A road to the southern border is under construction, but as yet the communities in the south are rather isolated since the road to Punta Gorda and the smaller ones feeding to it are fre- quently impassable. Small aircraft and coastal traffic by boat is providing much of the transportation between the most important population centers. This poor communication network has been an added hindrance in the development of agriculture and remains a problem in the shipping of crops. In 1959 a land use survey was made which indicated that about fourty percent of Belize has good soil conditions for farming. The same survey disclosed that only about five percent of the suitable farmland was actually used for agri- cultural production. But the government is determined to boost cultivation and has made some decisions in the matter that underline that resolution in no uncertain terms. For example, much of the land is held by a few large landowners who are frequently absentee landlords (Huck, 1971: 136; Crosbie and Furley, 1967: 59). As they have not made any great efforts to improve their land the government has de- cided to prod these people into action with a graduated Rural Land Utilization Tax that is increased each year that the owner fails to cultivate the land (Dobson, 1973: 273). Parcels of less than a hundred acres were exempted from 82 this tax in order to encourage small farmers. Considering the socio-economic history of Belize since the European period began there was not much of an agricultural basis to build on. Nevertheless, agriculture today represents the most important sector of the economy. It holds the greatest promise for Belize's economy and some remarkable achievements can be registered already. Great changes took place in the primary industries of forestry and agriculture between 1950 and 1965; 1959 was the first year that sugar and citrus exports together amounted to more than the timber exports. And in 1961 sugar and citrus alone surpassed the value of the timber exports (Crosbie and Furley, 1967: 59-60; Dobson, 1973: 265; Huck, 1971: 170). Sugar Sugar has become the most important export item.and the small farmers, particularly the Mestizos of Orange Walk and Corozal, have a large share in the production of this crop. In the past the Belize Sugar Industries (B31) was the major grower as well as processor of cane in the coun- try. But since 1963, B81 has been a subsidiary of Tate and ILyle of England and though they still grow some cane they .are required to buy the cane that is raised by the small independent growers. Therefore their major operations now are with the processing and shipping of the sugar. 83 The industry is given yearly export quotas by the International Sugar Association above which it cannot sell sugar on the international market. But BSI has been able to have this quota doubled by their best customer, the United States. They are also branching into the sale of other products, such as molasses. The sugar production in Belize has not nearly reached its potential. Yield per acre is still rather low compared to other sugar growing countries. This is due to such fac- tors as different growing techniques and lack of fertilizer. But because of the soil and climatic conditions the sucrose content of the Belize sugar cane is among the highest in the world and is on the level of the finest Cuban sugar cane (Dobson, 1973: 270; Setzekorn, 1975: 243). Citrus As sugar is the major crop of the north, citrus is the one of the south. Like sugar Belizean citrus did not reach its important place on the market until after the Second World War. But it also had its beginnings much ear- lier and actually had won international recognition as a superior quality product. At the 1928 Imperial Fruit Exhi- laition in England, for example, Belize's grapefruit won the (Bald as well as the Silver Medals (Caiger, 1951: 151). Citrus trees do not belong to the indigenous vege- tation in America. They were introduced to the New World byr the Spaniards who particularly grew limes throughout 84 Central America since the juice of these fruits helped to ward off scurvy. The commercial growing of citrus fruit in Belize was started about 1912 in the Stann Creek area and export of the fruit began in 1925 (Dobson, 1973: 271; Gregg, 1968: 106). The Stann Creek valley is ideally suited to the growing of oranges and grapefruit since the climate is warm with sufficient rainfall and the soil is very fertile. This eliminates much of the expense which in some citrus growing areas of the United States is necessary for irri- gation and fertilization. The fruits are processed by two firms near Stann Creek, one is the Citrus Company of Brit- ish Honduras which is controlled by a Jamaican firm, and the other is the British Honduras Fruit Company owned by Salada Foods of Canada. These processors also buy the produce of the small growers, but most of the citrus groves are actually owned by these two large firms who control the industry. The majority of the citrus export is to the United States and Canada and increasingly to Great Britain. By 1970 the orange production approached that of Florida and by 1975 citrus groves covered nine thousand acres. Citrus fruits accounted for one quarter of Belize's export ‘value (Dobson, 1973: 271; Gregg, 1968: 106; Setzekorn, 1975: 247-248). Thus sugar and citrus exports represent over three «quarters of Belize's export and the importance of agricul- thre to the country's economy cannot be more clearly 85 demonstrated. At the same time it does not make good busi- ness sense to have such a high proportion of one's economy based on two items. Therefore numerous efforts are being made to diversify agriculture in Belize. More products are needed for local consumption as well. In some cases devel- opment has been so good that the government had to expand the international market for its products. In 1971 Belize became the twelfth member of the Caribbean Free Trade Area (CARIFTA), which is composed of former Commonwealth coun- tries of the Caribbean region (Dobson, 1973: 288). The Caribbean nations established this Association to enlarge their market and to improve trade by lifting barriers to trade. Belize, of all the CARIFTA members, has the smallest population and the lowest population density; it has the room and the potential to increase cultivation and at its doorstep it has a fast growing market for the fruits of this development. Other crops than sugar and citrus that have gained or regained some importance are rice, beans, corn, and bananas. Bananas Around the turn of the century bananas, the tradi- tional export crop of Central America besides coffee, were also one of the export items of British Honduras. But in the 19208 a Panama disease outbreak destroyed most of the banana plantations and put an end to the export of this crop. In the meantime some more disease resistant varieties 86 have been developed and bananas are again a trade item in Belize's economy. Most of the plantations are in the cit- rus region near Stann Creek and the majority of the fruit is shipped to Great Britain. The Banana Association of Belize is planning to have eventually more than six thou- sand acres under banana cultivation. In 1969 this crop could claim 35.2 million pounds as its contribution to Be- lize's export total (Caiger, 1951: 141-142; Dobson, 1973: 267; Setzekorn, 1975: 249-250). Corn, Beans and Rice These foodstuffs are diet staples of the Caribbean region and thus there is a ready market for them. Corn and beans of course have been grown in Belize since Mayan times. The need for these crops has not only increased because of the population expansion in Belize and the expansion of its international market but, in the case of corn, also because of the development of the livestock industry. Corn pro- duction grew from 9.1 million pounds from 11,383 acres in 1964 to 35 million pounds from.25,000acres in 1971 (Setzekorn, 1975: 258). Compared to corn and beans, rice is a new crop in Belize but its cultivation has experienced a dramatic de- 'velopment there. To a great extent this is due to an American farmer who introduced new growing and harvesting Inethods as well as new varieties and did this in grand :style on a large area in central Belize. Until then rice 87 had been grown in modest amounts in the south. He eventu- ally hopes to have 32,000 acres planted in rice. Since 1973 Belize has been able to add this crop to its export list (Setzekorn, 1975: 255-256; Floyd, 1972: 5). Livestock The poultry industry got its start after the arri- val of the Mennonites in Belize and has developed very well. But the raising of other livestock, such as cattle and hogs, has not yet progressed to the point where it meets local demand. In the case of cattle, in 1970, the total herd contained 32,000 head and these are being improved by vari- ous breeds to make them more resistant to the local disease and tick threats. There are hopes to eventually export beef and pork (Floyd, 1972: 5; Setzekorn, 1975: 256-258). Fishingglndustry The barrier reef forms an ideal habitat for an extraordinary variety of sea animals and particularly for the marketable crayfish (lobster). A very lucrative lobster industry has developed with exports mainly to the United States. But commercial fishing also includes conch, shrimp and snapper. Despite excellent fishing grounds along the Belizean coast the scalefish industry is lagging far behind the lob- ster industry. The reason for this is that the government lmas put price controls on fish for local consumption, vflnereas lobster is exported at a far higher price level. 88 But the coastal communities are generally well supplied with fresh fish (Craig, 1966: 77; Craig, 1968: 172-178; Craig, 1969: 252-263). The fishing practices reflect local marine topography as well as cultural traits of the people. The three distinct fishing groups in Belize are the Mesti- zos, Creoles and Caribs. The Mestizos employ a variety of methods ranging from handline fishing to skin-diving to trapping and seine fishing. 0n Cay Caulker trapping is the most common prac- tice. The trapping of fish, particularly lobster, is a rather recent development in Belize. An even newer commer- cial fishing method is skin-diving. Its introduction is attributed to vacationing sport fishermen (Craig, 1966: 72). The Creole fishermen work generally with handlines and seines except for the Creoles at Placentia who skin- dive for lobster. The Caribs in the south employ handlines in their fishing (Craig, 1966: 72). Commercial fishing is organized through five fish- ing cooperatives that also manage the processing plants. There is no doubt that the fishing industry is gaining im- portance and that there is great potential between the Barrier Reef and the coastline. Nevertheless, the pro- portion of labor force in fishing is still very small and the government holds strict control over the permits for fishing to prevent overfishing (Floyd, 1972: 2). 89 Forest Products The economy of Belize was dominated into the 20th century by its forest products: logwood, mahogany and chic- le. Today, logwood production is nearly insignificant. Mahogany, due to its quality as a furniture and fine boat wood, still is an important timber item of the Belizean forests, but due to the exploitation in the past the mahog- any stands have been sorely depleted. The future of this industry hinges on successful reforestation. A Forest Department was instituted in 1922 to as- sess the situation and take steps to stem the exhaustion of this valuable natural resource. At first, the department did not have sufficient funds to implement the necessary measures. But eventually it took control over the felling of prescribed timber and the replanting of seedlings in an effort to ensure sustained harvest from the forests. This management includes other marketable woods that have gained economic importance, such as pine, cedar and rosewood, and the establishment of National Forest Reserves (Dobson, 1973: 261-263). The other historical product of Belize's forests is chicle from the sapodilla tree. Chicle is obtained by bleeding the sapodilla tree and this latex for many years formed the basis in the production of chewing gum. Like logwood it has suffered on the world market due to syn- thetic substitutes and continues to experience a steady «decline from its past importance (Fig. 12). 90 .Anamuwouonn m.Hozud¢v .zuumspcfl 83w wsw3mno onu pom manna mnu mm3 mane owuosucmmnmum ca nouns :.mHoaao: xmuma mun you mass man woman ou mums coon m>mn wusoummouo mnu uuowuumwn xamz mwcmuo aw Hopuon cmowxoz mnu Hum: menu mHHfluoamm < coauomHHoo «Hanna NH mMDUHh 91 .0 A. L. t 4. ... . at: l8?~iufl. NH ouswflm \ I 0.09. . . .. I‘V.U..\: 4 92 Mineral Resources Belize is not known to have extensive deposits of valuable minerals. Because of major oil reserves off the Mexican coast of Yucatan and in the Peten region of Guate- mala oil exploration was also undertaken in Belize. However, the drilling efforts were unsuccessful and there- fore discontinued (Fox, 1962: 113). Tourism The Caribbean climate, palm-fringed islands and beaches, the Barrier Reef and the magnificent Maya ruins, all these add up to an attractive vacation spot. But there are far too few hotels to handle a large tourist industry. A number of foreign entrepreneurs, mostly American, have attempted to develop resorts, but most of these projects did not go far beyond the planning stage. The people of Belize do not appear that eager to become another Caribbean tourist spot. Considering the social problems that have arisen around the Caribbean because'the majority of the people have to make a living as servants to wealthy for- eigners frolicking in their countries, Belize may be wise not to promote this business in grand style. CHAPTER III FIELD METHODOLOGY The field work for this study was conducted in Be- lize during October and November of 1980, and during May and June of 1981. The sample was drawn from five of the six districts of the country: Belize, Orange Walk, Cayo, Toledo and Corozal.1 The data were obtained by observation, from discus- sion with informants from all walks of life and culture groups in Belize, and from interviews. Out of personal preference and in order to gain as much insight as possible into various dietary, health and child care practices, the researcher lived in private homes throught the country every night but one while in Belize. Approval for the study was granted by the Assistant Permanent Secretary of Health, who also initiated coopera- tion from the Public Health Department and other government offices (see Acknowledgments). 1The sixth district, Stann Creek, was not visited due to time limitations. Moreover, Stann Creek is primarily Carib, and a sufficient number of interviews with Caribs ‘was obtained in Toledo District. 93 94 Since the study focuses on cultural variation in infant feeding/weaning practices, it was designed in such a way as to allow the sampling of each group in an area of the country where the group in question is predominant. This meant that in Orange Walk Mestizo and Maya were inter- viewed, in Cayo Mennonites and Mestizo, in Corozal Mestizo, in Belize Creole, and in Toledo Caribs and Maya. The de- sign was expected to eliminate outlier minorities as they are probably neither representative of their own nor the predominant group. The interviews were based on a structured question- naire on which responses were recorded during each inter- view (see Annex). Almost all questions were close-ended. However, each questionnaire had additional space for fur- ther information. A separate journal was kept every eve- ning, and information that had not been anticipated was also entered there. A number of the questions were put to the mothers in different ways. Sometimes a small change in phrasing, or simply a repeat of the question later during the conversation, resulted in a more detailed or comprehen- sive answer. All interviews were conducted by the re- searcher alone, except during approximately twenty inter- views with Maya and Mestizo mothers which were done with the assistance of a translator (see Acknowledgments). Apart from the cultural considerations in the choice of the sample, a major criterion was that the mother being interviewed have a baby not older than one year. 95 The reason behind this decision was that the mother's mem- ory of weaning practices and episodes of ill health might be more precise if the questions focused on the more recent past. Mothers were found practically on a door to door basis, by walking down the street and looking for diapers drying on lines outside the houses (Figure 13). Since most women do laundry almost daily, this turned out to be a very successful procedure. Another aspect of Belizean life also led to many interviews and that was the fact that life is very open and many women sit in their doorways or on the front steps and either do some housework or just look to chat with a passer-by. A number of interviews resulted from the researcher's enquiries whether there were other babies in the same block or the next one. About half of the interviews were done at the Child Health Clinics that are conducted throughout the country. Interviews were con- ducted at Fixed Child Health Clinics in Toledo, Belize, Cayo and Orange walk Districts, and at Mobile Child Health Clinics in Orange Walk and Corozal Districts. The majority of mothers interviewed at the clinics were there for check- ups of their babies. The problem of transportation became very evident during the two field trips when a number of scheduled Mo- bile Child Clinics had to be cancelled because the only available vehicle had broken down. 96 .Anmwnmouonm m.no£uaMmHzH ho ZOHHDQHMHmHQ H m4m<fi 100 After the field work was completed in June, 1981, 1:11e researcher had a lengthy visit with the Belize Census Officer and was given the provisional figures of the 1980 census (see Acknowledgments). Still, the computation of tihe ethnic breakdown had not yet been completed. The opin- tion of the Census Officer was that the Mestizo population 11ad increased near to that of the Creole, but that the (Breole population, comprising about thirty-five percent, Vvas still the leading group by a few percent. A re-count of completed questionnaires showed that 'the Mestizo were somewhat over-represented according to the (Zensus Officer's estimate. It was concluded that the addi- tional information is more valuable to the study than an attempt to achieve correct proportions by trimming the size of one of the sampled groups. The Mennonites likely com- prise no more than four percent of Belize's total popula- tion; they, too, are probably over-represented, but it was felt that the entire Mennonite sample was so small that a luigher ratio of interviews was justified. After return to the United States, the 115 questions for 181 interviewed mothers were entered on large paper grids to facilitate computation and analysis of the data. UUhese data were summarized in five individual tables that Show the sequence of feeding and weaning of each baby within each of the five culture groups surveyed. The accompanying Figure 14 shows the distribution of interviews by district and culture group. 101 FIGURE 14 Interview Distribution To indicate where interviews were obtained the entire location name is underlined if interviews were conducted at homes as well as Fixed Clinics. Only the first letter of the location is underlined if interviews were conducted at Mobile Clinic. Source: adapted from Atlas of Belize, 5th ed. (Benque Viejo del Carmen: Cubola Productions, 1980) p.11. 102 10 210 l 30 Miles J T I Gun-O fi 30 Kilometers San Antonio Santa Crug,‘ ° Yo_ Creek. 8° .- ORANGE WALK 55 Mestizos 6 Maya 17° CAYO 12 Mennonites 7 Mestizos "m TOLEDO 20 Caribs 14 Maya 0 San Antonio -76Q o 4k... C o O O GUATEMALA 89° . 5 11" Trinidad .Spanish Lookout if STANN CREEK .‘0'. ...o- I ,2 . . I C Flu nta Gorda' " I MEXICO /. 'fi. *- '.‘o.' . . .l a. ’ o '- n'. n a. . ' _ ' ... -‘ -." "0. \- "' I “" 1" .uo' O-" 00‘ o I'. c /' r : COROZAL J ' frogresso. 3 Mestizos San Estevan . \ 0. o t I 'San Jose Palmar 0 ° San Lazaro \. " ‘0‘..' BELIZE . .. - San Ignacio de Cayo (L ..... _- --i .7 .Orange Walk Town}? ' :35 '. .' 64 Creole - ':"-.3.1§.-', 5 . \1 3"..‘539 :'.' ‘ . " \ I . lize City x 4' : I" ' ‘0' '0' '0‘. " i . . . 3 'l | . ' -' 5 i' .8. ,' I. 1 'I ' . ." I : ‘ a . ‘ n 0’ ’0' :. I ," r' n ' a Q' I Q '. ‘1 18° ~ 17°— .1 l u ' u u" u '. I . n v u u'. u a a o" n 0.. Interview Distribution A Key for Interview Locations Survey Dates: October-November 1980 May-June 1981 Belize City — Fixed Clinic and Homes Santa Cruz — Mobile Clinic San Antonio — Homes Figure 14 CHAPTER IV INTRA-ETHNIC ANALYSIS This chapter presents the profiles of the five cul- ture groups surveyed. The profiles are compiled from the journal entries, observation, numerous conversations, as well as the formal interviews of mothers. Each general profile is followed by a section that describes the specific characteristics of each sample and relates these character- istics to breast-feeding behavior. Profile of the Maya In Belize, as in other American countries, the in- digenous population has receded from the later arrivals. Ruins, such as Tulum in Yucatan and the Cerros site in northern Belize, show that the Maya once had splendid com- ‘munities along the coast. But today they live on the pe- riphery of modern day Belize in remote villages. Three groups of Indians can be distinguished: the Yucatecans live in the north, the Kekchi in the opposite corner, in the far south, and the Mopan Maya in Cayo and Toledo District ‘towards the border of Guatemala (Figure 15). Their seclusion has helped the Maya to adhere to a tzraditional way of life. The agricultural system is still 103 104 FIGURE 15 Belize Population Map Belize's population is concentrated in a few towns along the coast, in the fertile sugar country in the North, along the Western High- way between Belize City and Benque Viejo del Carmen, and to a lesser degree in the South. Source: adapted from Atlas of Belize, 5th ed. (Benque Viejo del Carmen: Cubola Productions, 1980) p. 21. 105 l i 89° M EX l CO e/ “.-:' o 10 20 30Miles 0 l_ l l I ° (o/ IN - . 20 Kilometers / I“ . BELIZE ' O 18°-4 . . o o I. .0. . _ I 0 I n .-. .. ‘- , ’5‘ I . J. J i ‘._".'.:‘Belile City "1’? j ‘0 . .a-s' .0 3"". 0 I I a, I ’ . v' " ~ ' J l . . B ,' 3 I" o o . : ' I Western 0 o ' ’ : '- 1 0) . Highway . I _ 8 .0 I‘ l. : Spanish Lookout. Belmopan " "i {J x" .3 I . . \ . s \“ ”I "o {no Q ' San Ignacio de Cayo / . ‘x " ‘2." q, I . . ’70,”;- — . — . _' :5. ‘ , Benque Viejo del Carmen 45,-,0 h ~_ -' .' Q’ .J 0 ° Hi9 way .' . . h~17" ( - '0 ——17° - Stann Creek Dan ri a ' g . .l '1' . . :_ ( g g )- Q 2 ) '- . I"! ’.' "'23 .\ ' CAYO é STANN CREEK .414;- ; , . . , , , o . ~ . s. ' II 'I 0 o O . .l . :- i ",n o ' I . A . l L"/ ' ' J ' -' " .o . '35. I I O; \ ! “‘1'? . ‘ .»-' -' a; 2;” . - h. ' f. 1"”— ~ "" ::_-._I5lacentia ' I, TOLEDO p - ' . Q .9 7 t l . $0 (1 B l n . .. $03 ," e lze . Q ' o. , ' I 0 San Antonlo4’ POPUIatlon Map : . . \ I o ' Y‘ i, l . 0 Santa Ana y o ‘5 _ ,5, . 00'0'9931‘5 .Crique Sarco - . .1: . ' ’5 - . ’9. ~ GUATEMALA Figure 15 106 the shifting cultivation that is typical for rain forest people around the globe. With this slash and burn method they manage to raise enough corn, beans, some fruits and vegetables to feed their families and have a surplus to sell at the market. Many of them also grow rice and some sugar cane along with the beans as profitable cash crops. Almost every family has a few pigs and chickens and same also keep a cow. Their homes are rather simple structures with a rectangular floor plan that usually has a division across the narrow side to separate the cooking from the sleeping area. Sometimes the two living spaces are entirely sepa- rated into two buildings. The sides are constructed of wooden poles and the roofs appear from the outside as plain thatch covers (Figure 16), but inside one can discern the intricately woven patterns of the palm leaves. They are very efficient in keeping out the torrential rains that are a definite feature of the local climate. The flooring is usually packed dirt floor and the small hearth is located directly on the ground. For sleeping there are either simple bedsteads or hammocks. The hammocks are particularly comfortable in the hot humid weather, for even the slightest breeze can help to cool the body through the loosely chained loops. What- ever animals a family has will share the house and sleep right under the hammocks. 107 .Anamuwouonm m.uonus Hmuumn cw ma QUHLB manflmw> ma magma waummuu m Hmcuoo umma mSu CH .cwmu mnu Scum cowuomuoua voow >Hm> mmvw>oua on£3 moon zuumzu mnu mo m>mm3 unwwu mnu 305m uoc mmow 3mH> wwwmuso «SH .Hm>wm ovco: mSu co mmeHH> Nauu mucmm cw ma mac: wank wcHHHmsa mam: 0H MMDUHm 108 0H muswflm 109 .Anmmquuona m.Hosunoum ou whoa uflum on“: so use .oxo Hfl>o mSu Scum a“: uomuoum ou mmmkum o>HuDoomcoo cm>mm co hnmn m mo who sumo ous“ usa ma mowan on» no mono m paw mumwcam onu Coozumn omensn mum ucmHm mafia mo mo>moa one mvsm ma mMDUHm 119 3 unaware 120 seedling plants, young animals like chicks, kittens, or puppies, these creatures will meet a very fast and unhappy ending, usually within twenty-four hours through sudden illness, unless they have been protected with the ruda plant, or the person with the mal ojo power holds them, touches them and strokes them lovingly. Another form of protection is a red string tied around the wrist, and this is also supposed to ward off such diseases as gastro-enteritis. This belief can make mothers trusting to the point of carelessness. The Maya Sample The Maya mothers ranged in age from sixteen years to forty-one years, with a mean age of 25.5 and a median age of twenty-five years. The number of living children per mother ranged from one to eleven children with a mean of four children (Table 2). However, number of pregnancies per mother (including miscarriages and deceased children) ranged from one to fourteen with a mean of 4.6 pregnancies (see Table 3 for distribution of deceased children ). All Maya mothers were married, but one mother was living alone with her children, since her husband had left her. Eighteen of the Maya mothers had spent between five and nine years in school with a mean of 6.6 years. One of the two remaining mothers could not remember how long she had been to school and the other said "not much." None of 121 om Hmuoa 0H qqnoq wmumm «muom mmumm «muom mauoa Houoe HH muonuoz who: no coupawno wcH>HA mo Honasz mumow Ca mw< wfiHm co amxmu mmz .OH muswflm mm .ocmom mane .oowmwcoam maccnh cflmuo ozu mam powwow msu Eonm mEon mnu moumhmamm mosmm < .mmmomusa wowxcwup How wouooaaoo mw HmuwB Cams on£3 omso: mzu ou uxmc um> GovooS m ou stowu mo>mm osu Eowm momma mafia < .hupcdma map How momam waflkuo pamwco>coo m mmofl>oum flowLB mvcmum> m cam muwmum ooflmuso Boum pogomon ma Hooam Momma mzH .moon Hmuma pmumwshuoo m LuHB mwhmon @003 mo wouosuucho mH mono: mmH .zufiu oNflHom Ca @505 Hmoflamu m macaw newswouozm mane maom suno mNHHmm Hm mMDUHm 136 am musmna 137 .Azmmumouosm m.H0£u5 o no oaon emu ca %Huoouwo HmumS woman m>mn uoa on menu mcaon ummDOL mmonu How HouwB muflo mwofl>opa nowga :mmflm: mfiu Eoum Hobos wcfiuumw ma hoe wcdom < umonmm oflansm NN mmDUHh 138 Figure 22 139 Power blackouts are quite usual and necessary under the existing circumstances, where Belize has to import its energy. The city rotates the blackouts among the various sections of the town in order to conserve energy and to allow repairs on the equipment when it breaks down. While some houses have flush toilets with septic tanks and some are connected to a piped sewage system, there are two other methods of sewage disposal that are common in Belize City. One is the latrine or outhouse and the other is the bucket system whereby somebody, usually an old lady, makes her rounds in the mornings with a bucket to collect a family's wastes and disposes of it in one of the many canals that are in Belize City. Garbage collection by the city is not done from house to house. Instead there is a spot along the street in each block--and this often near the standpipe--where people take their trash to have it removed by the city (Figure 23). For lack of vehicles and lack of sufficient workmen, this cannot always be done regularly. This, together with the raw sewage in the canals and the open drains that line many streets, constitutes a major environmental health hazard. In the heat that exists year-round bacteria easily multiply and just as easily be- come airborne and get inhaled. Children play near the drains and if a ball falls in they will possibly kick it around a few times to get the worst mud off before they re- sume their play. Or one drops a fruit or a cookie and 140 .Asamwwouofim m.H0£u5Cm Hmmww cm mmEoomQ cam a: mmaflm haxowso mmsmmn mnu .xooHn woo momma um moH>Hmm mcan mmmSu m< .HmumB Hflmnu wow manomm mama muo£3 mmwmwcmum mzu Hmmc owumooa cmumo we awn cowuomaaoo mwmnumw owansm ssh omsmom was Momma mm MMDUHM 141 2 madman 142 picks it up again to finish it unless the mother is nearby to stop him. This is the way of children everywhere, but in a colder climate it does not present the same danger. Thus, intestinal disorders and parasites are a major threat to children; and crowded conditions enhance that threat. Under these circumstances of a difficult water sup- ply, less than ideal sanitation and frequently being the sole provider, mothers have an immense task to keep their children fed, bathed, and in clean clothes. Laundry is done by hand and almost on a daily basis. Most women get up very early in the morning and wash for an hour or so be- fore they put breakfast on the table. Getting the meals also requires a fair amount of time. Shopping is usually done every day and most dishes are prepared from scratch. Belize City has a daily market, open-air as well as in a hall by the waterfront where one can find beef, chicken, fish, and eggs as well as fruits and vegetables. There is another, smaller market on the opposite end of town near Belcan bridge, so that one does not have to travel clear across the city to find some fresh produce. Downtown, there are two miniature editions of .mmerican supermarkets and, in fact, the groceries sold there are almost all American and priced accordingly. NUmerous small neighborhood stores offer a limited range of produce or groceries, and often one can smell freshly baked bread or the aroma from frying "panades" (individual meat or fish pies) coming from little shops along the streets. 143 The Creole diet is varied and their staple is rice, or rice and beans. The Creole have also adopted a number of dishes from other ethnic groups in Belize. Breakfast may be bread or tortilla. The popular flour tortillas are either eaten just buttered or split and filled with egg or cheese. Dinner is fish or meat with rice or rice and beans, ‘maybe with some sliced tomatoes, cabbage, or raw shredded carrots, and very likely some ripe fried plantain slices. The rice is not always just plain boiled rice; often it is cooked in coconut cream instead of water. For this, one cracks a matured coconut with a machete and grates the white meat which is then squeezed through a strainer with some water. The milky white liquid obtained this way is used to cook the rice and it gives the grain a particular, somewhat sweet flavor. Apart from that it also increases the nutritional value of the rice. Soups and stews are also regular dinner fare, and these may be either the Carib style "sere" with "fufu" (plantain dumplings), a hotter Mestizo variety "relleno," or a delicately flavored "Afri- can stew" with chicken gizzards and peanut butter. Stewed red beans are a frequent side dish and often cooked with pigtail for added flavor. Tea is either sandwiches or tortillas with egg, cheese, lunchmeat or fried beans, or as a special treat, panades or tamales. Beverages are mainly reconstituted powdered milk or diluted evaporated and condensed milk for children, coffee, tea, or a glass of milk for adults. 144 Fresh milk is also drunk and readily available in the city, but it is more expensive. With dinner there is usually a freshly squeezed juice from orange, lemon, or lime, diluted with water (including the orange juice) and sweetened with sugar (again including the orange juice). A special drink at teatime is Milo or a chocolate milk shake, both prepared from a cocoa powder mix. Creoles eat citrus fruits quite regularly and have an orange or grapefruit often at break- fast or pick one during the day from a vendor on a street corner. Citrus fruit is grown in Belize and practically available year-round. It is unusually sweet and is prized for its flavor among the Commonwealth Countries. Many women regularly take a tonic, such as Geritol, but a more popular one seems to be "3-SSS," a mixture of various minerals. Another common practice is to drink a bitter tea once a month "soroci," which is said to aid the cleansing process of menstruation. When in need of medical care, Creole women general- ly take advantage of the free medical care provided through the Public Health Care Clinics. Only a few women appear to see a bush doctor. However, at the market hall there is a "bark lady" who can recommend various teas from barks, leaves, roots, and blossoms for different digestive trou- bles or fevers. Her remedies are rooted in the indigenous folk medicine. Some women also see the "obeahman," but more for social problems, such as affairs of the heart, than for physical ailments. Nevertheless, the cures he 145 prescribes are obtained at the local drugstores. The Creole women seem to continue their familiar diet when they become pregnant and to go to the Health Cen- ters for obstetric care even though some women go to a tra- ditional midwife for anointings during pregnancy. Most mothers have their babies at Belize City Hospital and are generally delivered by a nurse who has had modern midwifery training. Once they get home from the hospital, some women drink soroci tea or "Spanish medicine" (an herbal tea) and a number do treat the baby's navel with nutmeg. But that appears to be the extent of traditional birth-related prac- tices. A Creole mother and child can be seen in Figure 24. The Creole Sample The Creole mothers ranged in age from sixteen years to thirty-nine years with a mean of 23.6 and a median age of 22.5 years. The number of living children per mother ranged from one to thirteen with a mean of 2.5 children (Table 5). However, the number of pregnancies per mother (including miscarriages and deceased children) ranged from one to thirteen with a mean of 2.8 pregnancies (see Table 6 for distribution of deceased children). As far as marital status is concerned nearly one third of the Creole mothers (32.8 percent) lived in common- law marriage with the father of the baby at the time of the interview. The remainder of the sample consisted of almost 146 .AsamuwouOLQ m.H0£uDHA mo Honabz MHHm Birth 1 2 3 4 Age in Months Breast-Feeding Exclusively (no other Milk or Glucose) ----- Breast-Feeding (no other Milk) ..... Total Breast-Feeding (including Supplement Feedings) Figure 25 162 Profile of the Caribs The Caribs (Garifunagu) are concentrated in two communities mainly in Belize, Stann Creek Town, also known as Dangriga, and Punta Gorda Town, generally referred to as P.G. (Figure 15). Dangriga is the capital of Stann Creek District and P.G. that of Toledo District. Because of lack of employment in these two districts, more and more of the Caribs are moving to other areas of the country, such as Belize City and to Orange Walk in the north where they work in the sugar industry. Like other Belizeans, many Caribs also migrate to North America for work. But for the major- ity home is in the south along the coast between Punta Gorda and Dangriga. There is a strong African element in their culture and this is particularly evident in their mu- sic and dancing and some of their foods. I Dangriga is about thirty—five miles, as the crow flies, from Belize City. But since most of the land be- tween the two towns is mangrove swamp (Figure l), one has to travel on the Western Highway from Belize City to Bel- ‘mopan, and then south on the Hummingbird Highway to Dangri- ga, altogether about a hundred miles. To continue on to Punta Gorda, one travels another ninety miles on the South- ern Highway. The entire trip from Belize City to Punta Gorda, 190 miles, takes eight to nine hours by bus, since the Southern Highway is mostly a dirt road and the Hum- mingbird Highway curves through the foothills of the 163 Cockscomb Range. In the past there existed scheduled boat services between Belize City and Punta Gorda, but these have been discontinued. Due to heavy rains during the greater part of the year, the Southern Highway becomes frequently flooded and impassable. The only consistent transportation between Punta Gorda and the rest of Belize is by small airplane. Thus, Punta Gorda is by circumstance much more dependent on the immediately surrounding land for its foodstuffs than, for example, Belize City. The Caribs have a strong fishing culture and due to the coastal location, fish is readily available and much more often the main dish than meat. But either way, the fish or meat portion is generally not the biggest part of the meal. That distinction belongs to the accompaniment, rice or "ground provisions" (root crops). Both of these foods are grown in Toledo District. Market days, particularly Saturdays, bring many In- dians into town from the outlying villages. They come ei- ther by truck or boat and sell their produce, such as toma- toes, limes, beans and corn. The most common fruits are oranges, bananas and plantains. Plantains look very much like bananas, but are larger, starchier and less sweet. They are a good source of vitamins A and B. However, they are generally eaten like a vegetable rather than as a fruit. They are most popular fried, but also served boiled or baked. 164 A delicacy among vegetables in this region is "cohune cabbage". For this the heart or the marrow of the palms is used and so this is by no means an everyday dish. Apart from the Mennonites, the Caribs are much more likely to use root crops than any of the other Belizean people. Losonczi stated "for the Caribs, the cassava is identified with living and with the God, and the attitude toward the staple is religious" (Losonczi, 1958: 207). The cassava roots look like elongated sweet potatoes, but their flesh is more cream colored than orange. It is a starchy food and frequently cooked in stews and soups. Another use of cassava is to make it into a flour. For this, one grates the root, washes it and squeezes it through a cloth. The water is permitted to stand for a day or two and the settlement from it is dried in a pan in the sun for about three days. Except for its high caloric content all other nutritional value is gone from the product at this point. But it yields a fine white, easily digestible pow- der, the cassava starch, which is then used to make cassava bread, also called "Carib bread" by other Belizeans (Figure 26). Cassava is furthermore an important early baby food among Carib mothers. It is served like a cereal and called "lab." For cassava lab one mixes the starch with a little sugar and salt and some liquid, usually water, or diluted evaporated or condensed milk. However, one mother said "limejuice is best." Lab is also made with cornflour. 165 .Asamuwouosm m-H05u5oEoH ou mmo UDHMHH mH oHHm mop map muonEmno wCmen onu o>onm mm HHo3 mm Sumochoocs oHHm @003 0 mm: ao>o use .Ehom 0>Hu ImHoooo m CH oomonm mam swsoo Houoo3m m0 oome ous £0H£3 :mcan: 0cm omens ummom M0 mo>o0H HHoEm omoumsH use oEHu onu um moose o>mmmmo HmCOHuHomuu ozu wcmen uoc 0H mom .Ho3ou m noon: H000 0H umeH um ao>0 osu Eoum woman ooxmn %H£moum wcHHHommcwHu mH am803 nHHmo wCD0% 059 zhoxwm thmu 0N mMDUHm 166 cm ostHm 167 One way of preparation for this dish is to boil a cinnamon stick in water till it is soft, strain it and then mix corn flour into it with a pinch of salt. Any lab may be fla- vored with cinnamon or nutmeg, sugar, and sometimes given with‘milk. As in other Belizean areas, many Carib homes also are built on stilts or "posts." This is particularly impor- tant in Toledo District which has the most abundant rain- fall in the country. The building material is mostly wood and the roofs are usually corrugated sheet metal or thatch covers. Water supply is provided through wells, rain water or public pipes which one can tap from the ubiquitous spig- ots standing along the streets. In connection with child bearing and delivery the Caribs have a variety of customs and medicines. Like preg- nant women everywhere, they may be overcome by nausea and cravings for foods that they normally do not particularly long for. Some of these cravings the Carib women share with women throughout much of the world, like eating more sweets, cookies and cake. But another Carib custom.is more unusual: the eating of white mud. Many Carib mothers eat this when pregnant, but it is also supposed to be good for heart problems and heart burn. The white mud (cipula, ki- pula, or akipula) is sold in small white bars, about two by two and a half inches and less than half an inch high. Some women consume up to six or seven of these bars per day when pregnant. The mud for the bars comes from.one mountain 168 in Guatemala, San Jose Pinula, where it is washed, shaped, decorated with a religious design, e.g. Jesus on the cross, and then dried on long boards in the sun. It is called "panito del senor" (small bread of the Lord) and is distri- buted wholesale in Guatemala City. The Belizean market is supplied from there. The bars cost ten to fifteen cents B$ apiece, and if the stores run out or women cannot afford them for awhile, they substitute chalk, cassava starch, baking soda or ground raw rice for it. Immediately after birth the mother drinks a bitter tea made of romero, manzanilla, cumino, spice seed, soroci, anise seed, and possibly also garlic and mint. This mix- ture is called "Spanish medicine,‘ and the new mothers are supposed to drink it three times a day for about two weeks. A special treatment for the baby's navel is to mash a soft candle with one's hands, mix it with nutmeg, rub it all over the navel area, cover it with a cloth and tie it on. This procedure is started when the baby is one day old, and the dressing is changed every morning. In the evening, when the light of the coals is low, you warm a cloth under it and rub the baby's navel area, tummy, and back area, to warm it all over. This helps to heal and is done for about two weeks. Apart from the white mud, the Carib women do not seem to change their diet much when pregnant. Thus, the typical meal pattern of the Caribs is also the norm for the mothers-to-be. Breakfast may be tortilla (flour or corn) 169 or bread and tea. Sometimes, this is augmented with fried beans and, or egg. The main meal at noon is often a fish stew, or fish or meat with rice, ground provisions or rice and beans. A popular stew is "sere,"made from fish, coco (a potato like root crop), cassava, and "fufu" which are plantain dumplings, all in a broth. This dish is also called "Matilda's foot," because a woman named Matilda somehow got her foot into the act when mashing the plantain for the dumplings. For tea, leftovers from the noon meal are served with bread or tortilla, or cheese or eggs with bread or tortilla. Beverages are tea or reconstituted powdered milk, diluted evaporated and condensed milk, coffee or juice. The Carib Sample The Carib mothers ranged in age from nineteen years to forty years with a mean of 24.25 and a median age of twenty-three years. The number of living children per ‘mother ranged from one to ten with a mean of three children (Table 10). However, number of pregnancies per mother (including miscarriages and deceased children) ranged from one to fourteen with a mean of 3.5 pregnancies (Table 11). In terms of marital status the Carib sample was al- most equally divided among legally married (25 percent), common-law (30 percent), single (25 percent) and "borrowing" ‘mothers (20 percent). The legally married and common-law marriage mothers comprised together fifty-five percent. 170 om Houoe ee-oe mm-mm am-om m~-mm a~-o~ AH-oH Houoa OH m m a m N , H msmnuoz HHuno Ho amueHHco wcH>HH Ho Amnesz mummy CH ow< NHHm Birth 1 2 3 4 Age in Months Breast-Feeding Exclusively (no other Milk or Glucose) ----- Breast-Feeding (no other Milk) ..... Total Breast-Feeding (including Supplement Feedings) Figure 27 181 Mestizos therefore first immigrated from Mexico. The majority of the Mestizos live in the two north- ern districts that adjoin Mexico and so have remained close to their original homeland. Their dual background is quite apparent in their culture to this day. The Spanish influ- ence is most easily recognized in their Catholic religion and Spanish language, and the Indian origin can be traced through the agriculture and firm adherence to established customs. The latter is not surprising if one considers that it was the men who came from Spain to conquer America for their Catholic Monarchs and the Pope. In the end, the Cath- olic Church and Spanish Administration supplanted the pre- vious order of a state that was run by Aztec and Inca priests and aristocracy. However, as the Spaniards chose their wives locally, continuity of Indian tradition in everyday life was assured by the Aztec and Maya women. The more a custom pertained to the female sphere of influence, such as home-life or motherhood, the easier it was to main- tain since there were too few Spanish women to establish the corresponding European custom. As the Spaniards furthermore mainly concerned themselves with affairs of state and mili- tary matters over a huge area, agriculture remained in the hands of the native population except for the fact that the planting of certain crops was required for the European market. In this way, the Mestizo continued not only the milpa farming of corn and beans, but he also became an effi- cient cash crop planter. 182 The districts of Corozal and Orange Walk where the Mestizos are concentrated represent sugar cane country and it is this commodity that has provided the Mestizo with a certain degree of wealth. The sugar plantations in Belize cannot be compared to the huge estates of Jamaica, Cuba and Haiti that long ago were the foundation of great wealth in these island nations and required large numbers of laborers. These are smaller, family owned units and are basically managed by the family. The Mestizo men thus have their in- come and independence, and they enjoy a definite authority as family heads. The Mestizo villages and towns generally give quite a prosperous impression. The houses are clustered together and the men walk, ride on horseback or go by truck to their milpas and cane fields. The homes may be in the style of the Maya thatch houses, but also frame or cement structures with a number of rooms (Figures 13 and 28). Nearly all Mestizos confess to the Catholic faith and in most homes one finds a cruci- fix or picture of Jesus prominently placed. The Mestizo way of life is very similar to that of the Maya and many Maya traditions are being continued by the Mestizos. It ranges from.the milpa agriculture to diet, as well as to maternal and infant care. Tortillas, mostly prepared from corn but also from flour, form the basis of the Mestizo diet and they are closely followed by beans. One can find both tortillas and 183 .Afimmhwouonm m.H0£uDHo> m m>m£ wmwwHHfl> wflu .woom mo Sohmom SH mop msu wcwusw wammhm ummeB .mmnos Soumsu mnu mo uaoum fig wwwa oBu mzu oxaa .xooumm>wa Hamam swdofiu Co>m .mHomHu msu mo ousuoouwnoum mEmHm wouawum mSu cam who: onu mo Hmofimhu ma LUHnS cofiuofihumcoo moou noumnu msu mo xHE m unmmmnm kHHmeD mmmeHfi> oufiummz moEom oNHumoz mm mmDUHm 184 mu ouswfim 185 beans on the table for breakfast, dinner and tea (see Figure 29). A typical breakfast consists of tortilla, possibly with a fried egg and maybe fried beans. But some people also start the day with a thick puree of peas or a boiled potato mashed with a fork and mixed with some butter. These potatoes are from.Mexico and have a distinct flavor. Dinner is usually rice and beans, or plain stewed beans, with some meat such as chicken, game or pork. Meat is not a daily item nor is it the most sizeable part of the meal when served. If soup or stew is the main dish it is usual- ly accompanied by tortillas. A popular stew is "relleno," which consists of chicken, pork meatballs and eggs boiled in a pitch black broth. The black color is due to a spice which makes this a very pungent dish. This stew is inevi- tably eaten with corn tortillas where the tortilla becomes practically an eating utensil: it is folded and one then spoons some vegetable, meat or hard boiled egg with some broth from the stew into the tortilla and eats it from there. The village Mestizos also fish in the many creeks or lagoons if the village is near one and thus, fish is served regularly in some families. However, in the towns, such as Orange Walk Town, fish is less common as the stores do not offer it consistently. Tea again consists of tor- tillas with possibly lunchmeat, egg or beans. A popular but not daily dish for breakfast or tea is an amelet 186 .Asamnwouosm m.HonuDo oau swnounu Hozo>coo m Hm>o SSH cmSu cam mpcsou oucfl uso .wocouumHm ma Hmuumn map ouofiB mewe mHkuHou map oucw mucsoem HHmEm mung m5 mama ofiu ou uxmc hwy» m :o voawm ma kuumn oSH .xuwo mNHHom ca mmocflmsn Hflmzu mash mamnoo ouwummz wc50% mnH .moeon mmmz mnu cw swap vmuwcmnoms mHoE £058 ww mczou msu Cw mmHHHuHou mo coaumummmum msH mumxmm mHHHuHoH mm MMDUHM 187 m N ouswam 188 concoction of onions, tomatoes, eggs and a variety of pep- pers depending on how "hot" one's taste is. Beverage is frequently coffee or tea for adults, reconstituted powdered or diluted condensed or evaporated milk for children . Milo is popular at tea time. The Mes- tizos do not grow many vegetables so they are mostly im- ported from Mexico and rather expensive. Consequently they do not constitute a large portion of the daily food con- sumption. Legumes, tortillas and rice definitely represent the greater part of the food intake. Plantains are common- ly grown, however, and they make up a frequent side dish as crisply fried chips or the softer fried and sweeter tasting slices. During pregnancy, childbirth and early childhood the "yerbatera," traditional midwife or bush doctor, is very popular with the Mestizo women and mothers. Many of them have a series of massages, "anointings," during preg- nancy and sometimes just before delivery. Home delivery in presence of a midwife is common. The Mestizo women readily breast-feed their babies but like to wait until the baby is a few days old and the colostrum has given way to the regular breast milk. Comb- ing down of the breast or simply washing down with warm orange water alone is the regular procedure during that time while the baby is given anise seed tea, glucose or sugar water. Navel application consists of oil or nutmeg, or both, and the "mal ojo" (evil eye) procedure with the 189 ruda plant extract is also common here. The Mestizo Sample The Mestizo mothers ranged in age from sixteen to forty-two years with a mean of 24.23 and a median age of twenty-three years. The number of living children per mother ranged from one to eight with a mean of 2.7 children (Table 15). However, number of pregnancies per mother (including miscarriages and deceased children) ranged from one to thirteen with a mean of 3.2 pregnancies (see Table 16 for distribution of deceased children). Fifty-two of the Mestizo mothers were legally mar- ried and ten were living with the father of the baby in common-law marriage at the time of the interview. The three remaining mothers had a visiting relationship with the father of the child. For the sixty-five Mestizo mothers interviewed, completed number of years in school ranged from zero to fifteen years. The one mother who had not finished a single year in school said she went for one week but did not like school and kept running away whenever she was sent to class. Of the remaining mothers, five did not say how many years they had been to school, but they had not gone beyond pri- mary education. Of the entire sample, sixty percent had at least some secondary education and three mothers had addi- tional higher education. 190 me n N N oH «H HN Hmuoe H H ¢s-os N H H mm-mm oH N H q N «m-om m H N m N H NN-mN mN H oH OH w «N-oN sH N NH NH-oH Hmuoe w m s m N H mummy 6H owd muonuoz oufiummz mo cmuuHHno mcH>HH mo smpasz WHHMHuma we use .ucmHm mmEumHuso owuoxo no won me one: muuomcHom mwuma ofiu vow .momuu mouuwo mum ocsoumxomn ofiu cw woman man "cowumuowo> oz» How noooxo .ommowocmH Honda cmowuoa< nunoz mnu mo unmomflcwEmH we umzu usoxooq smwamdm Boum mcoom < who» Show ouflaochz Hm mMDUHm 206 Hm ousmHm 207 there is hardly a need for a civil force in charge of pub- 1ic order. If adolescent boys cause trouble, some men in the colony will take it upon themselves to talk to the fathers whose sons seem to need a sterner hand at home. At the same time the Mennonites leave retribution for greater evil to God. Once, a young man had been killed by According to Belize law, the punishment for But the family of the victim an outsider . murder is death by hanging. refused to press charges since their faith demands that they leave such punishment to divine justice. The colony has its own school system. The girls go for seven years and after that time generally stay home and help in the household until they get married. But often there is more than one post-school age daughter in a family and they may look for something different to occupy them. Some work in the poultry processing plant or do bookkeeping or other office work for businesses such as the hatchery or the dairy. Others may keep a sizeable flock of hens or raise some other livestock at home and in this fashion earn a living. Boys attend school for eight years and then help with the farming or whatever business the family does be- sides, until they can buy some land and start on their own. Health care belongs officially under the jurisdic- tion of the Public Health System of Cayo District where Spanish Lookout is located. It thus falls under the re- sponsibility of the Public Health nurse in San Ignacio 208 de Cayo. However, true to their principle of self-reliance, the Mennonites have built a small clinic on the colony that is a model of cleanliness if not of the latest in modern medical care. The clinic is geared towards maternal and child care. A young Mennonite nurse is in charge of it and she delivers between fifty and sixty babies a year. In their history the Mennonites have had so many problems with government agencies of all sorts that they have become very shy about trusting any public institutions. But the non-Mennonite Public Health Nurse in Cayo is a woman of great sensitivity, patience and warmth and she has been able to gain a measure of trust and respect from the Mennonites. One result is increasing attendance at the Mobile Child Health Clinic when she makes her visits at the Colony. It is to her credit and that of the young Menno- nite nurse that more and more children are being vaccina- ted, for example. Many Mennonites have a rather fatalistic attitude towards illness and will not do much to prevent it. But once someone does become sick the best possible medical care is provided even if it requires travel to Belize City, Merida in Mexico or Guatemala City; moreover, they think nothing of flying to the United States or Canada to see specialists. Their diet reflects the German origin of the Menno- nites. They are traditionally potato eaters, but some are adopting the Belizean rice and beans instead of potatoes as 209 the most frequent accompaniment to their meats. Meat is consumed quite regularly since the Mennonites raise poultry and cattle both. Therefore, fresh meat is readily avail- able to them from their own farms. Fish is rare here due to the distance from the coast and the fact that the Menno- nites do not do much fishing. Fresh milk and milk prod- ucts, however, are very prominent in their diet. A typical day's meals offer a variety of nutrients from different sources. In tune with their physical work the day is usually started with a hearty breakfast of por— ridge with milk or cream, fried eggs, homebaked bread and jam, Dinner is generally a meat dish of chicken, beef, or pork with potatoes, noodles or rice, vegetables or salad or both, bread and possibly something sweet, such as crumb- cake, cookies or homemade pudding. The fact that the main meal of the day is served at noon is not an adaptation to the Belizean sequence of meals, but rather an old German custom. Meat is not necessarily served every day but on the majority of days during the week. Supper once more is a substantial meal with a bowl of soup or stew, homemade pickles, bread, jam, some fruit and cookies. Milk is al- ways offered and drunk especially by the children. Adults often drink milk, too, but also may take tea or coffee. The Mennonites adhere to a most simple lifestyle and to practices that have been established by generations before them, Furthermore, they tend to keep to themselves and do not have much interaction with other culture groups 210 which might encourage an active exchange of ideas. There- fore, their lifestyle tends to remain very much the same whether they live in Canada, Mexico, or Belize. The Mennonite women are pregnant so much of their adult life that it almost appears the normal state to be in. Consequently, the pregnant condition hardly causes a ripple, be it in terms of dietary practices or customs that might apply only to childbearing. The majority of the women are delivered by the nurse at the Spanish Lookout clinic and as a rule there is no question whether the child will be breast-fed or artificially fed. Babies are fre- quently swaddled and not much exposed to fresh air. This covering of most of the body surface continues through childhood and adulthood. The women wear usually shirt dresses that cover their shoulders and also the arms at least partially if not to the wrist. Some women wear their dresses ankle-length, but even shorter hemlines are well below the knees. This also holds true for young girls. Adolescent girls generally wear their hair in braids and adult women cover it under a scarf or bonnet. Boys wear suspender pants with long legs, shirt and often a wide- brimmed straw hat. A benefit of this complete clothing is that there is much less exposure to the many insect pests in this hot and humid climate. But one is struck by the pallor of most of the children (Figure 32). When changes in the Mennonite diet, health and child care practices do occur, they come about in subtle 211 .Andmumouond m.HoeuDHA mo Honafiz mummy cw om< >HHMoao£ .Hoosom Shoucoaoao ocomoo oaow uo: om: mosh .Hoosom ooocouum honu wcoa so: how no: owe muonuo onu oocwm .muonuoa onwumoz on» mo huxwm can muosuoe who: onu mo amounwao haco muo>oo mafihk No.mo No.0H mo.w mN.om mm.e mm.m oe.oN new: oHaamm HmDOH o.ooH o.o m.o o.ooH oo.w mn.u nn.¢m muwcoficoz o.mo mN.m km~.m o.mm N.m n.~ mN.¢N ouwumoz o.om o.m~ nN.oH o.mm m.m o.m nN.¢~ ofiuoo nm.¢m mm.mm w.oa mN.om w.~ m.~ o.m~ oaoouo o.mm o.o~ so.o o.mm o.o o.¢ m.mN m%mz Age Age Aware Axe Aev Aev Amuse ozone mHHEwm ucoa Hoo:om msumum coo: aooz ow< Hmoaosz shoamam Ca whom» Hmuahmz moaocmcwoum amuoawno coo: mqmz