The Mysteriously Magical Kharik-Khobra

Many years ago I’d gone visiting a friend and her newborn. Sharda showed me all the gifts her in-laws had got for her and the baby. She mentioned that they’d even got “kharik khobra” (dry dates and dry coconut) for her which she got powdered. I was ignorant of these customs and wondered why. I asked her but even she didn’t know. She only knew that it was supposed to be done. Just then, her granny entered with two bowls of powder and gave it to us. Sharda didn’t want to eat it but her granny forced her, saying the in-laws had given it.

While eating, I asked her granny the reason behind giving kharik khobra. Granny replied that it was to increase milk production. I stopped mid-morsel and looked shocked. In my mind I said, “Then why give me!” They both started laughing. Granny explained that it’d increase milk production in lactating mothers but not others. I didn’t completely understand the logic but stayed away from the kk-combination whenever I was offered.

Recently, I visited another friend and her baby. I was greatly impressed by the way she was managing her household chores as well as the baby and asked her about it. She told me how she and her husband managed the cooking department. Curiously, I looked in all the bottles and jars, tasting all the different coloured chutneys and pickles. Then I saw these mysterious looking seeds in a bottle. I asked her if I could taste them. She told me to go ahead since they were very good and I confidently took a spoonful and tossed them in my mouth before she could complete thesentence. “They’re called Aleev (water cress seeds),” she continued, “they’re excellent for milk production.” I didn’t know whether to swallow or spit. But then, I thought to myself, they work only for lactating mothers, so it’s okay to swallow.

She and many other friends told me about various regular foods that help lactation. Many are items that people regularly eat. And not everyone starts lactating.

In conclusion, I can only marvel at how wonderfully these foods have been created! Their effects depend on the the needs of the person consuming them. It’ll increase Hb or iron for those in need and milk production in lactating mothers. Awesome, isn’t it!