Algerian MIL mythbusters

[BeeMyBaby]

So on a recent holiday MIL, as usual, gave her usual fairly random advice. Basically telling me that Algeria is not like the uk. So... for those of you who have visited etc I would like to go through various statements and find out if they are true or just myths, feel free to join in if you have any of your own.

I'll start with when I was washing clothes, some were wet in my whites pile but I needed to wash the colours first as it had the children's stuff in it, mil insisted that the whites be washed first as they would smell as they were wet. Surely when you wash them the next day they will no longer smell? She said 'its warm in the house, not like in the uk', it was about 20c, similar to our home in the uk...

-if you go from hot inside to cold outside, you will get ill?

• jumpers should be worn if it's less than about 25c?

• babies should not sit up until they are at least 5months old?

I’ve never been to Algeria but I do live on a warm climate:

Wet things are more likely to develop mold. Perhaps it wasn’t particularly warm you were there but that might be her general experience. It’s not completely unreasonable.

If they are used to high temperatures anything under 25c does feel cool. There’s going to be a high of 26 c where I am today and I’m in a long sleeved top and jeans. In the U.K. I’d have had a sundress and sun cream on.

Can’t help with the others though...

I don't have an Algerian MIL but have experience of this part of the world and I found that there was a near obsession about not catching cold! Nobody would walk around the house barefoot as they would catch cold otherwise. I think it is to do with houses being tiled and not usually having heating in them, so people tend to always wear slippers. Not sure about the washing thing, but maybe she didn't want you to leave a pile of damp clothes lying around. The North Africans (women especially) that I know seem to be quite bossy and opinionated, so she might have been passing on her wisdom to a younger person in her typical way!

But is it necessary to wear a jumper if it's 25c? Or is it a personal choice that should not have been inflicted on my DS? Is there something about the atmosphere there that I'm not getting?

And yes about the slippers inside. I kind of get it with not taking the dust into bed as dust is everywhere no matter how much you clean. But they also moan if you only wear socks.

babies should not sit up until they are at least 5months old?

My Russian MIL and SUL came out with this too. Something about harming genitalia. I ignored them.

I think that because it is a much warmer climate than here (where temperatures go into the 30s and 40s) they would still be fairly covered up when it was 25 degrees whereas you would probably be boiling! I have had visitors from Southern European countries who were wearing layers here when it was around 18 degrees and couldn't understand why I was warm. So I don't think it's just an Algerian thing, a lot of nationalities seem to think that catching cold is very dangerous - maybe they are right. Again regarding the baby I think children's health and safety can be regarded quite differently in lots of countries around the world, so something that is done routinely in one country would be seen as dangerous or unhealthy in another country.

Malaysian MIL here. If you get your head wet in the rain you will catch a cold. People there will cover the crown of their head with their hand if they get caught in the rain. I come from Ireland where it rains all the time and everyone just tolerates getting wet.

Also, it's dangerous to wash your hair and go outside in Malaysia, even though it's exactly the same temperature or warmer outside as inside. My MIL nearly lost her mind when she visited in winter and I set off for work with still wet hair and it was only 3 or 4 C outside.

I grew up in Algeria. Funnily, a lot of those ideas are also French ideas which are probably still hanging around in Algeria. Recently stayed with my French cousin and he reminded me several times not to be barefoot indoors as I’d catch a cold. Ditto going from hot to cold, you can catch something called a “chaud et froid”. The French don’t believe in removing any layers off their kids until the temperature is 25 at least. I don’t think you have much chance of changing her beliefs on all these issues. North African MILs are traditionally respected just because they’ve reached that stage in life, so Maybe appear to respect/ agree and quietly do your own thing whenever you can.

I think with the clothes situation she may mean that that clothes will get damp if not hug out ASAP.

With the hot to cold, she could be referring to colds and stuff. Nothing major, although my DH cousin lived is a very hot country and she ended up with pneumonia as she would shower and to starting j from of air continuing and then back to outdoors in a short period of time.

As for the babies, I have 3 but can't remember when they sat up, supported or unsupported.

If you love in a warm country the jumpers under 25 thing is pretty reasonable. I grew up in Australia and would wear jumpers for 23 or under no question. Don't need to here though for some reason. I think it may be due to a lack of trees, a lot of huge heat gets trapped here because people have tiny gardebs/no trees along the road.