Tahneek and Early Oral Exposure in Neonates: A Biopsychocultural Narrative Review of Traditional Practices and their Conceptual Links to Modern Neonatal Care

Abstract

A BSTRACT Procedural pain and transitional hypoglycemia are critical neonatal stressors managed via standardized, sterile oral carbohydrate interventions (sucrose and 40% dextrose gel). Concurrently, traditional practices like Tahneek – the Islamic custom of applying softened date material to a newborn’s palate – persist globally. This narrative review establishes an interdisciplinary biopsychocultural framework to evaluate potential mechanistic overlaps between traditional oral exposures and modern neonatal care. Following a comprehensive search of PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus from inception to March 2026, 29 primary studies were synthesized across neonatology, neurobiology, and medical anthropology. Three principal mechanistic domains emerged: (1) sweet taste-mediated nociceptive modulation via T1R2/T1R3 pathways, (2) mucosal carbohydrate-driven metabolic stabilization, and (3) saliva-mediated sensory exposure with microbial implications. Importantly, shared biological mechanisms reflect conceptual convergence, not therapeutic equivalence. Traditional nonsterile practices carry documented contamination and infection risks, whereas contemporary interventions ensure pharmaceutical purity. This framework provides clinicians with a culturally responsive tool to navigate family communication without compromising evidence-based safety standards.