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A Vivacious Voice for Veganism: Across the Ages

Posted May 27, 2008 at 04:09 PM by Katie Drummond

Section: Her Health, Her Nutrition, Healthy Eating

vegan When I tell new acquaintances that I’m vegan, the reactions I get range from terrified to awestruck to envious. When it comes to close friends and family who aren’t vegan, some are timid and apologetic for their own cheese habit, while others always seem keen to learn more about my own choices. However, no matter how people react to my own decision to be vegan, I’ve noticed that reactions are magnified and intensified when the topic turns to kids – specifically, my plans to raise a vegan family.

Why the controversy? It seems that while it’s easy for me to convince the average naysayer that a vegan diet can be entirely healthy and sufficient for the adults among us, people become more defensive of omnivorous living when young ones are concerned. This worry is understandable – we all take raising children seriously, and understand the responsibilities and obligations involved in choosing to have a family. For that reason, I think many are quick to jump the gun when the topic of vegan kids is raised. They assume that because kids have special nutritional needs, a vegan diet can’t possibly be good for them.

In fact, research shows the contrary. Much like a vegan diet can be nutritionally sound for adults, it can also be more than adequate for active, growing tots and teenagers. I’ve assembled a small list of some of the major concerns regarding particular age groups and a vegan lifestyle – as you can see, veganism can be a healthy way to dine, no matter the age.

Infancy: This is, obviously, a particularly important stage of development. The best food for any baby, vegan or otherwise, is breast milk. Some of the benefits include enhanced immune systems and reduced risk of allergies. A vegan mom breastfeeding her baby offers added benefits, because vegan breast milk is usually lower in pesticides. The only real issue is adequate B12 – but as long as mom gets enough, baby is fine as well. Soy-based formulas are widely available, but because soy allergies can develop early (same goes for dairy), breastfeeding really is the safest bet for a baby’s health.

The early years: Some parents opt to use prepared foods when introducing solids into their child’s diet, and a vegan lifestyle is no exception. There are prepared baby foods available, and these fortified options are a good safe bet for a busy family. However, if you choose to make your own foods, a vegan diet can easily accommodate a young child transitioning away from breastfeeding. By starting with soft grains, like rice cereals, and then incorporating pureed fruits and vegetables, and good protein sources (soy yogurt, mashed tofu, etc), parents can ensure that any allergic reaction will be detected easily.

Growing kids: While older studies suggested that vegan kids had slower growth rates than their omnivorous peers, this research was often done on families who stuck to very strict, raw foods diets or didn’t ensure adequate caloric intake – big no-no! In contrast, a 10-year-old vegan child raised with a full range of vegan food on the menu has been shown to grow at the same rate as an omnivorous kid. The biggest worry with sprouting kids is calories, and making sure they get enough on a high-fiber vegan diet – kids have small stomachs, so fill them with nut butters, avocados, juice, and some refined grain products to keep fiber levels reasonable and calorie levels high.

Teens: Nutritional needs are high for rapidly growing teenagers, but this isn’t a challenge that a vegan lifestyle can’t accommodate. Vegan teens need plenty of protein – around 0.43 grams per pound of body weight, and even more for very active youth. Calcium is another biggie – this is bone building primetime, so fortified tofu and soymilk, along with leafy greens, should be a major part of the vegan diet right now. Much like the case with younger kids, getting adequate calories is something to monitor, but can easily be done using high-density foods. Stock the cupboards with fortified cereals and milks, and fill the fridge with tofu products and hummus – chances are good that your teen will devour it all, and be in very good health as a result.

Study after study shows that a well-planned vegan diet can be a lifelong success story, from infancy to old age. Most vegans have a healthy body weight, good cardiovascular systems and excellent energy levels – and I plan to have kids who exemplify these stellar health traits. Sure, Trick-or-Treating might be slightly awkward with milk chocolate out of the question, but I’m ready to tackle any parenting challenge that comes my way – with copious amounts of vegan candy in hand on October 31st, of course.