Become Vegetarian At 14?

Question

I'm 14 years old girl and I've very interested in becoming vegetarian.

I've read books, searched the net and asked my friend who's a vegan about it. I'm really convinced to become one

But question is: will becoming a vegetarian at 14 affect my growth? As in height, my figure, etc. HELP!

Answer 1

You can be whatever you choose to be, just remember that your body needs protein, so throw in a good whey protein shake mixed with water.  Get enough calcium too.  You'll be fine.  Good Luck!

Answer 2

No, you'll be fine if not better off as a vegetarian.

You can get all nutrients from a varied and balanced vegan diet except B12 and that's because of modern agribusiness practices and no big deal to supplement. Might want to supplement Vitamin D as well since no matter what the diet is modern life makes it difficult to get enough even with dairy products (which are only fortified and not a natural source) and it's a very important one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_B12

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_D#D...

But even vegetarians get twice the amount of protein that they need.

http://www.pcrm.org/health/veginfo/vsk/p...

There are a lot of athletes who were raised as vegetarians and even vegans and have grown well so you should as well.

Answer 3

I grew up in a Vegan home, from the time I was 10 until I moved out of the house at 18. It was difficult to say the least, but with the support of my parents and majority of my friends, it was easy to adapt to a normal life.

At 14 your body is going to be doing a lot of growing. The most important thing you can do is to make sure you are getting enough protein, and vitamins and minerals... Soy products are the only source of complete protein out there for a vegan so make sure you consume enough of it... find a good multi vitamin (I always too the chewable kind)  You will have to choose the healthiest food choices to make sure you are getting enough vitamins and minerals... you cannot just choose a bag of chips because the dont have meat in them...

Finally make sure you are doing your research, try to get your parents involved and make sure you  are doing it for the right reasons, I had many friends try and be vegan because the wanted to lose weight... that never lasted long...  

Answer 4

Not at all! You get A LOT of nutrients from eating only veggies and greens! Why? Because only 10% the energy from plants passes to the animal who eat them, and 10% passes on to the animal who eats that herbivore, when you eat that animal, you'll only get 10%. So eating plants directly will give you all of the energy! =D

Of course, you'll want to take supplements and vitamins and eat fish (if you're only a vegan from meat) or nuts (almonds, peanuts, etc.).

Good luck and way to go to a healthier life! ^_^

Answer 5

No, it will not affect your growth as long as you pay attention to nutrition and make sure you are eating enough protein, calories and other nutrients.  a vegetarian diet can be quite healthy.

Answer 6

if you get the right amount of viatmins and nutrients, no. but you HAVE to do this or you can become VERY SICK. i didnt and i became anemic for a little while so make sure you eat right.