Should I Make My Toddler A Vegan Too?

Question

My 3 year old is currently a vegetarian she still has ice cream, and yogurt and she drinks soy milk instead of cow's milk. She eats no meat or no fish. I am a vegan I eat no meat and no dairy.

I have been thinking about omitting all dairy from her diet although, she loves cheese and ice cream.

We have tried the vegan ice cream and she loved that .

My mother says oh please let the girl have regular cheese and ice cream.

I guess it would be harder for my daughter because, we can't go right to the store and pick up a vegan pop, and when we go out to eat we won't always be able to order a cheese-less pizza. I guess my mother and I worry about conveince.

After reading about what they use to make ice cream and cheese, I don't think I want my baby eating that stuff anymore. I have already taken away drinks that include high fructose corn syrup.

What do you vegans think, should leave her as a vegetarian or a turn her into a vegan?

By the way, she is very healthy!!!!

Answer 1

Read The China Study and you won't have any hesitation about taking dairy out of her diet.  I'm vegan and wouldn't consider having lower standards for my child's diet than I do for my own.  She's a toddler; she's not going to know the difference between dairy foods and vegan versions.

Not that you asked about the healthfulness of it, but to answer all the naysayers above who have ignorantly claimed it's not healthy:

"Vegan and vegetarian diets are able to satisfy all infant nutritional needs and promote normal infant growth." -The American Dietetic Association an the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Further, the joint position paper of the American Dietetic Association and the Dieticians of Canada states that properly planned vegan diets are appropriate for ALL life stages.

Answer 2

My best friend was born vegan and she is a fit and healthy adult.

Her parents were both vegan for several years before having her. A small child, even more then an adult needs a well balanced and well planned vegan diet. Like a few other's have said, I'd suggest talking to her doctor about this.  

Answer 3

I am shocked at most of these answers! The vegan diet is very healthy and I wouldn`t risk hurting your child by giving him or her animal products. Make sure you do your research and that your toddler gets all the necessary nutrients, of course. Good luck!! :)

Answer 4

Like my babies too. They are 5y/o & 9y/o now.

Bringing up a Baby - Vegan Society

http://www.vegansociety.com/people/lifes...

Do not listen and traumatized with theoretical explanation alone, especially the persons below me!

Answer 5

Have at it, my friend!  You know, I really don't get it with people sometimes.  I'm certain that most people who gave you such cutting and negative feedback have no real ground to stand on.  It's just opinion based.  Personally, I'm vegetarian--my sister and her husband are vegan.  They've been raising their daughter vegan--with a full go ahead from their doctor (to squelch the claims--no, their doctor is not a hokey-pokey hemp wearing eastern philosohy wannabe--she is perfectly credentialed in all of that western ethnocentric and self-impressed medicine).  The little squirt is very healther, very happy, and when she gets older, she's free to make her own decision.

A lot of people talk about freedom of choice--but they look at it from their own cultural end.  Give her all of it and let her decide later.  Well, there isn't much difference if she were raised vegan and decided to start eating things again--you reintroduce slowly and see how it goes.  NOT A BIG DEAL.  So, choice is just that, the decision to tread one path over the other, regardless of which path you start your journey on.  

Convenience--I get that.  But, make it fun!  Do your research and find out what restaurants you can eat at.  Help your mom to feel confident about it--write down a list of the meals at these restaurants that you know are good to go!  Educate your mom about what is in cheese and why you have trouble with it.  

The ice cream....well, yeah...but check into fruit pops and other things.  If you're near a co-op, stop in there for a rice dream bar.  Or, if there's a decent vegan community where you live, do a little advocating and see if there's an openminded ice cream shop that will stocknon dairyice cream--they'd be certain to get the business even if it's just one flavor.  We did that here and it works out awesome!  The adventure is what makes it fun.   If your daughter is already vegetarian, sounds like it'd be a smooth transition.  It's just going to be a little more work.  

If you decide to stick to dairy with her, look into local options for a better approach to cheese and milk.  Buy rennet free cheese.  Check local resources for dairy farms that fit more fluidly with your beliefs.  

Best of luck!

Answer 6

Don't make your toddler a vegan.  That would be so unhealthy for her.  Just let her eat a normal diet and if she wants to be a vegan when she is older than she can be one.  Soy milk won't give her what she needs.  There is no fat in it.  She needs the fat that dairy provides.  She needs lots of calcium and protein.  She shouldn't even be a vegetarian at this age.  You say she is healthy but have you had her tested?  Be careful that you don't do any damage to her body.

Answer 7

Ask a doctor. you will have an anemic kid with brittle bones. You will never get over it.

Answer 8

I think you should stick with her just being a vegetarian at this point, when she gets a little older and can understand give her the option to continue eating dairy or to become vegan.

Answer 9

i think it should be her decision to do that when she gets older

Answer 10

thats good thats shes very healthy and  vegetarian but i'd rather keep her this way and when she's a bit older ask her if she would like to become vegan if she doesn't than respect that

Answer 11

No, because she needs to eat meat to keep her protein up, also having you child as a vegan is a bad example for her future, for example vegans and such a young age grow up to be thin and wiry so i think not, unless you are willing to. But she still need plenty of fruit,cheese, milk, meat and everything else(little less oil and fat)

Answer 12

I think those first few were very wrong. I see no problem in raising your child as a veg@n. I wouldn't want to feed dairy products to my kids either after learning about the dangers of it! It has been stated by the FDA that a child of any age could thrive on a well balanced well planned veg@n diet so no harm would be done if you feed her right. I think it would be more healthy for her growing up because now you hear about small children having greater risks for obesity and and heart disease, she'd be alot healthier living as a veg@n growing up. Good luck in your decision!

Answer 13

I think you should ask a doctor before you start endangering your childs health.    

Answer 14

Vegitarian is good, vegan is not! YET. If you are worried about the chemicals, by organic ice cream and cheese. At this age, she needs a lot of milk for the vitamins. A vitamin tablets will not work as well. Just wait a few years please.

Answer 15

I think only you can make this choice. You need to get all the facts about whether she will still get all the vitamins etc she needs to grow healthily. Whilst I understand your choice for doing so don't put hyer health at risk for it.

If you think that you can give her an equal or better diet by being vegan then go ahead, but do remember that this will probably make things hard for her asshe grows up plus it is normally something that most people make as a personal choice and just because oyu bring her up as such she may not want to follow your choice.

However is it possible you can make your own ice cream and cheese so she can still continue to eat what she enjoys?

Answer 16

Definitely ask a pediatrician or a dietitian. When it comes to your child's well-being, you would be foolish to rely on the advice of strangers on the internet.  

Answer 17

I was born vegan. I have never touched a piece of meat in my life. I never get the desire to either. Now I left being a vegan when I was an older teenager. Now that I am ready to have my own kids and even for my own good, I have decided to go back to being a vegan. I felt so much healthier and had so much more energy when I was vegan. It seems that dairy products weighs you down. I am more talking about cheese since that is basically the only dairy item I eat. I eat soya or rice dream ice cream just because I can't stand eating dairy. But its the pizzas that are the hardest to quit eating. Nevertheless, I am a firm believer that raising your kid vegan is not harmful in the least way. Like I said, I was in better shape when I was vegan. Thumbs up for you!!

Answer 18

I would say no, because even if she is healthy now, she will be malnutritioned when she was older. It's bad enough she's vegetarian. It's fine as an adult or teen because you're older, but she's still VERY young and that is deeply depriving her of proteins and other vital nutrients. If you made her vegan, your daughter will be like Nicole Richie when older. Yes, many soy foods have proteins too, but it's not enough.

By the way, are you making her be a vegetarian?  

Answer 19

i am a vegetarian and i say leave her as a vegetarian for now and let her make her own choice when she's older.  

Answer 20

I was brought up vegetarian but I have am dairy intolerant so I also eat soya products. But I can eat goats/sheep products because they produce less mucus, so I could eat cheese etc.

I think you could go either way. There is no reason why she shouldn't become a vegan. It's just as healthy and if she wants an ice cream on the go she could get an ice lolly instead. You can also get fake cheese.

Hope this helps. She can always decide for herself when she's older.

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Answer 21

Don't let your "moral standards" negatively affect the health of your toddler. I can't think of anything more selfish a parent can do.

A vegan diet is unhealthy and unnatural, especially for a toddler. Let the child eat plenty of eggs and milk at the very least so s/he can thrive. Unless you are very careful, your child will suffer from malnutrition. Humans are omnivores and have evolved to require the consumption of animal products to survive. For a growing child, it is even more essential.

Grow up and put your child's needs before your own.