Is A Vegetarian Diet Safe For My Child and Infant?
You have possibly considered putting your child on a vegetarian diet, if you are vegetarian parent. Whatever the situation is, you may have doubt whether or not a vegetarian diet is sustainable, healthy choice for your child, putting your child on a vegetarian diet could potentially stunt their growth.
These concerns most likely prevented you from putting your child on a vegetarian diet up to this point.
If you aren’t well-prepared to put your child on a vegetarian diet, you definitely shouldn’t. Thought, if you have done your nutritional research and you are familiar with the nutrients vegetarians commonly lack, then you know that these problems can easily be overcome with some meal planning.
You also know that putting your child on a healthful vegetarian diet can greatly improve her health in both the short and long term. If you haven’t researched vegetarian diets thoroughly, but you are anxious to start your child on one now, you should start by ensuring that you plan meals to boost amounts of the following nutrients (that most vegetarians lack) :
If, for dietary or ethical reasons, you have decided that you want to put your infant on a vegetarian diet, you should be very careful in choosing formulas and solid food for your child.
If you plan to breastfeed the infant and you are also a vegetarian, you may need to supplement breastmilk with additional sources of nutrition, depending on your dietary restrictions. If you are a vegan, or an ovo-vegetarian, you should add sources of vitamin B-12 to your child’s diet.
If you plan to use formula rather than breastmilk, you should stick to commercial formulas, which contain the proper amounts and ratios of nutrients. If you opt for a homemade formula or soymilk over a commercial product, your child could experience developmental problems from a lack of proper nutrition.
If you want to keep your infant on a vegan diet, you can select a soy commercial formula, as long as it is nutritionally-adequate.
Nutritionists suggest that you keep your infant on a full-fat, high protein diet after age one, which includes vegetarian-friendly foods, such as mashed and pureed avocados, soy milk, nutrient-fortified tofu, and yogurt.
When you are ready to switch your infant to solid vegetarian foods, you can introduce solid tofu, pieces of vegetarian burgers, eggs, and cheese.
If you supplement what a nonvegetarian diet lacks, maintain a full-fat diet, and increase your infant’s sources of protein, you should have no problem maintaining a healthful vegetarian diet during your child’s crucial developmental stages.
1. Protein. Make sure your child is consuming enough protein by adding additional sources, such as wheat,soybeans, isolated soy protein, and nuts.
2. Calcium. Make sure your child is consuming enough calcium by adding calcium-fortified processed foods and leafy green vegetables to his diet.
3. Iron. Add more iron to your child’s diet by increasing servings of soybeans, pinto beans, tofu, and cereals.
4. Zinc. Enhance your child’s zinc intake by increasing his servings of almonds, peanut butter, and mushrooms.
If you concentrate on compensating for all of these common nutritional deficiencies, you absolutely can put your child on a vegetarian diet without any negative health consequences.
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[...] Is A Vegetarian Diet Safe For My Child [...]
[...] Is A Vegetarian Diet Safe For My Child and Infant? You have possibly considered putting your child on a vegetarian diet, if you are vegetarian parent. Whatever the situation is, you may have doubt whether or not a vegetarian diet is sustainable, healthy choice for your child, putting your child on a vegetarian diet could potentially stunt their growth……. [...]