Does my toddler need vitamins?

[Atomant]

DH & I are both vegetarian we have 18 mo DD. We are not raising her as a vegetarian she eats lots of fish, not so keen on chicken at the moment but I continue you try, she eats lots of varied veg, lots of greens, fruit, dairy & pulses but not a lot of red meat. she also has a suspected egg allergy so no pure egg at the moment. All her meals are cooked from scratch, no processed foods etc. She has a good appetite and does try most foods.

I feel a bit irresponsible for not cooking so much red meat I do have some difficulty handling it, my mum is batch cooking & freezing stuff so I just defrost & heat which is fine but I don't think she's getting enough in her diet.

Can anyone advise how often she should eat red meat and if I should be giving her vitamins to supplement?

Thanks

[perfectstorm]

You don't need to worry. We aren't veggie but ds hardly eats red meat, because he doesn't like it much. Lots of pulses and grains together with fish will supply the amino acids and iron. Bear in mind that humans aren't designed to eat huge amounts of meat - it was originally a rare luxury because it had to be hunted.

Lots of healthy toddler are vegetarian. If you're supplementing with meat and fish as well as dairy, I can't see why yours would have deficiencies.

I'm sure the Vegetarian Society would be able to advise you on how to balance her diet, too.

[Atomant]

Thanks. That's a good idea about VS. I'm just paranoid, as we don't eat meat, that DD has a balanced diet. I should add I also dont like cooking red meat as I fear of not cooking it properly & poisoning poor DD!

[perfectstorm]

Well, red meat can be served rare so no worries on that score - you can't poison her as long as you use good hygiene and defrost properly. But I know several very healthy veggie toddlers, and can't see why you should feel obligated to feed her meat, especially if your concern is on ethical grounds (my own meat is free range/organic, I have no issue eating animals, but do with cruel husbandry).

I'd speak to the VS and get recommendations for toddler cookbooks. They need a lot more fat than we do, but dairy/fish/seeds and nuts can supply that.

Another thing - omega oils can be obtained from linseed, which can be sprinkled on porridge. They don't need that many, but oily fish isn't the only source. Omega fats are essential, but linseed/flax are very rich sources.

Why don't you post on the food and cooking section and ask for recommendations from other veggie MN parents? They'd know, I'm sure.

[Ribble]

My three favourite supplements for little ones are:
Biocare Banana Acidophilus powder - this can help with digestive problems, after antibiotics, helps boost the immune system - from 6 months
Biocare Kids Complete powder - a well balanced, easy to digest multivitamin/mineral supplement - from 6 months
Omega 3 - good food sources are oily fish, nuts, seeds, ground linseeds/flaxseeds, which can be disguised in their food!
If you are at all worried you can use the above on and off, they won't harm and if you want more information you contact Biocare via their website, www.biocare.com. Don't worry I don't work for them just trust them!