To raise my child as a vegetarian?

[rstuk]

Both myself and DH are vegetarians and we would like our children to be vegetarians too for both health and ethical reasons, however I'm a bit unsure because all of the websites i've checked have conflicting opinions on whether or not this is good for a small child (digestion issues etc) and our parents (non/ex-vegetarians) think we're 'depriving' the child
Help anyone? i'm completely lost

Who is 'we'? Because the standard definition of vegetarian - as used by the Vegetarian Society, all supermarkets, cookery books, restaurant menus etc - is someone who doesn't eat meat or fish, but does eat dairy products and eggs. Someone who avoids all animal products, including dairy and eggs, is a vegan.

"We use vegetarian as you use vegan' AH- that explains it! Personally I use elephant as you use windmill- hope that doesn't confuse anyone....

X-post. Which scientists? Because research reports I've read also make the distinction between vegetarian and vegan.

at seeker

seeker, there a slight difference between using two completely different and unrelated terms, and choosing to use the more precise one of the two. How do you explain calling yourself a vegetarian but eating animal products? Isn't that a bit hypocritical? (not criticising here, it is a true question)

Eg the abstract of this report clearly uses both the terms vegan and vegetarian, meaning different things

I'm not sure what is so tricky about the concept of vegetarianism vs veganism.

Without trying to be rude, is English your first language?

aurynne, are you British/in the UK?

Oxford dictionary basic definition of vegetarian: oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/vegetarian is someone who does not eat meat or fish.

I'm afraid you are rather swimming against the tide here, Aurynne...

We do explain the terminology at the beginning of the reports and articles. But as I don't really use it much in everyday talk (very few vegetarians of any kind where I come from) I tend to think (wrongly) that vegetarians do not eat animal products.

Now, can we move on to answer the rest of the stuff? It was getting interesting :)

No, I am not British and I am not in the UK. But I am sure it can still allow an interesting debate :)

Anyway. Can you explain a bit more about why you are excluding women who eat good vegan sources of iron/B12 from your study? Surely that is going to produce results that are worse than useless.

(there is a whole World out there outside of the UK, and non-British people also eat)

VinegarDrinker, what I was trying to point out is that vegan diets are poor sources of heme-iron and vitamin B12. in order for a vegan person to achieve healthy levels of these two crucial chemicals they need to retort to supplementation, fortification or consumption of processed food which has to be imported from very far away places and would not be naturally found anywhere close to where they live.

I was honestly not trying to offend anyone, and I am very open to hear from those of you who seem to be convinced this is wrong.

Oh, and all this came from the idea of bringing up children vegan. Iron and B12 are crucial for many processed involved in early development: hematopoiesis (synthesis of red blood cells), oxygen transport, brain cell development... So I personally would not think being vegan orn raising a child vegan from birth is a very reasonable option, unless they retort to supplementation, fortification or using sources of food which are rich in these nutrients. That was all, really :)

Why can't vegetarians eat tofu? It's from a bean.

"No, I am not British and I am not in the UK. But I am sure it can still allow an interesting debate :) "

I'm sure it can too. What I was wondering, and your answer seems to have proved me right on, is whether there might be a difference in terminology between natives of my country and wherever you are from. :)

Hully, because it's vile!

The truth is, if you eat a shit diet be it vege vegan or meat then yes you will end up deficient. A vegan living off toast and jam will be as poorly as a meat water who lives off chicken and chips. The key to health is a balanced diet , be it with meat. Or with vegetables and dairy priducrs. Or with vegans and substitutes.

Meat eaters can get complacent assuming because they don't exclude anything that their diet is complete. It is possible to be deficient eating meat too. A heavy meat diet can also be bad for you.

People on restricted diets either thru ethical reasons or allergies are usually much more conscious of what they need to eat and how they can obtain a optimum nutrition.

Casting a study in the nutritional deficits will count for nothing unless you run a study along side using meat eaters.

It's all right. Even my dog likes it.

I can accept that vegan diets for children and pregnant women need more caution, planning and possible supplementation. The problem was that you seemed to be saying that those warnings also applied to vegetarian diets, which is not true, according to all the research I have read, as well as my own experience and that of other people on this thread.

It really does help if you use words to mean the same as the standard dictionary definition or common usage, but if you are not a native speaker, that is not your fault. Glad we have cleared the confusion up.

Well, of your list Quorn is produced in the UK (although not suitable for vegans) as are fortified cereals,. but I take your point regarding shipping etc.

But then we are getting into the realms of environmental impact rather than nutrition or animal welfare. I happen to also be interested in the environmental aspects of food production (see some of my earlier posts re quinoa, soya etc as part of why I am not vegan) but not all vegetarians or vegans are. For some it is a purely animal welfare issue.

Tofu is not vile. But if you have only ever eaten it in the UK you could be forgiven for thinking that.

Fresh tofu as made and served in Japan and China is delicious - all you need is a drizzle of soy sauce and some grated ginger and you can eat it raw, just as it is.

I would see "using sources of food which are rich in these nutrients" as a positive thing vegans/vegan parents are doing to improve their health rather than the negative or failure you seem to be implying it is

Of course if we are talking food miles, there is a lot to be considered in terms of soya, quinoa etc but vegans are hardly the only ones eating air freighted food!

I understand, and sometimes the language I use hen debating can be incendiary, as seen by the responses I get. This happens in any language I discuss in, so I have assumed it is my fault. It actually annoys me, because people get offended and stop discussing the really interesting stuff, damn!