Concerned for ebf/vegan baby

[NotTheCoolMum]

More of a WWYD. Namechanged as identifying. Mum is vegan. Baby is 7 months old, ebf, sitting and playing, no developmental issues. But absolutely tiny. We hang out in the same playgroup and the child is smaller than a 3 month old. Mum has now begun weaning and says only vegan food.

This is not a debate about veganism. I get that mum has beliefs about diet and respect that. It is the size of the child that concerns me. Mum has said she was under increased monitoring for child dropping percentiles but is very much of the opinion that HV are just busybodies who know nothing. Not being monitored anymore, don't know the full story of why or when monitoring stopped. Baby was born at an average weight apparently. Mum thinks her child is just naturally small. I don't know if HV are aware that mum is vegan or is weaning with vegan foods.

I am worried because the tiny size could be a coincidence or it could be linked to the diet.

I'm not going to say anything to her as it would upset the friendship group. I could only report if the mumsnet wisdom is to report, would need help on how to do that if that is the right thing to do. WWYD?

[Branleuse]

ive known several babies that have been small, and they were not vegan.
The baby is 7 months old and breastfed, so veganism is not likely to be the cause as most 7mth old babies are not going to be eating steak and chips anyway, most of them will still be on a mainly milk diet.

[LIZS]

Surely fruit and veg , which makes up most of a weaning baby's diet along with carbs, is pretty much vegan anyway.

[Justhadmyhaircut]

The right thing to do is myob (mind your own business).
I have had 2x ds that stayed tiny for ages - ds 8 is still in 6-7 clothes and ds 2.10 in 18-24. .
I am vegetarian and so are they but not small due to malnutrition I am certain. .

[insancerre]

A 7 month old who is breast fed and being fed fruit and veg purées is normal isn't it?

[PinkHeart5911]

What is a "vegan weaning food" ? Do you mean fruit/veg? 😂

Have you ever weaned a baby? If you have surely you know a baby at 7 months still takes most of its nutritional needs from milk and they just try bits of food and fruit/veg is a great choice I.e "vegan food"

My dc are tiny too, not vegan but ds especially eats & eats and his still a little titch

Maybe keep your nose out and find something else to worry about

[DailyMailReadersAreThick]

You're letting silly stereotypes about vegans affect your logic. What do you think a baby should be weaned on, steak and cheddar?

Mind your own business.

[Giddyaunt18]

Why are you worried? Mum is happy, HV' are happy? If mum was not vegan and baby was small would you be worried? None of your business.

[corythatwas]

When we were weaning we were expressly told to start with vegetables and fruit, not with meat which is less digestible. By the time the baby is old enough to be eating meat and not ebf they will also, I would have thought, be old enough to access other sources of protein. Like vegans do.

You seem to suggest that the baby's small size is due to her being vegan- but if she is ebf and only just starting to eat vegan food, surely that's a bit of a red herring? Or is there any evidence at all that the breastmilk of a vegan mother would somehow be inferior?

[PussCatTheGoldfish]

If your friend is BF baby should be getting enough milk which is what's most important. Isnt the phrase food before one is just for fun?

I know a few vegan mums and tbh what they weaned their babies on was very similar to what I gave mine. Particularly under a year old.

[PenguinsAreAce]

Frankly, butt out.

7 month old eats only breast milk and fruit/veg is not in any way shocking. It is normal.

It is stressful if you have a child who does not grow at the rate everyone thinks they should. Everyone has an opinion. It does not help.

[Camomila]

I think if the HV visitors were properly concerned they wouldn't have stopped monitoring the baby?
My DS (also ebf) started dropping centiles at one point, so the HV visitors asked us to go for extra weigh ins for a bit, then DS plateud on his new smaller centile and the HVs were happy again. I think it's fairly common for bf babies to grow more at the beginning and then slow down.

No harm asking mum what she's planning to do for protein when he's older....most 7 months olds I know are still on just milk fruit and veg and the occasional rice cake/breadstick.

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

DD was weaned on carrot and pea purees, followed by squash puree.

She was probably "vegan" till about 9 mos when she had some blended beef stew.

Er except for the breastmilk, which is pretty much the opposite of vegan!

[BertramTheWalrus]

As pp have said, babies are mostly weaned onto fruit and veg. Most of a 7 month old's calories will be coming from milk. So his size has nothing to do with his diet.
I'd keep your interfering nose out and stop pretending this isn't about veganism, because it is

[witsender]

Haha! What is it you think you should be doing? And bar meat and cheese, what is this baby missing out on that others its age are getting?

[deeedeee]

Wonder what the women and babies of India, Africa etc would say to this? :-D

[Hercules12]

Are you concerned that she is giving the baby milk from its own species rather than from a completely different animal?

[DailyMailReadersAreThick]

No harm asking mum what she's planning to do for protein when he's older.

Not unless you want to go on the mum's "Ignorant Omnivores" bingo card.

OP does not know more about nutrition than this mum because she eats meat. In fact, it's quite likely a vegan knows a hell of a lot more than her.

[barbarann]

Why don't you take your massive nose and stick it elsewhere?! None of your business is it?

I'm vegan and my ds is veggie but he was vegan until about a year WITH NO ISSUE!

You know what else, a vegan parent probably knows more about nutrition than most meat eaters ever will because we have made sure our kids are not missing out - far better than many of my friends who are meat eaters who give no thought to it (by their admission) but still want to bang on about my child's protein!!

[witsender]

Haha! What is it you think you should be doing? And bar meat and cheese, what is this baby missing out on that others its age are getting?

[bigmouthstrikesagain]

Is the mother small in build, is the father, do you know what is the norm in her family? Are you a paediatrician? Are you a GP, a nutritionist?

If you are just seeing this mother and her child once a week and are making assumptions based on your opinions of a vegan diet then respectfully mind your own. If the child is active and meeting their milestones, then they are probably fine.

[JohnnyMcGrathSaysFuckOff]

Oh and btw DD has been on the 2nd centile from birth, only recently moving up to the 9th. She is 2y5m and in size 18mo clothes. She is tiny.

And her favourite foods these days are trout and sausage rolls.

Funnily enough I was also a tiny baby and child. It's genetics.

[WishingforSolong]

At 7 months all of my dcs were vegan and I wasn't following a vegan diet it was just they were ebf and having veg and fruit purees, baby rice and porridge only at that stage and they were all average sized. I don't think it's the vegan diet necessarily causing problems here OP, the baby probably is just naturally petite ?

[rogueantimatter]

My DS was average weight for a baby. Also EBF. We are not vegan or vegetarian. Nevertheless his weight gradually crossed the percentile lines downwards. Like myself, but not his DF he is skinny. He's a young adult now, 6ft 2 and a skinny despite eating vast quantities of nearly anything he's given or can get his hands on. It's genetic.

Many people believe that the NHS weight charts are not a useful guide.

[NerrSnerr]

I guess my baby was vegan too at 7 months, all she had was breastmilk and fruit and veg. She was 8lbs 2 at birth and small at a year. As a 2 year old she's still tiny (but currently eating a sausage!)