Calling all veggies, posting for traffic because I need to go the Asda :D

[Trustmeimadoggroomer17]

Helpbasically me and my DP are massive meat eaters love meat will never change. However out two year old has always ate meat its not something she loves but she eats it with her meals.

We have watched a programme about meat and how its getting g pumped with shit I don't no the ins and outs but overall we don't want our daughter eating it anymore. Can some one help me with what we can do with it. She gets alot of veg and fruit already dairy free milk and yogurt because of allergys. And sometimes spaghetti or beans and brown bread. We try and give her potato or sweet potato as sides. We don't mind giving her fish as this certain chemical isnt used on fish. So is that vegan? Can she eat quorn? How much is to much quorn is it dangerous ect ect... Just need some help really if I'm being morbid or Completely uneducated please do tell me haha

You watched one programme and decided that while you will continue as you are, you will make your toddler....well you don't know what, possibly vegetarian or something else?
IS this really a good way to make important parenting decisions?

And no, fish is not vegan. Perhaps try reading a few books before making any plans?

Actually my bil is a vegetarian and me and DP have tried to get rid of meat from our diets but we can't we have ate it for over 20 years its something we love so we're just not giving it up simple as we now it can be bad at the moment we are not our concern our little girl grandOlejukeofYork what we are doing is for our little girl she is my world and at the moment what in me watched has concerned me of course I'm not a fool im researching it more my bil has alot of knowledge of this so I'll need to speak to him and sort a plan if we do go ahead please don't assume I've just watched a programme and now I'm making my daughter do something.

Im looking into it so I can benefit my child she is the N1 priority in my life and if the things she is eating are going to harm her I'm looking at all different sites all different solutions to benefit my little girl I may take her off meat completely I may just start investing more money into quality meat like other posters amhave suggested. Let's get one this g straight before someonw starts accusing me of just doing thus for no good reason. She is my N1 and I'm asking other parents and people on this site for their opinions on food n or for anyone to question my parenting. Thank you for all who have openwd my alot more, I will take into consideration the pros and cons and me and DP will make a decision when we have researched it alot more. Thanks again.

Quorn is fine.
People hate it because it's advertised as meat replacement but there's nothing wrong with it just snobbery and veggie 'purists'.

please don't assume I've just watched a programme and now I'm making my daughter do something

ok so:

We have watched a programme about meat and how its getting g pumped with shit I don't no the ins and outs but overall we don't want our daughter eating it anymore

My child is five and we are all three vegetarian. I've been veggie for 27 years and changed as we had a few cows and pigs and I'd seen enough about how even small scale farming treats animals and once I read a bit more I became concerned about the environmental impact of eating meat. Ideally we'd be vegan. My husband and I try to eat more vegan meals but after discussing it recently our son doesn't want to stop eating dairy or eggs so we have it a bit as a family. Nutritionally he's fine Abd in fact his doctor said that many veggie kids eat better than meat eating kids as parents are often well informed on nutrition. The main thing to watch with young children is that they are getting a variety of foods. Protein is actually the least of your worries as long as it's a balanced diet but if your child isn't eating dairy or eggs you'll need to think a bit more carefully to ensure you are getting enough in plant based sources. The vegetarian society website has a good guide for veggie children. Also on nutrition try this www.firststepsnutrition.org/pdfs/Eating_well_for_veg_infants_for_web.pdf

Quorn isn't nutritionally dense enough for under fives to have more than twice a week. You are best off with pulses - lentils and beans and nut butters which are high in protein, energy and fibre. My son loved quorn as do we but pulses are cheaper and more filling. It's very easy to make spag bol with lentils or soya mince, and load up on extra veg in there. Also look at tofu - you can stir fry or scramble it. Make sure there's enough vitamin B12 in her diet as that's the one veggies are most likely to struggle with but it's in breakfast cereals and often in fortified milks. Worth taking a multi vitamin anyway which I think the NHS recommends for all children aged under 5 anyway. If you do want to give her meat, organic might be worth looking into. Less but better quality.
There's likely to be a local butcher who'll know where their meat comes from and what's in it,

There's a very good book which is worth reading which has plenty of info about meat production (it won't turn you veggie but it's well researched) it's called Farmeggedon which will help you learn a bit more so you can ask informed questions of your butcher. It's by the CEO of compassion in world farming who's keen to have better agricultural practices and it details some of the issues around antibiotic use and animal health. The overall conclusion is that we need to eat less meat and fish as a society and produce it in a more sustainable and less intensive way which will be better for animals, people and the planet. If you enjoy eating meat there's no reason to really cut it out of your daughter's diet but certainly worth having a look at the type of meat and fish you buy. www.amazon.co.uk/Farmageddon-True-Cost-Cheap-Meat/dp/1408846446?tag=mumsnetforum-21

Hope this is vaguely helpful.

grandOlejukeofYork

And? I don't want her eating it anymore, doesn't mean I am. Like I said it's basically gave me an insight and I want to to look Into it more.

*Runssometimes thanks that really helpful will have a look into it.
. From what I've read it looks like the best option is to go all organic, but still need to do alot of research before we go into this. Thank you all so much for your help. Made me realise alot haha

You do get some vegan quorn now so if she has dairy allergies, that would cover that side of it. I think it is highly processed but is high in protein. Not sure if I would feed a little girl lots of quorn but a veg cottage pie or spag bol/lasagne made with lentils is good . I really like beans and pulses. If you buy them in a tin they are so easy to cook. I would also take a look at the vegetarian society and vegan society websites for recipe ideas.

@MaidOfStars - yes, Quorn has protein, but it's not an especially great source of protein. It's processed gluten. (Wheat protein).
The rest of the nutritional panel is underwhelming. It is high in salt and low in vitamins and minerals. As I said, it's basically glue.

OP there is a lot of evidence to support the idea that probiotics can help with allergies. Unfortunately the volume of currently available probiotic strains would be far too extreme to be both practical and affordable. Societies that have very low percentages of allergies have diets high in pulses and legumes (beans and lentils). These contain what we now call PREBIOTICS which create the right environment for our natural probiotics to flourish. If you look at the average Western diet, these ingredients have dropped off as we have had more processed foods while our allergies have increased.

All this info was given to me by my paediatrician when my twins were tiny. I had one with a severe dairy intolerance (not allergy - that's different), who has since grown out of it and is a massive cheese addict now. Her twin brother was diagnosed with allergy to all nuts but has very recently been cleared by the blood test, so we are about to start hospital trials to see if we can be liberated from the epipen.

I have been very careful to shield my kids from all allergens until I was given medical clearance. I don't hold much wash with alternative therapies when it comes to my kids - I need solid, black & white, scientific advice from an expert. I haven't fed my kids a vegetarian diet (despite being largely vegetarian myself). They do eat a wide range of vegetarian meals, as I don't think you need meat every single day. It also widens their palate and opens their minds. Kids who like to try new foods are much easier to take out and about. Good luck!!!

Please see your GP to discuss this and get a reference to a dietician if necessary. You don't sound knowledgeable enough to start cutting food groups out of your child's diet without causing harm.

Quorn is not gluten protein (which btw is called seitan and is massively nutritious an delicious). Quorn is made of mycoprotein, a kind of mushroom. Agree with a PP, there's a lot of unwarranted snobbery towards it.
But - cannot stress this enough - if you're vegan you don't have to eat quorn unless you want to! There are plenty of vegan proteins!

You're right to look at organic meat, and to consider one or two meat free nights per week, as well as increasing the amount of vegetables everyone gets.
The thing is, OP, that our kids don't do as we say. They do as we do. All the research backs this up. So if her parents have cooked some quorn or whatever for her, and are tucking into burgers, she's going to want burgers. And at some point she'll be able to choose for herself and is likely to choose what she has seen you eat.