Being vegetarian and being short..

[bloodyunicorns]

Ds 15 is veggie. Has been for 4 years. He's on the short side - 5 foot 4. But he's muscly, fit, and knows about nutrition and makes sure he gets enough protein.

Do you think he'd grow more/faster if he ate meat?? Is he stunting himself?!

I think most of it has to be to do with genetics, surely? I am 5.7, DH is 6.4 and DD who is 11 and has been veggie since the age of 6 is the tallest in her class and taller than her brother who is two years older and eats meat. I guess in the usual way, he’ll have a growth spurt later on.

Moreover if you look up thread the first study I found said that there is no truth to the thing about amino acids.

I’m a life long vegetarian, dairy free too, as were my birth givers and three sets of grandparents. I’m south asian, so we tend to be shorter. I’m 185cm, my brother slightly taller, my sister was never as tall as us, but she was taller than a lot of women.

Any diet can be a poor diet and reduce height, that includes a poor diet that features meat.

It's genetics, the posters who had short parents and then became tall with vegetarian diets probably have a tall relative in their lineage.

My kids eat a really mixed diet full of vegetables, fruit and meat. They are the most unfussy kids ever and both are small because I am, where as my friend whose child is so fussy is big despite this. I think diet can add an extra inch but nothing more.

@underneaththeash firstly there aren’t 21 essential amino acids. “An essential amino acid, or indispensable amino acid, is an amino acid that cannot be synthesized from scratch by the organism fast enough to supply its demand, and must therefore come from the diet. There are only 9 amino acids in this category.”

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557845/

All 9 essential amino acids are available in a plant based diet:

tenderly.medium.com/busting-the-myth-of-incomplete-plant-based-proteins-960428e7e91e

My kids are short arses, as am I (veggie since age 8) and their dad is a butcher. They eat meat every day. What do you think is more likely to cause their shortness? Genetics or my slight reluctance to cook animal products for them.

My wee shortie sister (5”nothing) has one kid pushing 6 foot and another about 5’8 (both girls). Their dad is 6”3. Her other kid is shorter - and her dad is shorter.

generics huh?

@underneaththeash typical vegan hating rubbish. The American Dietetic Association (bear in mind, hardly a country with pro vegan bias in general) accepts that vegetarian and vegan diets:

"are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence, and for athletes."

@kikisparks Well said!

@DogsAreSuperior - I'm not going to force ds to do anything! I just want to have the whole picture so he's fully informed. And so I can ensure his diet includes all the vitamins and minerals he needs.

Thank you, that's helpful! I agree, I need to do some research of my own.