Vegan baby- what’s ur thoughts?

[France2000]

Ok, so I’m a vegan. Hate milk and meat, in my opinion we’re not supposed to ingest it. But I know babies need milk, although I’m not convinced an entirely different species’ breast milk is the answer lol. Has anyone raised a vegan baby? Looking for advice on the subject, thank u x

[fermezzlabouche]

@MockneyReject brilliantly put.

Tickled by eat meat or vote conservative, I'm unsure which would disappoint me more but as you said it would be my sons choice.

[kikisparks]

@MockneyReject Excellent!

[Ceara]

"no 1-3yr old is going to give a toss unless you set out to brainwash them from day 1".

In our house, that's not true. DH and I eat meat and dairy. So did DS until just after he 3rd birthday he made the connection between the meat on his plate, and killing animals. He hasn't touched meat or gelatine since (he's 5 now). Hje turns down haribo at parties. He is somewhat pissed off that we gave him meat before he knew enough to say no.

He isn't vegan. I would support his choice if he wanted to be, but would find it very hard ensuring his diet remained balanced - and he would have to be a whole lot less picky than he is now. DS was at preschool with a vegan 4 year old and DS thought seriously about it - I was so relieved when he decided to carry on eating dairy. His vegan friend is one of those blessedly easy children who eat whatever is put in front of them, so a balanced vegan diet is achievable. DS is not that easy to feed.

OP, looking beyond the baby stage don't underestimate the difficulty of feeding a picky eater if you cut out one or more major food groups. We all think our child will have varied and sophisticated tastes from the start, we introduce lots of flavours through weaning etc blah blah, then the fussy eating turn up anyway!

[VeganCow]

Those articles linked to above, when you read them, there is much more to the story. The kids were severely neglected by just happen to be vegan parents. The fact that the parents were vegan has been brought into the spotlight, but they neglected their babies, as has often been reported in the press the same thing by non vegan/veggie parents.



The diet of one infant consisted of "oats and rice milk and half a banana for breakfast, piece of toast with jam or PB for lunch and tofu, rice or potatoes for dinner". Sometimes they gave the child the same breakfast for dinner too as she was 'fussy'. This is poor in anyones world. Where is the vegetables and fruits, the good fats, the beans and pulses?

They were feeding their baby a nutritionally bare diet. Regardless of being vegan. If they fed that same diet and were not vegan, and you swap the rice milk for dairy milk and the tofu for chicken, anyone can see how empty the diet is.

In one case the parents 'stopped going to social care for babies'. In another case the 'neighbours did not even know there was a baby living in the house'.
In one of the cases the baby was given a 'diet of soy milk and apple juice' and the prosecutor said “No matter how many times they want to say, ‘We’re vegans, we’re vegetarians,’ that’s not the issue in this case,” said prosecutor Chuck Boring. “The child died because he was not fed. Period.”

[EngagedAgain]

I agree with Tinty. Unless they are allergic to anything give them a varied healthy diet, including meat but avoid processed meat. Let them make their own minds up when they are older. If you really can't give them meat at least don't go vegan. I've thought about this myself as I'm virtually vegetarian done it gradually. I plan to try veganism and see how I get on with it. But I don't feel I need meat or much food in general now. If I had young children now I would still give them a well balanced diet including meat. Which is what I done but no one seemed to talk about vegetarianism then, let alone veganism.

[kikisparks]

@Ceara your DS sounds like an amazing little boy! You must be proud of him (even if you disagree with his choice) the fact he had the conviction to make it at age 3 is incredible!

[EngagedAgain]

It has become a bit of an argument because millennia ago people must have just eaten meat raw to start with, fish, berries, fruit and nuts. The milk thing I wonder about and technically we can thrive without that, but does it do any harm. Then there's the ethical side of it or yuk thought of drinking animals milk but if you cut say cows milk out of a child's diet, I think they need meat to make up for it.

[NameChanger22]

I follow the Fizz Family on YouTube. They are a vegan family, who are currently weening their vegan baby. Their baby looks the picture of health and they seem to be doing everything right in regards to giving their family great nutrition. I wish I had been able to watch their videos 12 years ago, I would have made a lot of better choices.

[Ceara]

He definitely knows his own mind and has tenacity, @kikisparks!

I'd say he disagrees with our choices, more than the other way round. We eat less meat now than previously (it's easier if we all eat the same) and when DH and I do eat meat, I buy the well-looked after locally sourced stuff, knowing that DS will be sitting at the table with us, judging us ;-)

[ripeavocado]

I don't think raising a vegan baby is 'imposing your beliefs' on a baby any more than feeding them an animal-based diet. It's only because an animal-based diet is considered the 'norm' or 'standard diet' that raising a baby on a vegan diet is even viewed this way. I have an 8-month old vegan baby who's breastfed and will continue to be breastfeed until he self-weans. In addition, there are lots of milks you can make yourself which are supposed to be great for baby's nutrition, when they start to drink other milks. Water, hemp seeds and dates in the blender and then strained is one version. Some use coconut water (take a look at this video: ). Some actually make this as a vegan substitute for formula, but I would personally stick with breastmilk until baby is around 12 months.

Please note, I am not a nutritionist or medical professional, so do seek professional advice if you feel that's what you need.

Good luck, though! Love hearing about other vegan-baby-raising mamas! 🌱

[CecileLoves]

It is perfectly possible and healthy to raise a baby vegan. If you're aware of how to get all the vitamins and mierals you need for yourself on a vegan diet, you can do it for your baby too. There are some vegan wening blogs like @PlantBasedBaby_uk on Instagram or get info from The Vegan Society. Make sure you and your baby has suppleents for some of the hard to get nutrients too.

[SusieFromRavenclaw]

I have a 3 1/2 year old vegan from birth. Perfectly normal, good weight/height, smart, alert, etc. Also have a 3 months old baby, being exclusively breastfeed, like my first was until 6 months. Our family doctor not agrees that they are/will be fine.

Never really understood what the fuss was all about babies/children being vegan. You should eat properly, and that's it. If the parents have (and provide) balanced meals, with fruit, pulses and vegetables, the child will follow their example.