Should baby be vegan

[Confusedmaa]

My daughter is vegan and currently pregnant. What do other vegans do in terms of bringing up their children. Should the baby be strict vegan or would being brought up with mainly plant based diet but some non vegan elements be ok. Would the baby need extra vitamins once fully weaned? Would intolerances build up if they aren't introduced to all food groups? I feel that she should explore all of the options. On more of a social point, I had a vegan friend growing up and they were never invited to parties or to anyone's house for tea. They always seemed so upset when treats were offered at school or birthday cake shared out as they weren't allowed any. This was in the 80s so not much understanding back then. I know that's not the end of the world and I really don't want to come across as ignorant but I'd just feel like I want to hear peoples experiences.

I disagree strongly with children being forced to be vegan. I would have something to say if this was my daughter doing this.

Of course the health of child comes first, it doesn’t need to be all quinoa and kale though, there are 1000s of plant based foods and ways of preparing them, my toddler is quite fussy which is a bit stressful in and of itself (not because we are vegan, mainly I’d like her to eat more veg which would be the case if we were vegan or not) but we’ve been able to work around it and ensure she has protein and veg at nearly every meal and a range of micronutrients across the week. And continued exposures to the things she doesn’t currently like as well. And she eats better than I did, I was a fussy child raised as a vegetarian and I ate mostly fruit, bread, chips, pizza, Quorn type products and peas and corn, not ideal but I turned out fine, had a multivitamin every night.

You could equally find someone who disagreed with forcing a child to eat animal flesh. If my daughter wanted to raise her child by feeding them dead animals I would not agree with that decision but I would also not say a thing about it, as that would be her decision and I would care more about supporting her and trying to have a good relationship rather than getting on at her about her choices.

It wasn’t me who said milk was fortified with it. It was someone claiming its easy to get iron because bread sbd milk are fortified with it. The truth is iron doesn’t absorb well when taken with calcium or grains. The best iron hit would be a steak with something high in vit C .

Oh I see it was you. Yes but Vitamin D is a case apart. It is actually a hormone and the one “vitamin” that is seldom met by diet. It is supplemented where sunlight is insufficient.

There is also evidence that whilst plant based UPF have either a positive or neutral effect on health, animal based UPF has a negative effect (along with condiments and sugary drinks).

As for what it’s surely best to do, surely it’s best for the parent to raise their child based on their own morals (obviously in a healthful way) until the child is old enough to decide.

Humans have been eating dead animal flesh for millions of years. It’s not an outlandish thing to do. We have to remember that we are not above our biology and what our bodies have been optimised to handle/process. There is already emerging evidence for increased bowel cancer rates due to our modern western processed diet. We need to accept who we are and our past to understand what is best for us.

I didn’t say milk was fortified with iron. My iron levels have always been good (since I was vegan anyway) and I’ve never eaten steak so I guess there is more than one way to skin a cat, and in this case it can be done without skinning any animals at all. The evidence as to whether iron absorption is affected by grains being consumed at the same time appears to show this is mitigated by consumption of vitamin C, and I assume the government had some research to back requiring it to be added to flour and that this would reduce iron deficiency in the population.

Lol how can you say plant based UPF could have a positive or neutral effect on health. What? that is downright untrue. Any UPF is not healthy.

Also with regards to animal based product - amongst colorectal surgeons there is a theory that meat is not inherently carcinogenic- it is due to slower transit time through the bowel that can prolong exposure time to potentially carcinogenic material. Therefore the colon cancer risk could in theory may be ameliorated by eating more fibre and having regular bowel movements. However disclaimer this is not medical advice or proven as of yet - just a theory.

There are lots of things humans have been doing for millions of years that may be morally wrong. And yes those increased bowel cancer rates, if you look into them, are due to consumption of processed meat, it is overconsumption of animal products that is the biggest dietary risk. The British Dietic Association has confirmed that a well planned vegan diet is suitable for all stages of life. Eating a plant based diet is not an outlandish thing to do.

It’s from a study backed by the WHO:
https://www.just-food.com/news/who-report-backs-consumption-of-some-ultra-procesed-foods/#?cf-view

It said: “Among UPF sub-groups, associations [with health issues] were most notable for animal-based products and artificially and sugar-sweetened beverages. Other sub-groups, such as ultra-processed breads and cereals and plant-based alternatives, were not associated with risk.”

So if you really care about the health of kids talk to the people who are giving their kids sausages, ham and other animal based UPF.

I have just posted below that actually there is a theory amongst medics that meat is not inherently carcinogenic. If you eat meat and only meat then you will be quite constipated and slower transit time through the bowel may increase exposure time to carncinogenic substances in faeces. This could also be true if you ate a highly processed low fibre vegan diet. Disclaimer again- this is a theory and I am not giving medical advice. You could also argue that subjecting a child to a vegan diet they haven’t chosen for themselves is morally questionable 🤷🏼‍♀️.

Sugary drinks are plant based UPFs.

Everyone should avoid upf ideally, vegan or otherwise.

But a little bit won’t kill you if it’s above and beyond requirements.

But as stated there have been found to be no negative effects from vegan UPF (unless you count sugary drinks) and if you read the article some have positive effects due to fibre.

Hence why I said “along with”? Not really sure what your point is? Plant based UPF (other than plant based sugary drinks and condiments) have not been found to be harmful to health and some are beneficial due to fibre.

Do you really think the OP's DD was talking about Greggs vegan sausage rolls though? Is the UPF thing really relevant?

I know a couple who are raising their child to be mostly plant-based, especially at home, but allowing eggs/butter outside the home, so the child can eat a regular birthday cake for instance if they are at a party

My point is it kind of ruins your assumption that plant based UPFs are ok.
There are other examples too - margarine. Transfats from heating vegetable oil.
I have no issue with people preferring to follow a vegetarian or vegan diet for ethical reasons or cultural/religious reasons or whatever they like.
I do find it weird that people bother trying to claim that a plant based diet is healthier than an omnivorous diet. It always descends into nonsensical assumptions.

To those saying that it's difficult unless the child eats the tough foods, lentils and quinoa, ye gods!

Quinoa is now sold in tesco, it's super easy to cook and add to other foods like processed butternut squash or boiled sweet potatoes.
Lentils once cooked well, and again blended if liked to a child's palette are not at all difficult.
Tesco also have tinned selections of various legumes, boil them, fry in lemon or lime, blend, sautee....so much you can do...

Not weird at all.

In proportion to body size, growing children need more protein and nutrients in order to sustain proper development including brain development.

Most current margarine doesn’t have hydrogenated oil in. And no it’s not an assumption that most plant based UPFs have a neutral or positive impact on health, it comes from a study. I’m not claiming it’s healthier to eat plant based (it may be healthier depending on a number of variables) but rather that it can be perfectly healthy, even with some plant based UPFs included.

The relevance is that if toddlers are fussy and get some plant based UPFs (say sliced bread and baked beans) this is not, according to research, harmful to human health.

But all this UPF stuff is not really answering OP’s original question. The UPF thing is an unhelpful distraction. Nobody was suggesting that sliced bread and baked beans are problematic as part of a balanced diet (vegan or omnivorous).
OP’s trying to work out if it’s possible for a baby/toddler to get everything they need nutritionally on a vegan diet.
Adequate diet and optimal diet are also two different things. This question was about adequate diet.