vegetarians: do you wean your dcs on meat/fish?

[MamaChris]

I'm vegetarian, DP is not (though eats mainly veggie at home). Doing BLW it has been simple so far to feed ds (8mo) a vegetarian diet. I'm happy for him to have meat or fish later if he wants, but it seems for now that either by feeding or not feeding meat I'm making that decision for him. I worry that he's missing out on nutrients, particularly oily fish.

If you're vegetarian, do you wean your dcs on meat/fish, why (or why not) and what do you feed them?

Thanks riven. That's my thought exactly (about if I feed him meat now). But it works both ways - if I don't feed him meat now, I'm deciding he is vegetarian, IYSWIM.

He has lots of beans/lentils for protein, spinach for iron. But what about oily fish? That's the only thing I worry about, as I thought he needs it for brain development.

i am and although i do give dcs meat and fish - dont really give it as babies

it feels wrong

i wait until they are two ish

Like you I'm vegetarian but DP isn't although he eats mainly veggie at home.

With both DC, they were weaned as veggies and remained so until they said that they wanted to try meat/fish which was when they were 3.

My dds have always been veggie. They have lentils, chickpeas, eggs, quorn, tofu, nuts etc and are thriving on it.

You can get Omega 3 free-range eggs (from hens fed on flax oil) which are a good source of Omega 3s.

I'd never cook meat or fish for them, but if they decide to eat it outside the home that's up to them. I've explained to them what meat is.

All parents (whether omnivore, veggie or vegan) decide what their babies/small children eat, and since it's possible to get a balanced veggie diet you shouldn't feel any obligation to give them meat or fish.

dd1 ate meat at 13 as a reblleion. She's now 16 and back to being a vegan.

we eat fish but not meat. we did blw so dd had what we had, nothing specially bought just for her.

she does have meat elsewhere though. so she goes to nursery 2 afternoons a week, has done from 7 months, and has meat there if that's on the menu. and if she's at grandparents and they have meat then she has it. now she's 2 if we're out and about she sometimes asks for a ham sandwich and i'm ok with getting her that.

I find it weird that someone is a veggie but happy if their kids eat meat.

i don't eat meat because i don't like it. dd likes it. i also don't like houmous but dd likes it. dh doesn't like courgettes, dd likes them. meat is just another food in our house.

Ds ets what we eat, which is veggie because I am one and I am the cook in the house.
If he is out and about and someone has c ooked meat, I don't mind if he has some. He likes bacon !

I'm veggie, and never gave my babies meat or fish, as apart from anything else I liked to be able to taste/temperature test things. They all first tried meat at around a year old, and so far all like at least some meat in their diets (dp eats meat so it was always available. I wouldn't have bought and cooked it if we were both veggie or I was a single parent)

They rarely get fish as I really dislike the smell so never cook it, but all eat it when other people offer it.

seems my approach is common, then Will continue to feed ds our food at home (veggie), but allow him to eat meat/fish outside the home if he wants as he grows up.

Riven, I would much prefer ds to choose to be a veggie like me. There are many other things I'd like him to choose too, but I reckon there's little I can do to force him to make those choices, just as my carnivore parents had to learn to accept a 10yo vegan daughter.

they choose when they are older.

I'm a veggie and my DH is not, and DS started on small amounts of meat and fish when he was about nine months old (stuff like fish pie, tuna pasta sauce etc). For a while he wasn't really bothered by it, but likes it now. I just felt that my DH had an equal right to influence the way DS ate, and also as DS started at nursery when he was a year we both felt that it was fairest to allow him to eat what the other children eat (and thankfully nursery follow a fairly healthy menu plan!). I also wanted to try him on a variety of meat and fish items in the house so that if he did react to them we were at home not out or at nursery and I would know exactly what he had.
MamaChris - if your DP is not veggie then at some point your DS will want to try meat off his plate when you are out or something, not because he knows it is meat but because daddy is eating it, so I wonder if you can really stop him? I wouldn't say that DS has meat every day (he's two now) when he's not at nursery, and he's as happy with veggie stuff (and would always have veggie sausages cos meat sausages just look vile) as meat. I try to give him good quality, well sourced meat and fish and will be open with him when he's older about where meat comes from.

I have started to eat meat again as i want us to be able to all eat together. If course it's free range/organic and I haven't managed to eat lamb/bacon yet.

I'm veggie but my children all eat meat. I think it is their choice when they are older and as we live in a very meat eating culture in France I wouldn't want to make life at school very complicated. Plus, they love meat and it is full of iron for their growth

DP and I are both veggie so that's how we are raising DS. He's nearly 1 and eats eggs, beans, lentils, the odd bit of tofu. He also has lots of dairy products and loves cheese.
If he wants to eat meat or fish when he's older, we'll tackle it as and when.

babypringle, I don't plan on stopping ds eating meat. As dp eats meat, ds will no doubt try some meat at some point. But I am reassured that many other veggies don't go out of their way to provide meat as part of a weaning diet, so I'll just carry on doing that, but let ds eat meat if he manages to get his hands on it.

HIJACK

no.they dont need it.simple.

two of mine eat meat-theyre choice.one doesnt(hes 2,not old enough to know where it comes from so not old enough to decide).
dh eats meat,i dont.if he didnt eat it i wouldnt have it in the house.

riven-my friend did that!vegan from birth,at 16 decided he wanted to try meat-had a big mac or similar and was violently ill!wasnt very good because we were on a trip to watch hamlet!has been back to being vegan ever since.

I don't eat meat and haven't started weaning my daughter yet, but I will be giving her meat and fish when I feel the time is right - ie we have been on a variety of fruit and veg etc for a while and she is ready for the next step. Her father eats meat and I feel that seeing him eating it as she is growing up it will be difficult for me to explain to her why it is OK for him but not for her.

I am quite a fussy eater which is probably more of a reason I don't eat meat than for ethical reasons and I would love her to grow up to be someone who will eat anything (within reason).

In my opinion it is part of giving my child the opportunity to explore all avenues in life. I wouldn't stop her riding a bike by the argument that she can learn when she is older if she would like to because I think once an avenue is closed it is harder to open.

I will be teaching her about nutrition and that meat is not an essential part of a healthy diet but I hope I will provide this example without having to hammer the point home.

DH and I are both veggie and are weaning DD as a veggie. I think that it's for her choose - when she's old enough to understand the full implications of eating meat. Not concerned about brain development as I'm still breastfeeding, and I will use Omega-3 eggs or other enriched products when she is old enough.