Quality of food likely more important than plant v. animal source

[Guest guest]

Healthy Food Tip

Do you think that infants and children need meat in their diet or is it okay to

raise them as vegetarians?

When it comes to various cultures throughout the world and different populations

of people, the scientific research is very clear about the practice of

vegetarian eating. At the population level, vegetarian eating is healthier than

non-vegetarian eating for both children and adults. Virtually every chronic

health problem has a lower incidence in vegetarian populations, and overall

nutrient intake is of higher quality in vegetarian populations as well.

With infants, the issue is a little different, because, on a worldwide basis,

the average age of weaning is between 3-4 years of age. In other words, in the

majority of cultures worldwide, infants breastfeed rather than consume food

directly.

Most of the studies I've seen about vegetarian children involve kids who are

older, either in pre-school, elementary school, or higher grade levels. At this

broad population level, the direct answer to your question is that it's not only

fine to raise children as vegetarians, but this dietary practice is more likely

to result in their having lower risk of chronic disease throughout their

lifetime.

At an individual level, however, I believe that this decision is not quite so

simple. From the very start, children will be fully unique individuals, with

their own likes, dislikes, and taste preferences. They may also have unique

nutrient needs that will require certain approaches to their diet. You might

find that they do best and thrive on particular kinds of foods, and these foods

may or may not include meats. In some cultures, there is a long-standing

emphasis on a person's " constitution " (for example, the Ayurvedic tradition in

India), and dietary goals always include recognition of a child's unique

constitution. As children grow up, so many other social factors will begin to

play a role in their eating. They may want to eat like one parent eats, or like

the other eats, or like their best friends eat, and these broader aspects of

eating are also important in allowing them to enjoy and appreciate food.

On the World's Healthiest Foods website (www.whfoods.org) we feature a detailed

profile of vegetarian eating in the " Health-Promoting Diets " section of our

website. In our " Healthy Eating for the Entire Family " section, we review

dietary issues related to newborns, infants, and kids. You may want to look over

each of these sections for more information about kids and vegetarian eating.

While I cannot claim that a vegetarian diet would be the best approach for a

specific child because of the reasons described above, I can tell you that

research studies show whole populations of vegetarian children growing up to be

healthier adults than their non-vegetarian counterparts. Many children can have

their full nutrient needs not only met through a vegetarian diet, but better met

in this way. However, I would also want to point out that the quality of a

child's food-plant or animal-is just as important, or most likely more

important, than the plant versus animal source. It's possible to eat a very

low-quality, highly processed, excessively high-fat, high-sugar, and

low-nutrient vegetarian diet. That's one of the reasons that I am such a strong

advocate for whole, natural, minimally processed, organically grown foods!

From WHFoods newsletter, May 5, 2010