Parents of vegan teens?

[Guest guest]

Hi, I'm Maureen, a vegetarian with a vegetarian husband, and 13-yo son

who is vegan. I know he can get the nutrition he needs, but he is

growing so fast it is hard for me to trust that he can get enough

nutrition, or enough food, for that matter, w/o dairy or eggs. I

guess I just need reassurance. Since what he eats is really

nutritious (no white sugar, fried foods, 'bad' oils), I know he eats

better than 99 percent of teenagers out there.

 

A little about me--I am an RN, an ex-La Leche League Leader, have two

kids (the older, 17 yo girl, eats fish but not at home.) I work in the

newborn nursery and mom/baby unit at a women's hospital where we have

about 600 births a month, so I was really interested in the whole

epidural/home birth thread.

 

Looking forward to reading and learning!

[Guest guest]

I don't have vegetarian teens, but until pretty recently I was one, if that's of

any help. I only became a vegetarian right before I turned 13 and I was a

little overweight with bad acne, had a yearly cold and various minor illnesses.

After becoming a vegetarian I got down to my ideal weight, my skin cleared up, I

rarely got sick, and I was very, very healthy. Humans do not need meat to

thrive- quite the opposite, in fact! Your son is very, very lucky to have

supportive vegetarian parents. I did not have that and it was hard for me to

enjoy life that way, constantly being teased by my father and talked down to by

my mother. Your son gets to eat with his family, which is awesome, and as his

mom you get to pick the dish! What I'd have given for that! My family would have

some big elaborate dinner and I'd be stuck eating canned peas for the third

night in a row, or ramen noodles or whatever I was willing to cook on my own...

and I was such an awful cook then! Don't worry

too much about your son, if he's eating a variety of healthy foods he'll be

fine. I always took a multivitamin, checking first to make sure there was no

gelatin in them of course. Hemp oil is good too, for omega 3's. And him being

a 13 year-old boy you are right that he will never get enough food- but that

applies even to non-vegetarians. Just know that you've done something right

to have a vegan and a near-vegetarian at their ages. I always worry that my

children will go against what I am working so hard to teach them once they hit

those teen years... ugh, I don't even want to think about that!!

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

mmnelson86 <mmnelson86 wrote: Hi,

I'm Maureen, a vegetarian with a vegetarian husband, and 13-yo son

who is vegan. I know he can get the nutrition he needs, but he is

growing so fast it is hard for me to trust that he can get enough

nutrition, or enough food, for that matter, w/o dairy or eggs. I

guess I just need reassurance. Since what he eats is really

nutritious (no white sugar, fried foods, 'bad' oils), I know he eats

better than 99 percent of teenagers out there.

 

A little about me--I am an RN, an ex-La Leche League Leader, have two

kids (the older, 17 yo girl, eats fish but not at home.) I work in the

newborn nursery and mom/baby unit at a women's hospital where we have

about 600 births a month, so I was really interested in the whole

epidural/home birth thread.

 

Looking forward to reading and learning!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Messenger with Voice. Make PC-to-Phone Calls to the US (and 30+

countries) for 2¢/min or less.

 

 

[Guest guest]

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Oh yeah, the pregnant vegetarian thing was fun. I got told soooo many times that

I should " at least " eat meat during pregnancy- for the baby's sake. Of course

being loaded with hormones and cranky from throwing up every few hourse I got to

really let some folks have it. If I was going for the bare minimum nutrition in

pregnancy- " at least " - I could chow down on fast food and sweets and salty nasty

greasy junk like most pregnant women do. Instead, I craved brussels sprouts. I

craved broccoli and garlic and pasta. Who, now, has the healthier diet? Who

feels " fat " at 140 lbs, 10 of those being boobs? And who keeps up on diet

information and knows which supplements are good for what? We vegetarians,

vegans, health food nuts. My kids just don't get sick easily. The only big

illnesses they've had were pneumonia and a stomach bug, both of which

mysteriously showed up a couple of days after they went to the base's childcare

center. Hmm.

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

[Guest guest]

LOLOLOL! i get so harassed for being vegan and pregnant! the first two

questions i was asked by my parents when i told them we were expecting again

were 1) " you're not really planning another homebirth, right? " and 2)

" you're going to start eating meat now, right? at least you're going to

drink milk, right? you know you're going to end up with osteoporosis like

your grandmother! " yeah, my grandmother who has eaten several servings of

dairy every day of her freakin' life! i don't know why people think that

veg people are uneducated about nutrition. isn't it obvious that we're far

MORE educated, especially those of us with a head for statistics who can

counteract every argument with any number of studies? i think it's

hilarious that people consider nutrition education by meat and dairy

industry commercials to be sufficient, far better than those of us who have

spent months, sometimes years, sometimes whole portions of their vocations

studying nutrition. it just baffles me.

 

chandelle'

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Oooh, you've got a shrunken granny too, eh? My grandmother and my dad are my

favorite topics when discussing vegetarianism vs. SAD. Not that I'm glad they

have osteoporosis or high blood pressure, just glad I don't- and won't! I have

found it beyond amusing at the intelligence of vegetarians on nutrition-

statistics, facts, quotes, references, you name it. I can't name but a few

meat-eaters whose arguments for the SAD include a very old, very carnivorous

relative. How old might Uncle Whatshisface have gotten if he hadn't given

himself daily doses of body poison? Heh.

You... um... I almost thought you implied just now that meat and dairy

commercials don't provide honest information about their products! I can't think

of anything sadder than someone relying on that information to feed their

children.

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

LOLOLOL! i get so harassed for being vegan and pregnant! the first two

questions i was asked by my parents when i told them we were expecting again

were 1) " you're not really planning another homebirth, right? " and 2)

" you're going to start eating meat now, right? at least you're going to

drink milk, right? you know you're going to end up with osteoporosis like

your grandmother! " yeah, my grandmother who has eaten several servings of

dairy every day of her freakin' life! i don't know why people think that

veg people are uneducated about nutrition. isn't it obvious that we're far

MORE educated, especially those of us with a head for statistics who can

counteract every argument with any number of studies? i think it's

hilarious that people consider nutrition education by meat and dairy

industry commercials to be sufficient, far better than those of us who have

spent months, sometimes years, sometimes whole portions of their vocations

studying nutrition. it just baffles me.

 

chandelle'

 

[Guest guest]

well, what i hear most from my family is, life's too short, why suffer, eat

what tastes good. but i think our food tastes SO much better -- and it's

not going to kill us! to which my dad responds, we're all going to die

anyway. but would you rather die a typical western affluence death as a fat

washed-up hypertensive diabetic on eighteen pills, or maybe die a more

dignified death? hm...

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

It is so disheartening when parents don't understand and allow children to make

decisions for themselves. When I was a child my parents didn't know any better.

I was raised on hot dogs and mac and cheese. I don't know how old you are but

if you are from my generation that is what many kids ate. Several of my

children's friends have expressed that they would like to be vegetarian but

thier parents won't let them. I have offered to help them with recipes and

whatever questions they might have but mostly to no avail. Typically, if left

to thier own devices very young children will choose a vegetarian diet and have

to be forced to eat meat, at least in my experience. Perhaps parents should pay

more attention to thier children's inate sense of what is right. All of our

children should realize what a healthy advantage they have.

Carol

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted

to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

 

[Guest guest]

Oh man, I had two friends in high school who wanted to be vegetarians but their

parents wouldn't let them. How ridiculous! I can just imagine the conversation-

" Mom, I want to be a vegetarian and eat lots of healthy food that will help me

live a long life. " " Shut up and eat your fried chicken and Kool-Aid. " Where's

the logic??

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: It

is so disheartening when parents don't understand and allow children to make

decisions for themselves. When I was a child my parents didn't know any better.

I was raised on hot dogs and mac and cheese. I don't know how old you are but

if you are from my generation that is what many kids ate. Several of my

children's friends have expressed that they would like to be vegetarian but

thier parents won't let them. I have offered to help them with recipes and

whatever questions they might have but mostly to no avail. Typically, if left

to thier own devices very young children will choose a vegetarian diet and have

to be forced to eat meat, at least in my experience. Perhaps parents should pay

more attention to thier children's inate sense of what is right. All of our

children should realize what a healthy advantage they have.

Carol

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted

to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

[Guest guest]

when my husband was about 21 (and still living with his parents), he read

this article put out by his university called " vegetarianism from the point

of view of world hunger, " that cited the statistic about what would happen

if americans cut down their meat consumption by only 10%...we all know that

one, right? he read the article aloud to his mom and said, " you know, maybe

we should think about this. look at what we could do for the world just by

REDUCING our meat intake! we could wipe out world hunger! and it's

healthier anyway, look at all these other studies and statistics. " she

replied, " well, we like our meat in this family, " and that was end of

discussion...until i came along and he went veg on the spot because he

finally had someone who was willing to do it with him, who knew how to

cook. you can probably imagine how that went over -- they've never

forgiven us. LOL! of course, my MIL thinks there's a divine directive to

eat meat...she has to have meat in every meal, God said so! psh...

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I understand where they are coming from. They don't understand the

vegetarianism is more healthy. They worry about protein and vitamins etc.

They also don't know how to cook vegetarian food. They also feel threatened

because they think that their comfortable way of eating will be challenged. My

own dh is a real problem in terms of my and our children's vegetarianism. He

eats meat and he worries that his comfort zone will be challenged so he will

never go with us to vegetarian restaurants or eat anything that I cook that is

vegetarian unless it is one of our birthdays or Mother's Day. That is why I

offer to talk to them about the health aspects and cooking and recipes. If

people really understood they would all be vegetarian, right?

Carol

 

Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote:

Oh man, I had two friends in high school who wanted to be vegetarians

but their parents wouldn't let them. How ridiculous! I can just imagine the

conversation- " Mom, I want to be a vegetarian and eat lots of healthy food that

will help me live a long life. " " Shut up and eat your fried chicken and

Kool-Aid. " Where's the logic??

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: It is so disheartening when parents

don't understand and allow children to make decisions for themselves. When I was

a child my parents didn't know any better. I was raised on hot dogs and mac and

cheese. I don't know how old you are but if you are from my generation that is

what many kids ate. Several of my children's friends have expressed that they

would like to be vegetarian but thier parents won't let them. I have offered to

help them with recipes and whatever questions they might have but mostly to no

avail. Typically, if left to thier own devices very young children will choose a

vegetarian diet and have to be forced to eat meat, at least in my experience.

Perhaps parents should pay more attention to thier children's inate sense of

what is right. All of our children should realize what a healthy advantage they

have.

Carol

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

 

[Guest guest]

That's when parents ought to actually research things instead of automatically

refusing. Most parents sadly don't do *any* research on nutrition or various

eating habits- what gives them the right to reject their child's decision when

the child *has* done that research? This isn't like a disagreement on what

clothes a child is or isn't allowed to wear, it's about their bodies, their

lives, their health. My mom didn't really even know it was bad for us that she

smoked when we were little. Once I learned the truth I went home and I wouldn't

shut up till she quit smoking because that's *not* her decision to make, not

when my health could have been harmed for it. Same with food decisions- if a

parent hasn't done the research and the child has, it falls to the child to make

the educated choice.

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: I

understand where they are coming from. They don't understand the vegetarianism

is more healthy. They worry about protein and vitamins etc. They also don't

know how to cook vegetarian food. They also feel threatened because they think

that their comfortable way of eating will be challenged. My own dh is a real

problem in terms of my and our children's vegetarianism. He eats meat and he

worries that his comfort zone will be challenged so he will never go with us to

vegetarian restaurants or eat anything that I cook that is vegetarian unless it

is one of our birthdays or Mother's Day. That is why I offer to talk to them

about the health aspects and cooking and recipes. If people really understood

they would all be vegetarian, right?

Carol

 

Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote:

Oh man, I had two friends in high school who wanted to be vegetarians

but their parents wouldn't let them. How ridiculous! I can just imagine the

conversation- " Mom, I want to be a vegetarian and eat lots of healthy food that

will help me live a long life. " " Shut up and eat your fried chicken and

Kool-Aid. " Where's the logic??

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: It is so disheartening when parents

don't understand and allow children to make decisions for themselves. When I was

a child my parents didn't know any better. I was raised on hot dogs and mac and

cheese. I don't know how old you are but if you are from my generation that is

what many kids ate. Several of my children's friends have expressed that they

would like to be vegetarian but thier parents won't let them. I have offered to

help them with recipes and whatever questions they might have but mostly to no

avail. Typically, if left to thier own devices very young children will choose a

vegetarian diet and have to be forced to eat meat, at least in my experience.

Perhaps parents should pay more attention to thier children's inate sense of

what is right. All of our children should realize what a healthy advantage they

have.

Carol

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'

 

[Guest guest]

I couldn't get my kids to eat meat even if I threatened them. They, just like

me, would throw up. The thought of it is so disgusting to us.

Carol

 

Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote:

That's when parents ought to actually research things instead of

automatically refusing. Most parents sadly don't do *any* research on nutrition

or various eating habits- what gives them the right to reject their child's

decision when the child *has* done that research? This isn't like a disagreement

on what clothes a child is or isn't allowed to wear, it's about their bodies,

their lives, their health. My mom didn't really even know it was bad for us that

she smoked when we were little. Once I learned the truth I went home and I

wouldn't shut up till she quit smoking because that's *not* her decision to

make, not when my health could have been harmed for it. Same with food

decisions- if a parent hasn't done the research and the child has, it falls to

the child to make the educated choice.

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: I understand where they are coming

from. They don't understand the vegetarianism is more healthy. They worry about

protein and vitamins etc. They also don't know how to cook vegetarian food. They

also feel threatened because they think that their comfortable way of eating

will be challenged. My own dh is a real problem in terms of my and our

children's vegetarianism. He eats meat and he worries that his comfort zone will

be challenged so he will never go with us to vegetarian restaurants or eat

anything that I cook that is vegetarian unless it is one of our birthdays or

Mother's Day. That is why I offer to talk to them about the health aspects and

cooking and recipes. If people really understood they would all be vegetarian,

right?

Carol

 

Kadee M <abbey_road3012 wrote:

Oh man, I had two friends in high school who wanted to be vegetarians but their

parents wouldn't let them. How ridiculous! I can just imagine the conversation-

" Mom, I want to be a vegetarian and eat lots of healthy food that will help me

live a long life. " " Shut up and eat your fried chicken and Kool-Aid. " Where's

the logic??

 

Kadee Sedtal

 

carol sobczak <cpsobczak wrote: It is so disheartening when parents

don't understand and allow children to make decisions for themselves. When I was

a child my parents didn't know any better. I was raised on hot dogs and mac and

cheese. I don't know how old you are but if you are from my generation that is

what many kids ate. Several of my children's friends have expressed that they

would like to be vegetarian but thier parents won't let them. I have offered to

help them with recipes and whatever questions they might have but mostly to no

avail. Typically, if left to thier own devices very young children will choose a

vegetarian diet and have to be forced to eat meat, at least in my experience.

Perhaps parents should pay more attention to thier children's inate sense of

what is right. All of our children should realize what a healthy advantage they

have.

Carol

 

earthmother <earthmother213 wrote:

lol kadee, i second your childhood experiences! i have always wanted to be

vegetarian, since i was a kid, but it was just impossible in my house. my

parents never taught me how to cook, they wouldn't let me learn, they

wouldn't buy anything different, so in my meat-and-potatoes house guess what

i was left eating most nights? yup, potatoes. i never lasted long as a

veg in my parents house; i couldn't go completely veg until i moved out at

16, and then i went vegan at 20, and my parents nearly disowned me. i don't

think they've ever really forgiven me, they always think i'm judging them

(it's guilty conscience though , and every time i have a little cough or

something they tell me to go eat a steak. they flipped out completely

that i'm having a vegan pregnancy right now. but luckily my son is the

healthiest kid on the planet and they've shut up about it a lot since i had

him. i am so happy to know that there are parents out there who are

supportive and loving when their kids try to make different and/or better

choices for themselves.

 

chandelle'