vegan diet information

[Guest guest]

Thanks friends for helping me with the information about soy milk and

multivitimins. This is really a great group!!! As you guys know my family is

kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are committed, so..Could you please let

me know about any books or websites that any of you use or trust regarding to

" how to feed well a vegan toddler, children and in general a vegan person?

nutrition, balance diet, examples of diets etc.

thank you so much

 

Rebeca

 

Susan Williams <virgo.vegan wrote:

Rebeca,

You are welcome for the information. This is a great group of

parents that are very informed and always have great information.

 

We don't give our son any multi vitamins because he is on a whole

foods diet and still breastfeeding. Even once he stops BFing, I

doubt he will go on a multivitamin - I can't see what he would be

missing in his diet that a vitamin can give him. Make sure he gets

plenty of superfoods (walnuts, kale, blueberries, flax, etc) and if

you have to put them in a smoothie. My 13 mos drinks a leaf of kale

a day in a smoothie. Yesterday, while I was tearing up the kale to

put in the blender, he reached out and grabbed a chunk and just

starting chewing on it LOL.

 

As far as the hemp milk, my 13 mos old has been drinking it since he

was 11 mos. DH does not like soy milk, so I thought let's try this.

DS loves it - sometimes will pass up any other food for it. DH and I

are still trying to get used to the taste - it is a strong earth

nutty flavor unlike anything else, but it is really starting to grow

on me now.

 

~Susan

 

On Apr 23, 2008, at 1:03 AM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

 

> s it OK to give my toddler of 19 months old multivitamins? Well my

> pediatrician knows that we were vegetarians and now vegans, so she

> recommended the multivitamins for mi son, well I just want to be

> sure if it is OK. Hey Susan thanks for the information about hemp

> milk, can I give it to my toddler too?

 

[Guest guest]

Rebeca,

One of my favorite resources is vegfamily.com - they have a monthly

newsletter that we to but you can just go to the site and

check it out. As far as cookbooks, I would recommend the Joy of

Vegan Baking and Veganomicon - both have great recipes and are very

kid friendly too.

 

As far as how to feed a vegan toddler, baby, children, etc - check

out vegfamily for specific questions - there is also a VeganParenting

VeganParenting/. Also, a

great book is Joel Fuhrman's Disease Proof Your Child. I think we

all have been inundated with so much mainstream hype about not

getting enough nutrition on a veg diet, that we all feel this is

something to worry about. Make sure that if you are eating any

refined foods now, that you replace them with whole grain products.

Brown Rice pasta instead of white pasta, brown rice instead of white

rice, whole wheat bread instead of white, etc. Then just make sure

you get various whole foods into your diet, and there is nothing to

worry about. Creating a balanced vegan meal made from whole foods is

very easy. When my husband cooks, I tell him to make sure there are

at least 3 colors on the plate and that seemed to help him. Is there

something particular you are worried about with your toddler?

 

HTH

 

~Susan

 

 

On Apr 23, 2008, at 5:46 PM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

 

> Thanks friends for helping me with the information about soy milk

> and multivitimins. This is really a great group!!! As you guys know

> my family is kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are committed,

> so..Could you please let me know about any books or websites that

> any of you use or trust regarding to " how to feed well a vegan

> toddler, children and in general a vegan person? nutrition, balance

> diet, examples of diets etc.

> thank you so much

>

> Rebeca

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I recommend vegfamily.com and vegetarianbaby.com though vegetarian baby is not

updated the way it was back when my daughter was a baby there is still a lot of

information there. And it is not just babies like the title says it is kids of

all ages through teens. There is even vegetarianteen.com (ran by the same

people).

 

Rebeca Llasaca <rllasaca wrote: Thanks friends for helping

me with the information about soy milk and multivitimins. This is really a great

group!!! As you guys know my family is kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are

committed, so..Could you please let me know about any books or websites that any

of you use or trust regarding to " how to feed well a vegan toddler, children and

in general a vegan person? nutrition, balance diet, examples of diets etc.

thank you so much

 

Rebeca

 

Susan Williams <virgo.vegan wrote: Rebeca,

You are welcome for the information. This is a great group of

parents that are very informed and always have great information.

 

We don't give our son any multi vitamins because he is on a whole

foods diet and still breastfeeding. Even once he stops BFing, I

doubt he will go on a multivitamin - I can't see what he would be

missing in his diet that a vitamin can give him. Make sure he gets

plenty of superfoods (walnuts, kale, blueberries, flax, etc) and if

you have to put them in a smoothie. My 13 mos drinks a leaf of kale

a day in a smoothie. Yesterday, while I was tearing up the kale to

put in the blender, he reached out and grabbed a chunk and just

starting chewing on it LOL.

 

As far as the hemp milk, my 13 mos old has been drinking it since he

was 11 mos. DH does not like soy milk, so I thought let's try this.

DS loves it - sometimes will pass up any other food for it. DH and I

are still trying to get used to the taste - it is a strong earth

nutty flavor unlike anything else, but it is really starting to grow

on me now.

 

~Susan

 

On Apr 23, 2008, at 1:03 AM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

 

> s it OK to give my toddler of 19 months old multivitamins? Well my

> pediatrician knows that we were vegetarians and now vegans, so she

> recommended the multivitamins for mi son, well I just want to be

> sure if it is OK. Hey Susan thanks for the information about hemp

> milk, can I give it to my toddler too?

 

 

[Guest guest]

Thanks Susan and friends for the information

Well what I am worry about my toddler's diet is if I am giving him the nutrients

that he should get daily. I am talking about Ca, B12, Iron, etc. I like to cook

from scratch and I do prepared organic stuff but, I would like to know much

more about the right combinations of fruits, grains, vegetables, etc. for my

toddler's meal times, so I can have peace in my mind that I am giving him the

daily nutrients that he needs.

I do not know, maybe because he is my first child I am getting worried a little

to much..

Rebeca

 

 

Susan Williams <virgo.vegan wrote:

Rebeca,

One of my favorite resources is vegfamily.com - they have a monthly

newsletter that we to but you can just go to the site and

check it out. As far as cookbooks, I would recommend the Joy of

Vegan Baking and Veganomicon - both have great recipes and are very

kid friendly too.

 

As far as how to feed a vegan toddler, baby, children, etc - check

out vegfamily for specific questions - there is also a VeganParenting

VeganParenting/. Also, a

great book is Joel Fuhrman's Disease Proof Your Child. I think we

all have been inundated with so much mainstream hype about not

getting enough nutrition on a veg diet, that we all feel this is

something to worry about. Make sure that if you are eating any

refined foods now, that you replace them with whole grain products.

Brown Rice pasta instead of white pasta, brown rice instead of white

rice, whole wheat bread instead of white, etc. Then just make sure

you get various whole foods into your diet, and there is nothing to

worry about. Creating a balanced vegan meal made from whole foods is

very easy. When my husband cooks, I tell him to make sure there are

at least 3 colors on the plate and that seemed to help him. Is there

something particular you are worried about with your toddler?

 

HTH

 

~Susan

 

On Apr 23, 2008, at 5:46 PM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

 

> Thanks friends for helping me with the information about soy milk

> and multivitimins. This is really a great group!!! As you guys know

> my family is kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are committed,

> so..Could you please let me know about any books or websites that

> any of you use or trust regarding to " how to feed well a vegan

> toddler, children and in general a vegan person? nutrition, balance

> diet, examples of diets etc.

> thank you so much

>

> Rebeca

 

[Guest guest]

the most important issue with calcium is not calcium content of foods but

that you are also getting enough other essential nutrients (like D and

magnesium) to utilize the calcium. the ratio of calcium to other nutrients

is also very important. you can take all the supplements you want and try

as hard as you can to get calcium in your diet, but if you're not getting

plenty of sunlight, the calcium is basically useless (and D deficiency is

pretty serious as well - most veggie forms of D are not usable by the body,

so it's REALLY important that you expose yourself to direct sunlight for

about 20 minutes a day - without sunblock, which can reduce D absorption by

95%).

 

b12 is a microbe found in the soil. animals get it from eating plant foods

or it is supplemented in their diets. it becomes concentrated in animal

foods and that's how most people get it in their diets. the primary problem

for veg*ns with b12 is not that they don't eat animal foods, but rather that

our food is so sterilized that we can't depend on a bit of dirt on our

carrots or spinach to provide us with that nutrient. b12 is extremely

important in the body, essential for almost all systems and chemical

reactions to work, but unfortunately for many veg*ns a deficiency can be

masked by adequate folic acid intake. a deficiency of b12 is a serious

issue; the neurological effects are wide-ranging and often irreversible.

this is the only supplement i absolutely insist on in my family's diet.

most b12, whether naturally occurring or added (such as that found in

soymilk, seaweed and other common veg foods) is an analog - it's not usable

by the body and in fact may supplant usable b12 and prevent uptake of b12 by

the body. many people have problems digesting b12, whether they are veg or

not, because of bowel issues or problems with intrinsic factor (a protein

made in the gut to digest b12). so pernicious anemia is certainly not

selective to veg*ns. problems with b12 become more prevalent as a person

ages and their digestion becomes less efficient. just as important as

consumption of b12 is absorption and utilization. some foods, such as

tempeh and sprouts, and especially cultured foods, do contain some usable

b12, but they should not be depended on to fulfill our requirements. the

best way to get b12 is either by injection 3-4 times a year (which can be

done at home), or a daily sublingual tablet.

 

combining foods in a single meal is not necessary. getting a varied diet

throughout the diet is sufficient to create whole proteins and fulfill

nutrient needs.

 

chandelle

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I can relate the the worry - but the steps you are taking to feed him

vegan whole foods are so much more nutritious. We also have our

first child and every once in a while, I worry if he is eating enough

food, but I also think kids are so much more in tune with their

bodies needs than we are. My son has always been fed on cue,

whenever he seems hungry. And if he doesn't want something, he

doesn't have to eat it. That being said, I only offer him fruits,

veggies, legumes and grains, so if he decides not to eat brown rice

some night, that is okay - he gets sweet potatoes or broccoli that

night. It's not like he is offered vegan junk food if he doesn't

want to eat his dinner. As far as combinations, are you referring

to the old way of combining whole grains with legumes, etc? If you

are, then that is no longer generally accepted information. If you

are talking about in general, just make sure you feed/offer your

toddler a variety of foods and he will get the nutrients he needs.

My husband has the same worries when he makes dinner for our son. I

gave him the guideline of putting at least 3 colors on the plate. I

don't care what foods they are, just as long as there are 3 different

colors. It seems to help DH when prepping meals now, rather than

telling him make sure you give him something high in this nutrient or

that nutrient. Do you feed your son any fortified veggie milks -

rice, soy, almond, hemp, etc? Most of those are fortified with

enough B12, D2, Calcium, etc that you shouldn't need to supplement.

There is also a lot of iron in foods that we just don't even realize

is there. Since you no longer are feeding him any animal protein,

his body will be able to better absorb the iron.

 

I also don't worry too much about about the nutrients because of my

own experiences. I used to be anemic as a child (growing up on the

SAD diet) and once I became vegetarian, I was no longer anemic. I

also had my bone density tested when I became vegan, and then 4 years

later (because my mom was so worried about my calcium intake) and my

bone density was actually better 4 years later.

 

If you are still worried, there is a website called calorieking.com

that shows you nutrition facts based on portion size. I send DH to

the site when he worries about a food I am giving our son - like kale

(http://www.calorieking.com/foods/calories-in-vegetables-fresh-kale-

raw-edible-portion_f-

Y2lkPTE0Nzc1JmJpZD0xJmZpZD03MDg3MCZlaWQ9MjcxNTc0Njc1JnBvcz0xJnBhcj0ma2V5

PWthbGU.html)

 

You are being a good mommy by worrying - that's what we are supposed

to do Just remember you are doing the best for your little one.

 

~Susan

 

 

On Apr 25, 2008, at 12:22 AM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

 

> Thanks Susan and friends for the information

> Well what I am worry about my toddler's diet is if I am giving him

> the nutrients that he should get daily. I am talking about Ca, B12,

> Iron, etc. I like to cook from scratch and I do prepared organic

> stuff but, I would like to know much more about the right

> combinations of fruits, grains, vegetables, etc. for my toddler's

> meal times, so I can have peace in my mind that I am giving him the

> daily nutrients that he needs.

> I do not know, maybe because he is my first child I am getting

> worried a little to much..

> Rebeca

>

> Susan Williams <virgo.vegan wrote: Rebeca,

> One of my favorite resources is vegfamily.com - they have a monthly

> newsletter that we to but you can just go to the site and

> check it out. As far as cookbooks, I would recommend the Joy of

> Vegan Baking and Veganomicon - both have great recipes and are very

> kid friendly too.

>

> As far as how to feed a vegan toddler, baby, children, etc - check

> out vegfamily for specific questions - there is also a VeganParenting

> VeganParenting/. Also, a

> great book is Joel Fuhrman's Disease Proof Your Child. I think we

> all have been inundated with so much mainstream hype about not

> getting enough nutrition on a veg diet, that we all feel this is

> something to worry about. Make sure that if you are eating any

> refined foods now, that you replace them with whole grain products.

> Brown Rice pasta instead of white pasta, brown rice instead of white

> rice, whole wheat bread instead of white, etc. Then just make sure

> you get various whole foods into your diet, and there is nothing to

> worry about. Creating a balanced vegan meal made from whole foods is

> very easy. When my husband cooks, I tell him to make sure there are

> at least 3 colors on the plate and that seemed to help him. Is there

> something particular you are worried about with your toddler?

>

> HTH

>

> ~Susan

>

> On Apr 23, 2008, at 5:46 PM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

>

> > Thanks friends for helping me with the information about soy milk

> > and multivitimins. This is really a great group!!! As you guys know

> > my family is kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are committed,

> > so..Could you please let me know about any books or websites that

> > any of you use or trust regarding to " how to feed well a vegan

> > toddler, children and in general a vegan person? nutrition, balance

> > diet, examples of diets etc.

> > thank you so much

> >

> > Rebeca

>

>

[Guest guest]

, Rebeca Llasaca <rllasaca wrote:

maybe because he is my first child I am getting worried a little to

much..

> Rebeca

>

>

LOL! I'm on baby #9, and I still worry! I think that's just a " mom

thing " . But were I to TAKE advice as wll as I GIVE it, I'd be okay,

because what I want to say is NOT TO WORRY! Parents and kids survived

quite nicely since time began without charts and graphs for daily

nutrient intake. If a child has special needs, that's a different

issue. But for a normally developing, healthy child, my own advice

would be to simply offer a wide variety of fruits, veggies, grains (if

used), nuts and seeds (as tolerated), and soy products (if used). Then

let your CHILD decide how much and when and what to eat.

 

No matter what he decided to do with food, if you offer him a healthy

vegan/vegetarian diet, you can rest assured he's getting a MUCH better

quality diet than all of the SAD-eating kids out there whose parents

feed them fast food, packaged meals, and Kool-Aid! Marilyn

[Guest guest]

Someone said that if you don't eat meat, you will absorb plant-based iron

better? I'm very interested in this and wonder where you learned this, where I

can find out more about this. I haven't fully transitioned into being vegan

because I'm trying to learn more first in order to make sure that my family has

a well-rounded diet--rather than starting off with simply restricting our diets.

We are not entirely vegetarian yet either, but mostly vegetarian I would say.

For me--making the transition to veganism is actually about expanding our eating

options. I find that it's very easy to fall into the trap of eating habbits

controlled by upbringing and the processed food/grocery store market--and I

don't want to do this. So, anyway--in order to be on the safe side I've been

considering being mostly vegan--like for 90% of our diet, but consuming organic

red meat once per month, and fish once per week. My dad said, from talking to

his vegetarian friends, that the biggest issue with this would be our

poops--that it would be harder for our bodies to digest the meat when we ate so

little of it. But, like I said, I'm really interested in learning how the meat

might prevents our absorption of plant nutrients--in particular iron and b12!

Thanks,

Hannah

 

 

: rllasaca: Thu, 24 Apr 2008

21:22:56 -0700Re: vegan diet information

 

 

 

 

Thanks Susan and friends for the information Well what I am worry about my

toddler's diet is if I am giving him the nutrients that he should get daily. I

am talking about Ca, B12, Iron, etc. I like to cook from scratch and I do

prepared organic stuff but, I would like to know much more about the right

combinations of fruits, grains, vegetables, etc. for my toddler's meal times, so

I can have peace in my mind that I am giving him the daily nutrients that he

needs. I do not know, maybe because he is my first child I am getting worried a

little to much..RebecaSusan Williams <virgo.vegan wrote: Rebeca,One

of my favorite resources is vegfamily.com - they have a monthly newsletter that

we to but you can just go to the site and check it out. As far as

cookbooks, I would recommend the Joy of Vegan Baking and Veganomicon - both have

great recipes and are very kid friendly too.As far as how to feed a vegan

toddler, baby, children, etc - check out vegfamily for specific questions -

there is also a VeganParenting

VeganParenting/. Also, a great book is Joel

Fuhrman's Disease Proof Your Child. I think we all have been inundated with so

much mainstream hype about not getting enough nutrition on a veg diet, that we

all feel this is something to worry about. Make sure that if you are eating any

refined foods now, that you replace them with whole grain products. Brown Rice

pasta instead of white pasta, brown rice instead of white rice, whole wheat

bread instead of white, etc. Then just make sure you get various whole foods

into your diet, and there is nothing to worry about. Creating a balanced vegan

meal made from whole foods is very easy. When my husband cooks, I tell him to

make sure there are at least 3 colors on the plate and that seemed to help him.

Is there something particular you are worried about with your

toddler?HTH~SusanOn Apr 23, 2008, at 5:46 PM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:> Thanks

friends for helping me with the information about soy milk > and multivitimins.

This is really a great group!!! As you guys know > my family is kind of knew in

the vegan diet but we are committed, > so..Could you please let me know about

any books or websites that > any of you use or trust regarding to " how to feed

well a vegan > toddler, children and in general a vegan person? nutrition,

balance > diet, examples of diets etc.> thank you so much>> Rebeca[Non-text

portions of this message have been removed]Be a

better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it

now.

[Guest guest]

Hi Rebeca!

Welcome to the world of Veganism! It's a lot of fun learning new recipes

and ways to cook. I really like the Vegan Coach website by Patty Knutson.

She has a lot of info. about vegan nutrition and vegan cooking. I LOVE her

cooking guides! She tells about how to choose the veggies in the store, and

how to cook each one about 4 different ways and she has flavor matches that

list ingredients that go well with that particular veggie. I've been using

it a lot lately and have been able to make my own dishes with her tips.

http://www.vegancoach.com/

Have fun!

Elizabeth

 

On Wed, Apr 23, 2008 at 4:46 PM, Rebeca Llasaca <rllasaca wrote:

 

> Thanks friends for helping me with the information about soy milk and

> multivitimins. This is really a great group!!! As you guys know my family is

> kind of knew in the vegan diet but we are committed, so..Could you please

> let me know about any books or websites that any of you use or trust

> regarding to " how to feed well a vegan toddler, children and in general a

> vegan person? nutrition, balance diet, examples of diets etc.

> thank you so much

>

> Rebeca

>

> Susan Williams <virgo.vegan <virgo.vegan%40gmail.com>> wrote:

> Rebeca,

> You are welcome for the information. This is a great group of

> parents that are very informed and always have great information.

>

> We don't give our son any multi vitamins because he is on a whole

> foods diet and still breastfeeding. Even once he stops BFing, I

> doubt he will go on a multivitamin - I can't see what he would be

> missing in his diet that a vitamin can give him. Make sure he gets

> plenty of superfoods (walnuts, kale, blueberries, flax, etc) and if

> you have to put them in a smoothie. My 13 mos drinks a leaf of kale

> a day in a smoothie. Yesterday, while I was tearing up the kale to

> put in the blender, he reached out and grabbed a chunk and just

> starting chewing on it LOL.

>

> As far as the hemp milk, my 13 mos old has been drinking it since he

> was 11 mos. DH does not like soy milk, so I thought let's try this.

> DS loves it - sometimes will pass up any other food for it. DH and I

> are still trying to get used to the taste - it is a strong earth

> nutty flavor unlike anything else, but it is really starting to grow

> on me now.

>

> ~Susan

>

> On Apr 23, 2008, at 1:03 AM, Rebeca Llasaca wrote:

>

> > s it OK to give my toddler of 19 months old multivitamins? Well my

> > pediatrician knows that we were vegetarians and now vegans, so she

> > recommended the multivitamins for mi son, well I just want to be

> > sure if it is OK. Hey Susan thanks for the information about hemp

> > milk, can I give it to my toddler too?

>

>

[Guest guest]

Your body will absorb iron better when eating foods rich in Vitamin C. You can

learn more

about veg*n nutrition from sites like vrg.org or pcrm.org.

Here is something from vrg about iron.

http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/iron.htm

 

I can also attest to iron absorption - I used to be anemic until I became veg*n.

Even

through my vegan pregnancy, my iron tested very high - no one could believe I

was a

vegan because I guess most women on a SAD diet are anemic during pregnancy.

 

HTH,

Susan

 

, Hannah White <hannah_lulu wrote:

>

>

> Someone said that if you don't eat meat, you will absorb plant-based iron

better? I'm

very interested in this and wonder where you learned this, where I can find out

more about

this.

[Guest guest]

Iron absorption can be added by germanium.

Laura

 

 

 

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