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Are vegans bad parents?

Posted on Jun 28th 2007 9:30PM by Maggie Vink

Filed Under: Healthy Kids, Nutrition & Supplements

Divorce and custody battles can get ugly. Take this case in Florida where a father is suing for custody of his 10-year old quintuplets. One reason the father cites is that the children's mother is a strict vegan and keeps her children on a vegan diet as well.

I don't know enough about the case to form an opinion about custody one way or the other; that's up to the parents and the courts. I don't know how strict the mother's rules are and whether or not the father's complaints are valid. But it was surprising to read that a vegan diet is being included in a custody argument. I'm not vegetarian nor vegan. But when did being a vegan become criteria for good or bad parenting? As long as plenty of protein is still included, a vegan diet can be healthy for kids. (Vegan sources of protein include soy milk, beans, tofu, and peanut butter.) What do you think?

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Tags: custody battle, CustodyBattle, healthy kids, HealthyKids, parenting, vegan, vegetarian

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

clairity 6-29-2007 @ 8:12AM

I think that veganism should be a choice for the child when they are old enough to know what they want to eat. I think if a person is well informed and checks with a doctor regularly, a vegan diet could be ok for children. But the lifestyle of a vegan is difficult and takes a great deal of time and effort with cooking, vitamins, etc. I think the child should have a choice as to whether or not they want to live as a vegan or just do it at home to appease the parent(s). I think if can be very dangerous to children if the parents don't know that children have different needs than parents, and in general would probably be against children as vegans.

Jessica 6-29-2007 @ 8:12AM

I don't know a whole lot about the vegan diet in regards to children's nutritional needs, but this article reminds me of a similar piece I read not long ago about how two new parents managed to kill their newborn baby by feeding him only soymilk. It's challenge enough to make sure your kids are getting enough nutrients with access to meat and dairy products, I can only imagine how much effort and knowledge it would require to meet those needs without these valuable food resources. If these childrens' mother isn't an expert on nutrition, I can understand how their health could easily start to suffer.

John M 6-29-2007 @ 8:11AM

"As long as plenty of protein is still included, a vegan diet can be healthy for kids."

Apart from the fact that they are lower in the calcium absolutely ESSENTIAL for the bone development of children.

Jo 6-29-2007 @ 8:11AM

Calcium is available in plentiful amounts from sources other than dairy - broccoli for example. There have been studies which show that milk actually leeches calcium from our system. Osteoporosis is virtually unheard of in parts of the world where dairy is small or non-existent part of the diet.

Maggie 6-29-2007 @ 8:22AM

Good points everyone! I think John's point about calcium is particularly important. Being a vegan requires a lot of planning and thought to make sure your (and your child's) body is getting all of the essential nutrients it needs. Jo is correct in saying that there are a lot of other sources of calcium besides dairy. While it's not specific to a vegan diet, the following post I wrote contains information about alternate sources of calcium. http://www.thatsfit.com/2007/05/12/powerful-girls-building-bone-health-early/

nick 6-29-2007 @ 1:43PM

I used to be a vegetarian, and I knew a lot of people who got into being vegans, because they were extremely obsessed with food. A few vegans I knew were actually anorexic and had extreme limits on their caloric intake. One woman I knew would go out dining, only to get nothing since she couldn't be sure if there were animal products in the food or not. If this mother were a vegan for these reasons then veganism would not be a good choice for her children, but if she is giving her children a healthy balanced diet I would have no problems with her feeding them a vegan diet.

shanflan1 6-29-2007 @ 4:17PM

I am a vegan, and was raised that way. my parents started me as a vegan as a child, but when i became older, I was told that i could eat whatever i chose. I decided to stay vegan (my brother did not.) I have never had any health problems due to my vegan lifestyle, and to say that we do not get enough calcium is completely naive. Many sources of food have MUCH more calcium than milk. It is about eating a balanced nutritious diet. And for the record, the vegans that are "restrictive in their calories, etc." would be obsessive no matter WHAT diet they followed - that's called an eating disorder - not veganism.

PS - my brother has since gone back to a vegan diet because he felt lethargic and cranky on a standard diet.

Carrie 7-02-2007 @ 7:52PM

I'm certainly no expert on the vegan diet, but from what I've heard, it's not something for kids. Children need a lot of nutrients and vitamins that adults don't necessarily need, or need as much of, and I don't know that it can happen on the vegan diet. I was raised on a cattle farm and ate meat all the time. When I got old enough, I decided to become a vegetarian (due to the fact that I didn't like the flavor(s) of the meat and other things) and I'm a healthy adult now. It does take a great amount of work. I think if the children were on a vegetarian diet, it'd be alright under the supervision of their pediatrician. However, I think the vegan diet is probably taking things a little too far at this point in their lives!