The Vegetarian Resource Group of Tucson
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The Vegetarian Resource Group of Tucson |
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By Deborah Mitchell One area of vegetarianism and veganism that is often a platform for debate is the safety and feasibility of such a lifestyle for children. Whether you have children and would like to raise them vegetarian, you are trying to bring up your children vegetarian and are having some difficulties, or they've successfully maneuvered the transition, read on! Although many health-care professionals have demonstrated the health advantages of such a dietary choice, the May 1998 book by Dr. Benjamin Spock, Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care, in which he recommends a vegan diet for children, prompted much discussion about its scientific validity. One publication that came out of the debates was compiled by the Physicians for Responsible Medicine, authored by Neal Barnard, MD, Virginia Messina, MPH, RD, and several others. In that report, the authors explained the long-term health benefits of a vegetarian diet when compared with a non-vegetarian diet, including lower prevalence of hypertension (one-third to one-half lower), reduced cholesterol levels, lower rates of cancer (25 to 50% lower), and lower prevalent of obesity, among other benefits. Yet the primary concern of parents is usually whether a plant-based diet will adequately meet their children's nutritional needs. Obviously Dr. Spock thinks so, as do many other physicians, as well as one of the most mainstream health organizations in American--the American Dietetic Association. Their latest position paper on vegetarian diets says "Appropriately planned vegan and lacto-ovo-vegetarian diets satisfy nutrient needs of infants, children, and adolescents and promote normal growth." One study of developmental tests in vegetarian children showed that their mental age was more than a year beyond their chronological age, and their mean IQ scores were well above average. (1) ______________________________________ 1.Dwyer JT, Miller LG, Arduino NL, et al. Mental age and I.Q. of predominately vegetarian children. J Am Dietetic Assoc 1980;76:142-7. |
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