Last year my then 16-year-old cousin came home from school and announced to the family that he was becoming a vegetarian (never mind that he had just started working at a pizza parlor famous for their meat-lovers pie). My aunt was a bit taken aback by his declaration, but together they designed a menu with options that worked for both of them (she cooks all the meals for their family of eight).
Personally, I was shocked by the announcement. After all, this was a kid who inhaled hot dogs for the first half of his life—now he was trading it all in for soft tofu and rice? Strange… or, perhaps not. According to the American Dietetic Association about 1.5 million American kids between ages 8 and 18 are now vegetarians, and that number is growing.
After hearing about my cousin’s lifestyle change I recalled a child I babysat while I was in high school also shunned meat. She was in first grade and her parents (her mother was a nutritionist and her dad an anesthesiologist) figured it was “just a phase.” While the family dined on grilled steak Maura had a protein substitute her mom brought home from work.
Frankly, if my child suddenly announced she was becoming a vegetarian I would be concerned that she wasn’t getting enough nutrients with a diet void of meat. Maura was just 6-years-old when she declared she was no longer interested in meat and 20 years later she still won’t touch the stuff. She is a healthy woman who actively promotes a vegetarian lifestyle (at least she does in her Christmas cards).
Personal anecdotes aside, dieticians with the American Dietetic Association say vegetarian kids can be just as healthy as other children. Though, they add that if your child is going to be a vegetarian you need to educate yourself on the healthy ways of fostering a meat-free diet.
Registered dieticians say there are three major steps involved in getting a healthy regime in place. The first step is to replace the meats with plant proteins–things like beans, nuts and seeds. The second step is to eat more fruits and vegetables. And the final step is to replace grains with more whole grains.
There’s no question that having a vegetarian kid can be an adjustment, especially for meat and potato loving families, but with all the protein substitutes out there, it may not be as hard as you think. On the bright side, if your child does go the vegetarian route there are a host of health benefits they may enjoy. According to the Vegetarian Society, vegetarians are less likely to suffer from diseases, including heart disease, hypertension, diabetes, and osteoporosis.
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