The Complete Idiot's Guide to Vegan Eating for Kids - M.s.j., Dana Villamagna [47]
Bottom line: vegan kids in industrialized countries are no more likely to have a protein deficiency than omnivorous kids. Kids at risk of protein deficiencies are those whose parents are severely impoverished or who follow fad diets.
Good vegan sources of protein include these:
◆ Meat analogs
◆ Nuts and nut butters
◆ Seeds
◆ Tofu and other soy products
Avoid using rice milk exclusively for your kids’ main drink. It’s the poorest protein source among plant-based milk options.
DHA/Omega-3
There are few outward signs of omega-3 fatty acid/DHA deficiency. A lack of DHA may contribute to poor retinal development in infancy. Long-term health problems such as cancers and memory and mood disorders are associated with all omega-3 deficiencies, not just DHA. In kids, dry skin, behavioral problems, learning delays, and recurrent illness such as respiratory infections and colds can signal a deficiency in omega-3s. Omega-3s, including DHA, are essential to the overall health and well-being of you and your child.
Good sources of omega-3s are these:
◆ Flaxseeds
◆ Olive oil
◆ Walnuts
That’s So Vegan
Vegan algae-sourced DHA brands for kids include Solaray, Deva, Thorne, VegLife, Dr. Fuhrman’s DHA Purity, and Source Naturals.
That said, those sources of omega-3s are not as optimal as DHA and need to be limited to ensure a proper ratio of omega-3s in your child’s diet (see Chapter 4). Only fish and algae-sourced supplements are direct sources of DHA. Many child behavior experts now recommend providing all children with a DHA supplement.
Calories
When a child has a deficiency of calories in her diet, it will show up as a low BMI (body mass index) for her age. (Find an online BMI calculator website in Appendix B.) Kids who aren’t consuming enough calories will also have low energy, dry skin, irritability, delayed puberty, and poor attention.
Good sources of calories include the following:
◆ Avocadoes
◆ Bananas
◆ Meat analogs
◆ Nuts and nut butters
◆ Potatoes
◆ Soy and nut milks
◆ Whole grains
Bottom-Line Nutrition
Keeping track of how much vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients your vegan child needs at various ages and stages of development can be complicated and sometimes confusing. To help sort it all out, use the following handy table to view at a glance all the recommended daily allowances for nutrients especially important in the diets of vegan children.
Important Recommended Daily Nutrients
Parent Trap
A note about raw diets: according to the American Dietetic Association and Dieticians of Canada, fruitarian and completely raw diets cannot be recommended for infants and children because they have been associated with impaired growth. Kids should enjoy many healthy raw foods along with cooked foods as part of an overall balanced vegan diet.
Working With Your Health-Care Provider
If something isn’t working in your child’s diet or she otherwise just isn’t up to her usual state of health, see her doctor as soon as possible. Hopefully, you’ve established a good relationship with your health-care provider (see Chapter 6 for tips on that) and he or she will be ready to work with you knowing your child’s health history and your family’s dietary choices.
If you don’t have an established health-care provider and your child has a suspected diet-related health problem, it’s a roll of the dice what kind of reaction you’ll get when you tell a physician new to your family that your child’s vegan. Try to find a veg-friendly physician by word of mouth, either through other vegan families, your local health food store, or by calling clinics and asking some questions.
Most importantly, don’t lie about your child’s diet.A complete health history gives the doctor