Vegetarian and Vegan Diet – Is it Good for Children?

Vegetarian diet (based on avoiding meat) has long been fashionable among many people in the world, and veganism (avoiding any kind of animal product, including dairy products) enjoys a quick growth rate in recent years. Parents who support either way of life sometimes aspire to bring up their children in the same fashion, and both vegetarian diet and veganism often become trendy among teenagers. Questions regarding the nutritional implications for vegetarian and vegan children often come up, and this article attempts to address some of them.

Is veganism good for children?

It’s hard to imagine most kids embracing a strict vegan diet by choice, but according to an article by dietician Timi Gustafson, veganism is becoming a more popular lifestyle among adults - many of whom wish to pass on the no animal product diet to their children. Stricter than traditional vegetarianism, such a diet excludes all animals (including fish) as well as any animal byproducts, such as eggs and dairy.