Vegan diet for 6 month old?

[Kylie A]

Hi everyone!

I'm seriously thinking about raising my child on a vegan diet after reading various books about the amazing benefits. But already I'm starting to think that I may struggle with the amount of time I need to prepare all of the food at home.

Before I go full steam ahead with this, are there any other challenges I might encounter by raising my child on a vegan diet?

Trust me, ALL info will be much appreciated!!! :confused:

[Bowwowmeow]

Hi Kylie! Welcome. :)

We have had some vegan mums here, but they haven't been around. I'll email a couple and see what they have to say. I know one is busy because she is expecting. Another had to leave on account of a stalker problem.

Meanwhile, I believe the book "Becoming Vegan" has a chapter on raising vegan children. You could also check the website www.vegantwins.com. I think there is an email link to contact her somewhere on that site.

A blender would be a necessity I would assume, but I am sure there are plenty of jarred baby foods that are accidentally vegan, for when your baby starts on solid foods. Use plenty of greens for calcium and protein. They make great blended smoothies when pureed with sweet fruits like bananas, believe it or not.

[Gliondrach]

Hello Kylie. :wave:

I've known some local people with vegan babies. They never mentioned that it was more time consuming than with non-vegan babies.

The Vegan Twins' first set of twins, Sarah and Ben celebrated their 6th birthday last week. And her second set of twins, Grace and Isaiah who were born in December, had their photographs featured on promotional material handed out at the conference for the International Lactation Consultant Association.

I don't know if you live in the UK but in an old Vegan Shopper book from 2000, they list baby foods by Heinz, Sainsbury, Original Fresh Baby Company, HIPP, Woods, and Baby Organix. They all have various sweet and savoury dishes. Things are probably even better now. The US, Europe, Oz, NZ and other countries will have similar.

[ChenLi]

My friends baby is about 9 months old...she's fed on a diet of soy yoghurt, rusk, blended fruit and veg, blended food from the adults dinner, etc. She also has heinz soy formula which is vegan society approved...I think around 6 months old she was just on the heinz soy formula after being weaned, I'm not sure when they started giving mushed up fruit/veg/etc.

[gabbles]

Hello Kylie :wave:

[Vinnie]

Welcome to the Saucy Vegan Kylie.

[Stormy]

Sorry I haven't been on for ages but loads of things happening...moving home again... and I am due with my third vegan baby so just waiting now as today is my due date hehehe

Anyway, I have raised both my boys vegan since the day they were concieved and it is in my opinion far easier than having to cook meat and avoid certain foods they aren't advised to eat at certain ages.... furthermore they say not to feed anything but a vegan/veggie diet in the early months of weaning anyway. The main thing is that your vegan child gets enough irons, calcuim and vitamins, like anybody really. And that includes good food combinations that helps them absorb what they need from their food into their body ...

If you child isn't keep on veggies to start with keep persisiting they will get their in the end, and mix them with foods they do like, as at a young age it doesn't matter how food is mixed as such as long as they eat it .... but they will more than likely eat loads of fruit... make sure you either continue breast feeding or find a suitable soya milk with added calcuim etc for them to have. As they get older in months you can mix red lentils with veg or fruit too then they get iron and calcuim. Prunes are good too.

I used to make a batch of veggies and lentils (pureed to start and then let them get chunkier more they could chew) and freeze them in ice cube trays or little food containers and take one out when I needed it, and I did this with alsorts of different foods really but that lentil veggie mix went down well with my boys :)

Also Baby organix http://www.organix.com/?gclid=CPnv2LOvp6ICFRyX2AodgX-_SA do a good range of foods you can use too. I did with both my boys as well as make my own food for them. Alot of their foods were vegan for the early months, which I hope they still are when it comes to weaning my next child. And I fed both my boys only organic food for at least the first year of their lives.

Later on when they are toddlers, you can buy them bars packed with iron enriched seeds and fruits from the health food shops, which my children have grown up on.... then there is yeast extract, the different vegan pates, humous, brown bread etc... all iron/calcuim enriched foods.

Both my boys have been fussy here and there but it hasn'r stopped them growing up into two healthy children :) The other day they both had a dentist checkup - the 2nd for my eldest at 11 (first time being when he was about 4) and the first time for my 4 yr old and the dentist said their teeth were brilliant and a credit to them :)

Anyway, there is a good book called Rose Elliot's Mother, Baby and Toddler Book: A Unique Guide to Raising a Baby on a Healthy Vegetarian Diet http://www.play.com/Books/Books/4-/409626/Rose-Elliot-Mother-Baby-and-Toddler-Book/Product.html?_$ja=tsid:11518|cc:|prd:409626|cat:Bo oks+%3E+Food+%26+Drink I used it to start with when I had my first lad, and you can adapt for veganism where it is veggie.

My boys are healthy above average in size and very intelligent children (OK I am biased) but they haven't had any health problems - no allergies or serious illnesses, with a vegan diet from the day they were born, and they have never had vaccinations either (an informed choice) I couldn't advocate a vegan diet for children more.

And now I am going to be doing it all over again :)

[Gliondrach]

:yea: Stormy's back. And with excellent advice.

Good luck to you and the new vegan you'll soon be bringing into the world, Stormy. :infant: :hug:

[Bowwowmeow]

Sorry I haven't been on for ages but loads of things happening...moving home again... and I am due with my third vegan baby so just waiting now as today is my due date hehehe

Wow! You have my best wishes! :colors:

[gabbles]

Good luck to you and the baby Stormy.

[Stormy]

Thanks lovely lovely vegan friends xxxx I will let you know when baby has landed :)

[Gliondrach]

Stormbaby is keeping us waiting. :excited:

[LetsEat]

The local Le Leche League may be of some help whether or not you nursed up till this point. They still have good info. Sometimes local groups may be biased, there are all kinds of groups (mine was hateful fundamentalist) so it's not 100 percent But our group did have a good library.