What should my child eat if she becomes vegetarian?

RealAge

Educating yourself and your child about this new way of eating will ensure that nutritional needs are being met. I’m not saying it will be easy. You must pay careful attention to providing alternatives for foods that have been eliminated from the diet. Just be sure that the vegetarian in your family is getting enough of the vital nutrients she needs for overall health.

The major concern with avoiding animal products is the loss of protein. However, by pairing certain foods, your child can get the equivalent protein that is found in meat. For instance, combining vegetables or legumes (e.g., beans, lentils) and grains, beans with seeds, and dairy products with grains can provide a complete protein. Eggs also contain protein and iron, but you should not rely on them exclusively for those nutrients.

If your child eliminates all animal products from her diet, including milk, eggs and cheese, encourage her to eat a variety of fresh, dark green veggies for iron, B vitamins and other minerals, and drink soy milk with added vitamin B12 and calcium. Soy- and vegetable-based meat alternatives are widely available, even at your local grocery, so stock your freezer with these healthy protein sources.

From Good Kids, Bad Habits: The RealAge Guide to Raising Healthy Children by Jennifer Trachtenberg.

More About this Book

Good Kids, Bad Habits: The RealAge Guide to Raising Healthy Children

When kids start going on TV binges or devouring fistfuls of cookies, it's easy to say, "They'll grow out of it." More likely, they're acquiring bad habits that could lead to childhood obesity and...

Vandana R. Sheth on behalf of Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

Nutrition & Dietetics

A vegetarian diet follows the same nutritional guidelines as one that includes animal products. The main difference being that you switch out the animal protein sources for plant proteins. You can use the USDA's "choose my plate" icon as a visual tool to ensure appropriate foods and portions to adequately meet her nutritional needs, the key difference being that you substitute the lean protein choices for plant-based proteins (beans, lentils, tofu, etc.), and dairy for dairy alternatives (soy milk, almond milk, etc.) if following a vegan diet. A healthy vegetarian diet is one that includes whole grains such as brown rice, whole grain bread, quinoa, etc., beans, lentils, soy, nuts, seeds, low fat/non-fat dairy or dairy alternatives, colorful fruits and vegetables. Consider consulting with a dietitian to ensure your child is meeting her nutritional needs on a vegetarian diet.

Continue Learning about Vegetarian Diets

Where to Find the Best Plant-Based Proteins

You don’t have to be a vegetarian (over 7 million folks in America are) to want to increase your intake of plant-based protein. But, it’s a great idea...

Audrey Quick , NASM Elite Trainer

There are lots of reasons people choose a vegetarian or vegan diet. I became a vegetarian in college...

5 Unexpected Reasons to Adopt a Plant-Based Diet

Better digestion, lower heart disease risks and other surprising reasons to eat more fruits and veggies.

Important: This content reflects information from various individuals and organizations and may offer alternative or opposing points of view. It should not be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. As always, you should consult with your healthcare provider about your specific health needs.

Vegetarian Diets

When you look at vegetarian diets, it's hard to do so without understanding that many of the practitioners believe that it is not only healthful, but more to practice vegetarianism. This is true even if the diet may include occasional meats or fish as in the Macrobiotic diet with it's Zen beliefs, or the Indian Ayurvedic diet, which finds milk and dairy central to good health along with plants. Anyone considering a vegetarian diet should learn about the food values of different vegetables, and consider getting advice on whether or not to supplement the diet with vitamins and minerals, particularly if you have special nutritional needs like growing children or pregnant or lactating women.

Learn More