Veggie health for kids

Obesity in children is an epidemic" screamed the headlines recently, reporting that more than a quarter of under 11s carry more fat than they should. A frighteningly large number of children suffer ill health because of obesity. Adult diseases such as high blood pressure, raised cholesterol levels and type 2 diabetes are appearing in younger and younger people and the problem is getting worse.

In his bestselling book, Dr Spock's Baby and Child Care, paediatrician Dr Benjamin Spock reckoned the way to get children to lose weight is to change the type of food they eat, rather than the amount. He encouraged shifting the entire family away from oily fried foods, meats and dairy products and towards low-fat, plant-based foods - grains, pasta, vegetables, pulses and fruit. When this is done, he said: "Weight loss typically occurs without anyone going hungry."

Some parents have reservations about whether their children will get enough nutrients from a plant-based diet. Thankfully, this is unfounded. Veggie kids have a tremendous advantage. Not only are they less likely to develop weight problems but their risk of diabetes, high blood pressure, and some forms of cancer are cut, too.

An early review of the literature on vegetarian diets and children was published in 1988 in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. It found that infants who are breast-fed by women eating balanced veggie diets thrive in early infancy. What's more, appropriate veggie diets adequately support each phase of growth in children, and (where they are low in total and saturated fats) help cut the risks associated with high blood fat levels and also help children maintain their ideal body weight.

More recently, research in the Journal of Pediatric Health Care suggests that veggie kids and teenagers consume more fruit, vegetables and fibre than their nonveggie counterparts. Vegetarian children are also leaner, says the report, take in less harmful cholesterol, saturated fat and total fat and have less risk of developing several chronic diseases in adulthood.

So sound is the science that the authors encourage nurses to: ".reassure parents, children and adolescents that a well-planned vegetarian diet is a healthy choice that promotes growth and decreases the risk for diabetes, heart disease and cancer." Amanda Woodvine, VVF senior nutritionist
 

"Finn and Jazz have been vegan since birth because I wanted to give them the best start and encourage compassion. They are vivacious, healthy boys with a love of life - all life (except spiders - I'm working on that!)." Juliet Gellatley, founder and director of Viva!

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