Should my little girls be Vegan too?

Although I don't have children yet, I have had many discussions about this with my husband. My children will be vegan until they are old enough to decide for themselves. I will be honest when they ask why their diet is different to their fathers. I wish my parents had told me when I was a child the truth behind the animal product industries, I wish that hadn't been forced upon me, although I don't harbour negative feelings towards them, they are just products of a brainwashed society.

Thanks for your reply. Has anyone seen anything to suggest that this diet can negatively affect their health? I have not found anything to reliably suggest that it is dangerous yet.

I would have them on a vegan diet providing that they are getting all their daily requirements etc and then when they are old enough they will be able to make an informed decision on whether it's the right decision for them or not.  

Never...

As long as you do your research and plan their diet, making sure they get everything they need (especially omega 3s, B vitamins etc for brain development) it's healthy. But I do stress *research* and mean it to include vegan doctors who specialise in raising vegan kids.

"hooked on sugar and love their sausage rolls and pies" ?? At two years old?  .....if you are wondering about the negative health effects of feeding kids  a vegan diet, you should also be wondering about the negative health effects of feeding kids food like that. Also, it is not "too late" at 2 years old. They are not going to suffer painful withdrawals from meat products hehehe. If people can switch to a vegan diet in their old age, then how easy it would be for a child.

I was having a conversation with my boyfriend recently about this topic. I would absolutely only feed my hypothetical child vegan food, as that is what is best for their health. However, when it comes to the social aspects, I wouldn't tell them they can't eat their friend's party food and things like that. They could make up their own mind in those situations- that way you'd never be blamed for 'forcing them' to do anything or forcing them to be 'different to all the other kids'. I do resent the fact that my parents raised me on such unhealthy animal-foods (not that they knew any better). It affected my health and my brain tremendously throughout school.

i have a little girl turning 6 in september....i have been seperated/divorced for 4 and a half years..when she is with me she does eat a vegie life style and when with her mother she does eat some meat, but lately she has decided that she doesnt like sausage rolls and she has said that she doesnt want to eat animals..so i guess i believe that they should eat what u eat and if they eat meat when with their mother ,just educate them as they grow on that eatting animals is cruel to their welbeing and as they get older let them decide for themselves, but never think u r depriving them from anything u are giving them a very healthy life style which they will thanku when their older and will respect u even more

Your girlfriend sounds like she gets it! That's great.
Although I have to admit I don't think they'd be addicted to eating meat, and I'm with Aimee, I don't think they'd suffer withdrawals.

If you think they really couldn't go without sausage rolls - just swap the unhealthy animal ones (or the "lips, noses and bum rolls" as a friend calls them!) with the Linda McCartney sausage rolls - they are vegan and I guarantee you, your kids will not know the difference!

when I say "addicted" to eating meat. I'm referring to people who love the taste of meat so much that even though they acknowledge it's wrong they can't seem to quit and go without that taste. I do know some people like this and given they know its wrong, want to stop but can't I would consider it an addiction (albeit psychological).

Thanks for your responses.

Just the fact that you would be watching what your child eats would probably speak volumes to the healthiness of it. Most junk food isn't vegan and is a staple in most children's diets these days. If they are getting a good dose of veges/fruit and beans/pulses/legumes their diets would be perfect. The only vitamin that vegans may develope a deficiency in is b12 but even then any person who loves Vegemite has nothing to worry about. There is heaps of research out there to support a vegan diet from pregnancy, through to adulthood. Perhaps google it so you can have all the facts at your fingertips.