YES! why would i raise them in any way that i know wouldnt be the best for their wellbeing?
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YES! why would i raise them in any way that i know wouldnt be the best for their wellbeing?
Same here! My bf and I have spoken about this even though we're not sure we want to have kids. I want to raise children vegan, he doesn't think we should, esp. if they're boys, that made me laugh because it's such a stereotype that veg*ns are weak. He also compared it to religion, which is silly because we're both (non-practising) Catholics and we don't hate our parents for having us Christened, it's just what they did. And Veganism is so much more than a religion, it's a way of life and helps the child learn compassion etc.
If we do decide to I will be using what I have read online and from the book Raising Vegan Children to try and convince him it is the best thing we can do for their health. I do all the cooking and shopping, apart from his and I can't see him preparing meals for kids either.
I have a little vegan 5 year old who although proud to be vegan is going through a bit of a stage of telling she doesn't want to be vegan anymore! However when I tell her she can eat cheese and meat if she wants to she finds the idea repulsive (I knew she would which is why I said it :smile:). Hubby is a meat eater but he wants our daughter to be vegan and goes to great lengths to get her favourite vegan foods for her.
i don't want children but hypothetically there's no way i would raise them any other way than vegan. i also wouldn't want to have children with a non-vegan so there would be no potential conflict of beliefs on the subject. the problems the hypothetical child would face as a vegan though is one of the MANY reasons why i don't want to have children in the first place though.
If I had kids, I'd bring them up vegan/veggie. I'd like to say 100% vegan but my boyfriend is vegetarian (wants to be vegan) and I don't think toddlers would understand why they couldn't have things that their dad was allowed to. That said, there is no way in hell I would give a very young child cow's milk.
When they were old enough to understand, I'd find a way of talking them through the ethics.
If they wanted to eat meat at school lunches/parties etc, there's not a lot I could do about it. Their decision. I wouldn't cook meat at home if they asked for it, but I would let them decide what they did want for dinner as long as it was veggie (something I wish my parents had done a lot more when I was a kid- I HATED most of our dinners). I think that's a good compromise.
It worries me though that if we did bring up vegetarian kids, my boyfriend's mum would feed them non-vegetarian foods. If they were vegan, I can say without a shred of doubt she would try to sneak them eggs and dairy- even if they didn't ask for it- because she considers eggs and dairy very healthy. When we've discussed kids in front of her, she's been very quizzical about what I'd feed our kids, stating "you can't deprive kids of what they want"- suggesting that if a kid wants a sausage or haribo, they should be allowed to have it.
Guess I'll have to cross that bridge when I come to it!
My husband and I discussed how we finacially planned to have children the other day. He said "The other thing, I know you are vegan and everything, but I want you to talk to the doctor or whatever, to make sure our kid can get what it needs. Because F a cow when it comes to our kid."
I hope that comes acrossed as sweet as it did to me.
While I like that he thinks I am so kind hearted that I would put my life down for an animal, I told it to him straight. I told him that I might not talk to a doctor but I would absolutely speak to a dietician or nutritionist if that made him comfortable. I need to let him know that the reccomendations are for vitamins and not certain foods, I'm not sure I got that acrossed since I know that he knows that already...but it stands restating.
Anyway, who has a pamphlet that says "During your pregnancy you need extra iron. These foods contain iron:______" If you are chosing vegetarian sources be sure to combine them with foods rich in vitamin C." etc. Something offical made for all people but not specifically geared towards vegans.
Some nutritionists know very little about vegan nutrition.
If you meet one who doesn't (he/she probably won't admit it), this information may be useful:
Nutrient deficiencies more common in meat eaters than in vegans
American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada: Vegetarian diets
if/when i have kids, I'll raise them vegan. Without a doubt.
:o actually the title of this thread annoys me greatly when i see it on the forum, i can't believe it's a serious issue for vegans planning to raise children...........why would a vegan NOT raise their future child(ren) vegan? :confused:.
I don't think it is really an issue for most vegans unless they have a non-vegan partner against it - I think the title is a reflection on the original poster, who I would hesitate to guarantee was actually vegan, despite what they said :)
Yeah. And since I am already vegan now, not in a current relationship, and I do plan to have child(ren) (at least one, I don't know if only one or more than one), future relationships I would plan with that in mind - and I would probably want to date an open-minded vegan or open-minded veggie, hopefully find someone compatible. :p Because that certainly seems like a less complicated way to go, provided that the individual doesn't complicate your life severely in other ways. :tongue_ani:
Yes. Vegan unless they actively choose otherwise.
Of course, me and my fiance are both vegan, and wouldn't dream of raising our kids any other way (although we don;t have any yet). We've both always wanted to live in Brighton, and have decided that when we are starting a family, we definately won';t be doing it in crawley (where the word vegan is seldom understood) but in Brighton instead, where we hope our child won't be the only vegan in the class...
I like this thread. It's certainly an open discussion as to whether to bring kids up vegan. And like it or not, it's certainly an open question in the real world of having kids.
As a new parent you get more hassle being vegan than you ever did before, and doubly so if one parent isn't vegan. So vegan parents need a lot of support, as it's a key time they may turn away from being vegan even themselves, especially if we're all hard-edged and no compromises about it.
Children are people. They need to be taught responsibility and compassion. To learn these they need an element of choice, as well as plenty of facts and calm discussions, with compassion and understanding shown to them, as well as clear and open expectations of caring and contributive behaviour from them.
Our two have been vegan from birth, given plenty of vegan info, and we've made an effort to meet other vegan families and go to vegan events so there are places they can feel normal. They go to a primary school in the real world, which we feel is good for their education to - to mix with everyone. Feeling normal is a huge need, as is feeling special, which being vegan can contribute to if you know why you are doing it and it's your choice.
Our kids are allowed to eat what they like at friends houses and with their own pocket money. So far they've chosen to be vegan, with a few lazy-unintentional slip-ups. In some ways they've made us stricter - as they refuse to use animal tested soap in school, which I would have let pass.
We give help and support to other parents trying to feed our kids, especially at parties, nad take it on the chin that some parents will be reticent about inviting them.
If and probably when our kids experiment with non-vegan and maybe even non-veggie food, maybe we'll never find out. It's their business. I would be upset I admit. But as long as they know the responsibility is our own for the suffering and damage caused by what we do, I really don't believe they'll experiment for long. They are kind people.
However willpower and willingness to stand alone is something that some of us have more of than others. Some kids will find it harder than others to be vegan or even vegetarian, just like some adults do. And for all of us, there are always more things we could do to lead better lives, but we don't.
To have a supportive and non-judgemental vegan community is the best thing we can do to help. The Vegan Forum is a great basis for that.
As a parent of two young girls, I applaud SophieFP's answer!! I'm a new vegan, my husband and girls are still omni. I won't force them into veganism, but I won't buy non-vegan anything any more, plus I'm the family cook :D. Luckily, my husband is supportive, but not everyone is that lucky...The best thing is that my girls have never liked eating meat, so not only am I saving animals, I'm preventing waste by not having to throw away as much food as I used to do with them. As much as I want all of them (okay, the world actually) to go vegan, it's not going to happen as soon as I'd like, so I will be a positive vegan influence in the meantime.
I've said before that I'd raise my kids vegan. My OH is not vegan and unlikely to be, although he has agreed for the kids to be raised as such, possibly problems will arise in relation to this in the future, but out of the two of us I am the one who cooks and I'm the obsessive planner and he is the spontaneous/ laid back one so hopefully it all works out ok as I will have it all organised and he can just go along with it :P!
I'm thoroughly hoping that when I find a girl I'd be willing to have kids with, that she's also a vegan :p It would make it much easier when you see eye to eye :p I wouldn't force my kids into being vegan, but while they're too young to make a real decision for themselves, that's how they'd be brought up. I figure if they're raised on that diet, with parents who are also vegan, that they would probably follow it the rest of their lives. The only reason most kids are omnis today is because their parents/grandparents, and friends all eat meat. After all the years as an omni, it's just considered normal.
IMO, most of you are the reason that people think Vegans are nuts. Comparing meat to drugs? Completely two different things. No I don't think meat is the best diet. My brother eats meat and is extremely healthy. Changing someones profile to not Vegan yet, because they would feed their kids eggs? No wonder why people think Vegans are crazy.
And to answer this question. I would raise mine Vegan if I ever had one, but once they didn't live in my house they could choose what they wanted, I'm not going to force my beliefs on anyone, but if someone asks I'm happy to explain them.
Hi Nicki and welcome to the forum.:thumbsup:
I'm not quite sure I understand you. Is there one particular thing that the majority of posters on this thread are saying that you (and omnis) find strange, if so what is it? Not saying you're wrong, just that I don't understand.
Good wishes
Leedsveg:)
Yeah, what's with the profile change? I agree with you for raising kids Nicki. You can't force anyone to do anything... But I figure if a child grows up on a plant-based diet, and has learned about the suffering of animals, they'll be much less likely to take up meat eating. Heck, how many of us became vegan without the influence of vegan/vegetarian friends or family?
I'm confused too... I know there are vegans on this forum with non-vegan children. Whose profile was changed because of that?? I'm sure that isn't why?
It's been a while - I'm not sure anyone will remember the details of that particular incident.
I have a healthy 3 year old girl who's been vegan since birth. I haven't had many issues really apart from people asking me often if it's hard, so far it's absolutely fine. My daughter was premature and there were a few issues then with a midwive who wanted to stick her on some dairy formula so she would add weight quicker, but she was corrected by her own staff in the end.
We were at a party last night and there were two children there, one a two month year old baby and the other a two year old toddler. Both were really cute but the toddler kept offering me pizza and didn't understand why I wouldn't eat it. It made me realise that in the not too distant future we will have children and they will have to make the same choices and tell the other kids why they don't want to eat that pizza. It would be hard, but I would never have second thoughts about raising a child vegan! :)
^ I think at two they would just say they don't like it and it would be a perfectly acceptable reason, I doubt any two year olds will want to start the 'but what if you were on a desert island' argument.
I was thinking more like when they were abit older TBH.
Well, my point still stands really, people don't expect in depth answers to everything from young people, not until they're old enough to put forward a decent argument by which time... they're old enough to put forward a decent argument.
If you say so Risker! I clearly remember being asked indepth questions about my sexuality, my diet and my music taste from a young age by other young people. If that didn't happen to you, then you were lucky enough not to stand out from the crowd.
My son was grilled by his friend's parents over my veganism when he was 6 years old!. Fortunately he had most of the answers. It did lead to me falling out with the other mother though. At the time my son was vegetarian. He went vegan when he was 7, through his own choice, and continued to be interrogated, mostly by adults who really should know better. Whilst I think it's very wrong for an adult to do this to a child (I spoke to every adult that did it and told them to refer any questions to ME!), my son was educated enough to be able to answer 99% of the questions by himself (he wouldn't have gone vegan had he not understood why).
BTW, I wish I had raised my son completely vegan from the offset. Unfortunately, after being vegan myself for 4 years before he was born, I reverted back to vegetarianism - for reasons I'm not completely clear on now :o. So he was raised vegetarian, but not because I think its 'wrong' to raise a child as vegan. I won't be having more children, but if I did, they would (of course) be raised vegan from birth. I went back to veganism when my son was 5 and as I say, he soon followed suit :).
well i do find the answers really interesting to hear also when its about small children. when you go to a party, bring your child to daycare or just being faced with opinions from others or grandma's slippng bits of sausage to their grandchildren. i have a 3 year old and she cant come up with any arguments yet, but there are many challenges also at that age, just on a different level. id love to hear about other peoples experiences on here as well with little kids
oh I WAS furious, it was awful. They took him to McDonalds on the way home from an outing and proceeded to interrogate him about everything, even asking about my make-up!!. My son held it together but when he got home he cried his eyes out. That was the last time I ever let them take him out :mad:.
I would raise mine Vegan, unless i marry a chef who isn't vegan, in that case if i can't get my way and raise them vegan he can do all the cooking
but I doubt that will be the case, i'll be the one in charge of the food and the rest of the family can eat it or cook their own.
Its amazing how little people know about nutrition, they assume that your baby will be malnourished, being vegan for a short time so far and slowly having my opinion about the nutrition of animal products, I can't fathom ever giving of them to a small child.
& I love the point about how choosing veganism for yourself + consequently your kids is no different to raising an omni child, I look forward to the day when i can explain about all the bad disgusting food my child will be "missing out on". I'd love t be able to turn someone like that, because no one wants to hurt their childrens health on purpose (well no sane person)
as well as that when kids are younger they usually have a real affinity for animals, like someone said before they don't want them to be dead or injured, so i guess another benefit to raising a vegan child would be that when they do find out that people eat meat I would hope they feel weird about people eating meat that it's not right, when you grow up without being subjected to the thousands of years of tradition of eating meat you'd be able to see how absurd it is.