Q & A: I need to know

Vegetarian Baby and Child, Jan-Feb, 2003 by Melanie Wilson

My child is allergic to milk and anything containing milk (cookies, crackers, chocolates, etc.). She will be starting kindergarten soon, and I'm trying to take precautions. Her allergy isn't life threatening, but eating dairy products makes her sick for several days. Do you have any thoughts or suggestions about how we can deal with this?

A friend whose vegetarian son is also severely allergic to dairy products says that her son's own awareness of his allergy is the best defense against well-meaning people who offer off-limits foods. She said, "Alex is so aware of what he can and can't have, he will tell anyone who gives him a food that he doesn't recognize that 'it has cows in it.' He is so particular that if he doesn't know the food, he insists that mommy is the only one who can give it to him--and then I have to promise that it has no cows in it." Since vegetarian children and children with food allergies often face the same issue of avoiding certain foods in public places or with family and friends, it pays to take the extra time to teach them about their special dietary needs. You should speak with your child's teachers, care provider(s), relatives, and friends to ensure that her dietary restrictions are met and that everyone knows the consequences. It may seem at first that for vegetarian and vegan children, the issue of eating off-limit s foods outside the home is mostly a problem of an ethical nature and not a health issue at all. I've heard comments such as this: "Well, it won't hurt her just this once." What these people don't realize is that children who don't eat meat (or eggs and dairy products) on a regular basis may experience severe digestive upset after eating these foods even once. Similarly, for children with a food allergy, like your daughter, physical reaction is a serious concern. It may help you to get some information off the Internet about dairy allergies and print it out to hand to people to read. You may find the following websites helpful: www.foodallergy. org and www.webmd.com.

Our twins have different 'poop' consistencies. One has solid bowel movements, while the other has looser stools. Neither is extremely hard (experiencing constipation) or extremely wet (diarrhea). Each girl drinks about 24 oz. of soy formula per day. And both eat an organic vegetarian diet. Do you think there should be any concern?

Both girls' bowel movements sound as if they fall within the normal range, but you should ask your pediatrician to be sure. If neither girl is experiencing discomfort, is not ill in any other way, and they are both growing normally, then your doctor will probably give them both a clean bill of health. A high fiber diet can cause different reactions for different people.

My mother-in-law keeps telling me that vegetarians grow up to be shorter than the average child (something about growth hormones). I would like to see where she got her information and find out if there is any evidence that supports or negates it. Do you have any ideas?

The main study on this subject is the Farm study, which showed that vegan kids grow more slowly at first but catch up by age 10. I want to stress, though, that there are many vegan children who totally blow away the stereotype, who are tall and robust. In general, vegan kids do tend to be a bit thinner than average, but that's not a bad thing across the board! One must also take into consideration that stature of the parents. People come in a variety of shapes and sizes!

I think it's strange that with obesity being the serious problem that it is in our country, among both children and adults, that people are so concerned with small but otherwise healthy children. I've read nothing about growth hormones lacking in vegetarian kids. On the contrary, there is concern about the hormones that are pumped into cows and chickens passing on to children who eat meat and poultry and drink cow's milk.

When someone offers information, you may consider asking for the source so that you can adequately research and refute it. Often, people don't really know where they got a certain idea, or they have extrapolated the information from some article, taking it out of context, and even quoting incorrectly. When you put the ball back in their court by expressing interest in seeing the source of the information--out of genuine concern for your children--you show them that you both share a single goal, and that you are willing to look into it further. In addition, they will sometimes realize on their own after going back to find the article for you that they actually read it wrong, misunderstood, or, at the very least, are willing to discuss facts from other sources. Ask your mother-in-law if she would be willing to help you research this issue, then work together to find the true answer.