Healthy Baby Story IIby Healthy Baby and Toddler
"Healthy Baby Story" is shared with us by the editor of Healthy Baby and Toddler. A resource for parents of vegetarian children under three. Melanie offers a bi-monthly newsletter. The newsletter idea was born while searching the web for information on how/what to feed her daughter. Melanie says, "Whether you are a new vegetarian yourself or an old-timer who just wants to ensure that your veggie baby's special need are met, this is the publication for you!""I wasn't raised as a vegetarian. In fact, for most of my adult life I have not been vegetarian, so the decision to raise my daughter this way was a big step for me. But parenthood opens up new doors for us, opens us to ideas and sets the groundwork for all future decisions in our lives, whether or not they are directly related to our children. I knew then I was still pregnant that raising my daughter vegetarian would take some preparation. My diet and hers are two different entities altogether. An adult vegetarian diet just doesn't suffice for an infant. And to make things even more complicated, I decided to also raise her dairy-free. I knew that if I were going to feel confident about these decisions I would have to arm myself with as much information as I could find. Surprisingly, opposition hasn't come from the one source that most people would expect--my family. In fact my parents were big in advocating a dairy-free, vegetarian diet for my daughter.
I did face disapproval, however, from friends, acquaintances and the medical community. When I informed my daughter's pediatrician, he looked at me with that alarmed expression I'm getting used to seeing these days and said, 'I want to do an Iron check---just in case.' It came back just fine, but his reaction raised a question in my mind nonetheless. Am I doing the right thing? What do I really know about iron? Is my baby getting enough? I wanted the best for my baby. Don't we all? So, I set out to make sure that I was giving her the best, searching through all the reliable sources of information on vegetarian diets that I could get my hands on. The task was daunting at first, but I've found that with a little imagination, a few good ideas, and an open mind I've been able to supply my daughter with the healthiest diet possible. I don't have to convince anyone these days that I'm doing the right thing. They take one look at my healthy, happy vegetarian baby, and they can see it for themselves!"
