The decision to raise my own children on a vegetarian diet was not necessarily an easy one. From a vegetarian’s standpoint, I was hard pressed to find a reason against it. Our pediatrician suggested giving our children an iron supplement, then confessed he wished he’d raised his own four children on a vegetarian diet as well.

Starting children out in life on a diet consisting of nothing but what the earth produces sets them up for a life-long love of healthy eating. Knowing that I can do that for my children is enough to make me really proud of my decision, however there was a time when I really thought about giving them a little meat in their diet due to peer-pressure from fellow parents.

Some opinionated mothers and fathers have told me that I am depriving my children of proper nutrients. As I said in my article “Why become a vegetarian”, we really have no nutritional need to eat meat these days. We can get everything we need nutritionally from the earth. The days of hunting to survive don’t exist within the city limits of Cincinnati, and like most vegetarian parents I would never deprive my children of anything they needed to be healthy, active and happy.

During my first pregnancy, many people asked what I planned to do when my child was old enough to ask why he didn’t eat meat. I gave them all the same canned answer–if he really wants a hamburger that badly, I’d be the first one to buy it for him. However, before I buy that burger, I want my child to be informed of exactly where it came from and what alternatives there are to eating meat. I want them to see a cow up close, pet him on his fuzzy nose and look in to his big defenseless eyes. I want my children to know that that is what people eat when they consume beef. When they are old enough to make an informed, educated decision, then it will be their choice. Children are naturally curious, so I won’t be disappointed if they do decide to eat meat down the road. I know I am equipping them with the ability to make the best decision for themselves on their own, and knowing that is enough for me. But for now, the decision rests on my shoulders and I decide to keep them meat-free.

Some parents struggle with this same decision, others want their children to be on a meat-free diet but have a difficult time getting their children to eat vegetables. My solution for that? It’s all in the presentation. If you give your children visually-pleasing plates of good foods, they are much more likely to want to eat them than if you just sit a plate of steaming broccoli down and say “dig in”. MorningStar Farms, Boca, Quorn and LightLife are some of the many name brands that produce meat-free alternatives to kids favorite foods like corn dogs, chicken nuggets, lunch meats and more. This makes it easier to get them on a vegetarian diet without stirring the pot too much visually. It can be a difficult decision to make, but living a vegetarian lifestyle is healthy for anyone who choses to do it, even those too young to decide for themselves.

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