Hello Lisa
I hope that this message finds you well! Last time we talked, I had just started a vegetarian diet. I'm now eating nearly completely vegan and my wife is does the same with the exception of some cheese of dinners a few nights per week. We have not given our daughter (16 months) any meat. We HAVE, however, been giving her organic milk, yogurt and cottage cheese. Her pediatrician says that she is healthy as can be and is growing as she should be. She does have eczema, however. It is not severe but she does have flare ups from time to time that look as though it would make her very uncomfortable. We've been doing a lot of reading and it seems as though many parents of children with eczema have great success with relieving the symptoms by eliminating dairy from the diet. We are strongly considering this and wondering if you could provide some insight or provide a reliable resource that would help us better understand how we could raise her healthfully on a vegan diet during this extremely formative time in her development.
I believe that we have her covered on protein with beans, soy, and nuts. Where I am worried is her fat intake! I know that she needs a lot fat and saturated fat and that DHA and EPA are REALLY important. Do you have any recommendations on how to get her all the fat she needs and specifically the DHA and EPA? I found this supplement and thought that maybe something like this could be the key: http://www.vitacost.com/barleans-total-omega-3-6-9-vegan
If saturated fats are important then can we simply supplement with coconut oil which is loaded with saturated fat?
Again, Lisa, I appreciate and respect your opinion.
Thank you so much for your help!
Dear Friend,
thanks for the note. I'm glad you and your wife are doing well with the vegetarian/vegan diet.
I must confess- pediatrics is not my forte. But- I do know a few things!
My fear with a vegan diet in toddlers is lack of iron, vitamin D, calcium, zinc and B12 for growth. Protein needs can be met with beans, lentils, soy milk and other soy products, but kids definitely need fat for brain development and as a calorie source for growth/energy. It's not just the omega 3, 6 and 9 she needs.
There are many other nutrients lacking in vegan diets, especially in toddlers because they are growing so rapidly. If she's not already on a decent supplement containing all of the above nutrients, that would be my first advice. You can season food with olive oil, light margarine, etc to get some fat in her diet as well. I don't know much about coconut oil in kids- that would be a good question for your pediatrician. I don't think it could 'hurt', but I don't know how palatable it is either by itself. I suppose you could put it in iron-fortified cereal, rice and other foods.
Rather than eliminating food (or beverages in the case of milk/dairy from her diet), I'd consider going to a pediatric allergist and having her tested to see WHAT is causing the eczema. It could be dairy, but it could be another food as well (bananas, tomatoes, wheat, etc). Peanut allergy could also be the culprit, but I think the recommendation for nut exposure is 3.
That's my 2 cents! Let me know how it all turns out.
Lisa
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