quick clicks

recipes today articles

recipes today q&a

message boards

research baby names

prepare a birth plan

content channels

ip channel rss feeds

read birth stories

read parenting stories

recommended books

e-newsletters

safety recalls

ip diaries

ip store

mom of the month

dad of the month

editor's letter

letters to the editor

Veggie Baby

Tips from a Vegetarian Lifestyle Expert

By Melanie Wilson

With childhood obesity an epidemic, soft drinks sold in schools and junk food a part of the everyday diet, it's more important to raise kids on a healthy diet right from the start. Studies show that children who are exposed to healthful foods early on – vegetables, fruits, whole grains and legumes – develop a taste for these nourishing choices.

Whether you're a vegetarian yourself or considering becoming one and raising your children on a meatless diet, you may have questions and concerns. Most of us were raised eating meat, and we learned in school that there were four basic food groups. And the meat group was an essential part of the plan. That nutrition picture is outdated, which is why the United States Department of Agriculture has reworked its recommendations and recently published the My Pyramid Plan.

The premise behind the government's new plan is, while there are basic requirements for nutrients that everyone needs, each individual can meet those requirements from a variety of different foods and in amounts matching one's activity level. Simply plug in an age and amount of daily exercise to get customized recommendations for what to include in your daily diet. For example, a 2-year-old getting less than 30 minutes of exercise per day needs:

• 3 ounces of grains, at least one half this amount as whole grains
• 1 cup of vegetables, including dark green, orange and starchy
• 1 cup of fruit, including fresh fruit and 100 percent fruit juice
• 2 cups of milk or non-dairy calcium-rich drinks/foods
• 2 ounces of eggs, beans, nuts, tofu or soy protein products
• 3 teaspoonfuls of oil

Want to see more?

• Starting Solids Series
• Going All the Way: Becoming a Vegan Family
• Mom Vs. Dad: When One Is a Vegetarian and the Other Is Not
• Talk about it!

Post As:
Enter your comment below:
Title
Comment Text
CAPTCHA
Please note that any comments submitted become the property of Disney Family / iParenting and can be edited and posted at our discrection.