Raising children vegetarian?

I'm not going to get into an argument about vegeterianism.
Bad goldenarrow, bad! *slaps self*

Most people who are vegetarian choose to be so later in life, no? Meat has benefits and very few negatives, I see no reason not to give them meat.
It really depends on your motives to be vegetarian.

 

Dakeli27, a lot of people raise their children vegetarian. A few major paths of Hinduism see vegetarianism as idealistic.

It's up to you in my opinion! I have no preference really..

 

Dakeli27, I see you are a vegetarian now, I missed that part! Won't it be easier for you to raise your kids (if you have any) vegetarian too?

I just think one should not force that opinion on someone, but you can raise them vegetarian when they are younger. They can decide what to eat when they are older.

 

I was raised as a meat-eater by my vegetarian mother. It made things a lot easier in school and I got to decide for myself what I wanted to eat. I ended up becoming a vegan by choice.

I think letting the children decide for themselves would make their lives a whole lot easier.

Edit:

I picked the wrong poll option. :dry: I picked raise vegetarian but meant to pick raise as meat-eater.

 

I'd probably generally raise them as meat eaters but wouldn't force them to eat meat. I definitely wouldn't try to ban them from eating meat as that is just overly controlling

 

I'd probably raise them meat-eating and also teach them to prepare it at a really young age, but just not a lot of it (once a week, which is more than I currently eat). Then if they wish to stop eating it, they can say so. And if I've decided to become vegetarian for real by the time I've got kids, then they'll be able to cook for it for themselves. :icon_bigg

 

I would give my child a choice. I wouldn't force them to be a vegetarian nor would I force them to eat meat.

 

I think it's a decision people need to make for themselves, and forcing it on someone pretty much defeats the purpose of it..

 

Veggie sounds good to me.

 

I would raise them to be meat eaters, and then when they are old enough, allow them to choose. Sure you could raise them to be vegetarian. However, there is a lot of meet served at school, and you do not want them to feel like they are hiding that they eat it at school.

 

This.
I was raised non vegetarian but would have liked the option to choose vegetarian. There are a few blog entries which state the same.

You might also look up how food taste is coined at a young age, concerning sweets etc...

 

If I was a vegetarian I would raise my kid that way, but I'm not. I would raise my kid (if I ever had one) to eat meat. If they decide later on to be a vegetarian then I'm totally cool with that. Kind of like religion. I wouldn't raise my kids to be religious, but if they want to be religious on their own, I'm cool with it.

 

I'm a vegetarian, but I would not have my children be the same way. Meat has a lot of health benefits and it is extremely important that growing children get all of the necessary nutrients for development.

If they later decide to be vegetarian that's up to them.

And honestly, even as a vegetarian, I understand that we are naturally omnivores, and are better suited for it. A history of eating disorders is the sole reason why I stopped eating meat, and it has to be said a lot of health complications can come from such a dietary restriction.

You could try a compromise of sorts - only seafood and poultry? Red meats are suggested in extreme moderation for human's anyways, but poultry is very nutritional, as is fish.

 

Proteins are essential specially when growing. Feed them normally and when they are mature anough they can decide.

 

I believe that in general we should base our diets on minimally processed foods, with an emphasis on plant based foods. I have no moral, ethical or health concerns about eating meats, but they should be a part of your meal, not the main feature. And cured and processed meats like bacon and sausage should be a minimal part.

 

Proteins are your least concern, they can be obtained easily from lentils, chickpeas, quinoa, tofu, etc..

You might other things, too, but there are plenty of solutions. Just Google and find out which legume/fruit/etc.. has what you need.