BABY

Weaning: vegetarian babies and toddlers

Last modified on Monday 1 August 2022

A recent survey found that around 3% of people in the UK are vegetarian (eat no meat, fish or animal by-products) and a further 5% are pescatarian (eat fish but no meat) or 'partly veggie' and exclude some types of fish or meat from their diet.

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But what do you need to consider if you want to wean your baby onto a vegetarian diet?

Importantly, there are no medical or health reasons against raising your baby on a vegetarian diet (and plenty for!), providing you feed your baby a well balanced diet. For help read our tips on providing a balanced diet below.

You might face some opposition or questioning from concerned family or friends, but find out how other parents have dealt with this, in our veggie/vegan club . We also have lots of vegetarian recipes suitable for weaning which are outlined below.

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Providing a balanced diet

If you're feeding your baby a vegetarian diet, you need to be aware of the nutritional content of different foods, to ensure they have a good balance of vitamins and minerals, whilst ensuring that they have enough energy (calories) for optimal growth. All children need some energy dense foods to make sure they get sufficient calories, as fibre can be too filling for tiny tummies. In addition, some health visitors recommend a vitamin supplement, especially if you have a picky eater.

Iron, calcium and protein are nutrients which are particularly worth focusing on.

Iron

There are a number of ways you can add iron to your baby's diet without meat or fish. From around 6 months, the introduction of iron-rich foods - like pulses, dried fruits, fortified cereals and green vegetables - is important as the iron levels babies are born with, are almost depleted. Breast milk and follow-on formula milk also provide iron, whereas cows' milk is low in iron.

Vitamin C helps the absorption of iron from food, so try to include fruit, vegetables or fruit juice in the same meal as iron-rich foods, whilst bran and drinks of tea can actually inhibit iron absorption.

Calcium

The estimated daily requirement for calcium for a 6-12 month old is 525mg. Children aged 1 - 3 should have 350mg a day and at four that rises to 450mg a day.

This list of calcium-rich foods includes non-dairy alternatives (calcium levels are a guide only)

  • Cheddar cheese (25g - medium portion) 185mg calcium
  • Yogurt, whole milk (100g - small pot) 200mg
  • Fromage frais, full fat (100g - small pot) 110mg
  • Calcium-enriched soya milk (200ml) 180mg
  • Custard (100g portion) 140mg
  • Baked beans in tomato sauce (100g) 53mg
  • White bread (one slice) 53mg
  • Ready Brek (25g portion) 300mg
  • Hummous (100g) 41mg
  • Broccoli (100g) 40mg
  • Carrot, raw, (50g - one small carrot) 17mg
  • Cabbage (100g) 50mg
  • Green beans (100g) 56mg

Protein

There is a common misconception that it's difficult to get enough protein from a vegetarian diet. A well balanced diet including a range of foods such as pulses, egg and dairy products (egg/dairy substitutes for vegans), tofu, bread and meat substitutes will provide all the protein needed by a growing baby or toddler.

Meat substitutes - These can be introduced slowly after 6 months, but some processed meat substitutes (veggie sausages, burgers etc) are quite high in salt and should not be given to babies. See our what's so bad about salt? page for more information.

Quorn and tofu are safe to introduce to a baby's diet as a good source of protein, but as they are high fibre/low calorie foods, they should only be used in small amounts for children under 3 years. Remember to check the salt content of Quorn and tofu products too.

Vitamin B12

This vitamin is not present in plant foods, but can be found in eggs and dairy produce. Vegans should make sure that they include B12 fortified foods in their diet such as yeast extract, soya milk and breakfast cereals but beware of high salt products.

Vitamin D

This vitamin is not present in plant foods but can be found in eggs and fortified margarine. The body also makes it's own vitamin D, when the skin is moderately exposed to sunlight. Supplements may be needed by people with dark skin or those whose skin has little exposure to sunlight.

Omega 3s

Try to include plant based sources of omega 3s daily eg. soya, rapeseed or olive oils, as well as walnuts (for older children), sweet potatoes, soya beans and green leafy vegetables. You can find more information about Omega 3 here.

Childcare and school

Remember to pass on your child's dietary requirements to anyone looking after them.

It may be necessary to explain exactly what your child can and can't eat, as their interpretation of 'vegetarian' may not be the same as yours!

Recipes:

First foods

Meals for older babies & toddlers

More vegetarian recipes here

More information

A lovely book to read with your vegetarian toddler or young child is Herb the Vegetarian Dragon . This book tells the tale of a brave young dragon coming to terms with the fact that he has different beliefs to all the other dragons in the land of Nogard. This book is available from Amazon for under £5 (also available from other outlets)

You can find more information and a printable fact sheet about weaning on the Vegetarian Society website .