Right Food For Your Vegetarian Baby

It goes without saying that the earliest food for any baby, including a vegan baby, is breast milk. It benefits your baby’s immune system, offers protection against infection, and reduces the risk of allergies. Be especially careful that you are getting enough vitamin B-12 when breastfeeding.

Also, ensure your infant receives at least 30 minutes of sunlight exposure per week to stimulate the body to produce adequate amounts of vitamin D, since human milk contains very low levels.

The iron content of breast milk is also generally low, no matter how good the mother's diet is. The iron which is in breast milk is readily absorbed by the infant, however. The iron in breast milk is adequate for the first 4 to 6 months or longer. After the age of six months, it is recommended iron supplements are introduced.

Soy milk, rice milk, and homemade formulas should not be used to replace breast milk or commercial infant formula during the first year. These foods do not contain the proper ratio of protein, fat, and carbohydrate, nor do they have enough of many vitamins and minerals to be used as a significant part of the diet in the first year.

Many people use iron-fortified infant rice cereal as the first food. Cereal can be mixed with expressed breast milk or soy formula so the consistency is fairly thin. Formula or breast milk feedings should continue as usual. Start with one cereal feeding daily and work up to 2 meals daily or 1/3 to 1/2 cup. Oats, barley, corn, and other grains can be ground in a blender and then cooked until very soft and smooth. These cereals can be introduced one at a time. However, they do not contain much iron, so iron supplements should be continued.

When baby becomes used to cereals, fruit, fruit juice, and vegetables can be introduced. Fruits and vegetables should be well mashed or pureed. Mashed banana or avocado, applesauce, and pureed canned peaches or pears are all good choices. Mild vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, and green beans should be cooked well and mashed. Grain foods such as soft, cooked pasta or rice, soft breads, dry cereals, and crackers can be added when baby becomes better at chewing.

Sample Vegetarian Diet Post Pregnancy

Sample Vegetarian Diet Including Essential Fatty Acids To Promote Healing

Fats are an essential part of any well-balanced diet, including a vegetarian diet. Fats are made of smaller units - called fatty acids. These fatty acids may be saturated, monounsaturated or polyunsaturated. Saturated and monounsaturated fats are not necessary in a vegetarian diet as they can be made in the human body. However, two polyunsaturated fatty acids - linoleic acid (omega 6) and linolenic acid (omega 3) - cannot be manufactured by the body and must be provided in the diet.

Fortunately, they are widely available in vegetarian/vegan plant foods. Evidence is increasing that omega 6 (found in foods like vegetable oils such as corn, safflower and sesame) and especially omega 3 (found in flax, walnuts, avocados, almonds and olive and canola oil) fats are beneficial for a range of conditions, including heart disease, cancer, immune system deficiencies and arthritis.

Healthy fats and oils play active roles in every stage of the body’s healing, building, and maintenance processes. In fact, they are as important to an active individual’s body as amino acids, minerals, and vitamins. Healthy fats and oils help convert light and sound into electrical nerve impulses, remove potentially toxic substances from sensitive tissue, and provide strength to cell membranes.

The following vegetarian menu sample shows how easy it is for essential fatty acids to be a part of your every day vegetarian diet.

Breakfast:

1 bagel with 2 tsp vegan margarine, 1 medium orange, 1 cup Cheerios cereal, and 1 cup soymilk

Lunch:

Sandwich of hummus made with 3/4 cup chickpeas and 2 teaspoons tahini (a sandwich spread made from ground sesame seeds) on 2 slices of whole wheat bread with 3 slices of tomato and 1 sliced avocado

Dinner:

1 cup of cooked pasta with 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 1/3 cup carrot sticks, 1 cup cooked broccoli (frozen or fresh), and 1 whole wheat roll

Snack:

1/2 cup almonds and 1 cup soymilk

Vegetarian Diet Post Pregnancy

There are Many Healing and Soothing Effects of Vegetarian Diet On Your Post-Baby Body

The breastfeeding vegetarian diet doesn’t vary all that much from the pregnancy vegetarian diet. Protein recommendations are the same, vitamin B-12 recommendations are higher, and the recommendations for iron and calories are lower than during pregnancy.

But the key in ensuring your healthy vegetarian diet is also helping you recover from the stresses of giving birth and taking care of your newborn is healthy fats. Healthy fats and oils play active roles in every stage of the body’s healing, building, and maintenance processes.

In fact, they are as important to an active individual’s body as amino acids, minerals, and vitamins. Healthy fats and oils help convert light and sound into electrical nerve impulses, remove potentially toxic substances from sensitive tissue, and provide strength to cell membranes.

The key is in balancing fats from a variety of foods. All foods that contain dietary fat contain a combination of fatty acids-the chemical building blocks of fat. Learning about the mixture of fatty acids in your diet will help you figure out how to choose foods with the good fats and avoid those foods that contain the bad fats.

For healthy fats, look to monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. These can readily be found in a variety of vegetables, oils, and nuts, such as avocados, almonds, and olive oil. These help your body to resist attack from free radicals, which are specially formed types of atoms that can damage your body’s cells when they react with DNA or cell membranes-better than other fats and thus are less prone to stick to your arteries.

Polyunsaturated fats occur in food either as omega-3 or omega-6 fatty acids. The key to eating healthy polyunsaturated fats is to maintain the right balance of omega-3 acids-found abundantly in flax, walnuts and canola oil-with omega-6 acids, found in vegetable oils such as corn, safflower and sesame.

Going Vegetarian During Your Pregnancy

Now that you’re pregnant, you’re wondering if your decision to become vegetarian can still be carried out successfully during your pregnancy. And while it is possible for you to obtain all the nutrients your body will need during pregnancy through a well-planned, nutrient-dense vegetarian diet, careful planning and observation will be crucial to your overall success transitioning to vegetarianism during your pregnancy. In other words: take it slow and be smart!

A good vegetarian diet has a wide variety of fresh fruits, vegetables, grains, beans, lentils, and nuts and some eggs and dairy or their equivalent if you so choose. Fast food, highly processed junk foods, and canned fruits and vegetables are eaten rarely if at all. It’s imperative that you make wise food choices at this crucial time, since a pregnant woman only needs approximately 300 more calories per day and about 10-16 extra grams of protein; however, the body's need for certain nutrients increases significantly. Every bite you take is important when you're pregnant.

While the RDAs (recommended daily allowances) for almost all nutrients increase, especially important are folic acid, iron, zinc, and vitamin B-12. Attention to adequate amounts of vitamin B-12 is crucial for vegetarians who choose not to eat eggs and dairy.

Work closely with your health care professional during this transition. The changeover from a meat-eating to a vegetarian diet can be rough on your body as it actually goes through a detoxification process during the transition. So, you want to ensure your baby is getting all the nutrients it needs at this time, and is growing and developing at a healthy rate. Start very slowly; perhaps only one or two days per week eating a vegetarian diet.

Gradually work in soy and plant-based proteins into your diet, and little by little use them to replace proteins obtained from eating meat products. Be sure to adequately supplement your diet with a quality prenatal supplement, and get adequate amounts of exercise and exposure to sunlight to promote your body to naturally produce vitamin D.

With careful planning, observation, and your health care professional’s guidance, the transition to vegetarianism during your pregnancy can be a cleansing and healthy start for both you and your baby to a lifetime of optimal health.

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Sample Daily Menu Routine For Pregnant Vegetarians

Can You Really Switch To Vegetarianism During Your Pregnancy?

Sample Daily Menu Routine For Pregnant Vegetarians

Though your nutritional needs increase now that you’re pregnant, your pregnancy vegetarian diet shouldn’t have to change all that much. With some careful planning to ensure your caloric, vitamin, and mineral needs are met, you can still enjoy a rich variety of nutrient-dense delicious foods and help give your baby a nutritious jump-start.

Consider the following daily menu for ideas and inspiration.

Breakfast:

1/2 cup oatmeal with maple syrup
1 slice whole wheat toast with fruit spread
1 cup soy milk
1/2 cup calcium and vitamin D fortified orange juice

Snack:

1/2 whole wheat bagel with margarine
Banana

Lunch:

Veggie burger on whole wheat bun with mustard and catsup
1 cup steamed collard greens
Medium apple
1 cup soy milk

Snack:

3/4 cup ready-to-eat cereal with 1/2 cup blueberries
1 cup soy milk

Dinner:

3/4 cup tofu stir-fried with 1 cup vegetables
1 cup brown rice
Medium orange

Snack:

Whole grain crackers with 2 Tbsp peanut butter
4 ounces apple juice

If morning sickness is giving you fits during your pregnancy, try eating low fat, high carbohydrate nutrient-dense foods. These are digested more quickly and stay in the stomach for less time giving less time for queasiness. Remember to eat often. Sometimes nausea is really hunger in disguise.

Be sure to drink juice, water, or soy milk if you can't eat solid food. Keep trying to eat whatever you can. If you’re unable to eat or drink the appropriate amounts of foods or fluids for 24 hours or more, get in touch with your health care provider.

Pregnancy and Vegetarianism - Special Needs to Consider

It’s apparent that your nutritional needs increase when you are pregnant. However, you only need approximately 300 more calories than normal during this time, so it’s imperative that you make wise food choices and eat nutrient-dense food.

A good start is to ensure that you’re eating plenty of protein. Your need for protein increases about 30 percent during pregnancy, but most vegetarian women eat more than enough protein in their regular diets. Soy proteins, beans and legumes are wonderful vegetarian sources of protein.

You need to also step up your calcium intake. Each day you need to be eating at least four servings of calcium-rich foods like broccoli, calcium-fortified soy milk, tofu, and dark green leafy vegetables.

Sunlight stimulates your body to naturally produce vitamin D, and it’s probably the easiest way to ensure you get an adequate amount each day. You only need about 20 minutes directly on your face and hands two to three times per week, when the sun is weakest. If you aren’t able to get out into the sun, be sure to incorporate vitamin-D rich foods into your daily diet by choosing fortified cereals, or using a supplement.

Take a look at your iron intake, as it’s a vital mineral during your pregnancy, especially the last half. Choose beans, dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, or fortified breads and cereals. You might also want to consider supplementing to ensure you get the required amount.

Vitamin B-12 is also an important nutrient during your pregnancy, but it’s difficult to find in most plant-based foods. Select fortified cereals or soy milk, brewer’s yeast, and consider a multivitamin with an adequate level to ensure your body gets the amount it needs.

And though zinc is difficult to come by in a strict vegan or vegetarian diet, the need for it increases during pregnancy. Whole grains and legumes are wise choices to obtain this nutrient, but you again may need to supplement to make sure you’re getting what you need. As long as you eat a good variety of nutritious foods that provide the right amount of calories for a healthy weight gain, you should have no problem getting the vitamins and minerals your body needs at this marvelous time.

And though many women do choose to take a prenatal vitamin daily, they should not be a substitute for good nutrition. Develop a cooperative relationship with your healthcare provider who supports your vegetarian lifestyle, and consider consulting a nutritionist when necessary.

Can You Really Switch To Vegetarianism During Your Pregnancy?

Pregnancy brings a new responsibility. You have charge of the health and well being of another human being. For many of us it is the time when we give up high risk activities like drinking and smoking. A major change in diet sounds risky too, but changing to a vegetarian diet in pregnancy really should not be seen in that light. Taken slowly and sensibly changing to vegetarianism during pregnancy is quite safe.

You should, of course, discuss your diet and any changes you plan to make to it with your health care professional. If they see that you are taking the process seriously they will probably be supportive of your decision to change to vegetarianism during pregnancy.

If you approach becoming a vegetarian seriously it will benefit both you and your baby. A typical vegetarian eats far less junk food than most people. They are more likely to prepare meals from basic ingredients and to consume a wide variety of vegetables, fruit, nuts, pulses and grains than people who eat processed food. If you are not totally vegan then you will also be eating dairy produce such as milk and cheese and eggs. That should ensure you a balanced diet.

In pregnancy a woman has special dietary needs. A pregnant woman only needs about 300 extra calories a day and between 10 and 16 grams of extra protein. But it is important to ensure that you get enough folic acid, iron, zinc and vitamin B-12. Leafy green vegetables are useful here. As a vegetarian you will probably get more of these than on a typical modern diet. Your health professional will be on the look out for deficiencies. It will help them to know that you are vegetarian. Discuss whether you need dietary supplements.

Going vegetarian presents your body with many challenges. So it is important to take it slowly. This is true at any time, but it is especially true when you plan to go vegetarian during pregnancy. The best advice is to take it slowly. Make the transition gradually by eating vegetarian one or two days a week at first. This allows your body to detoxify itself slowly.

Taking things step by step also allows you to introduce new sources of protein into your diet gradually. It will give you chance to learn how to use plant based proteins like soya. There's an art to making a good tofu burger or a tasty lentil soup. Changing your shopping habits takes time too.

Something else to consider when changing to a vegetarian diet during pregnancy is the need for exercise and sunlight. Sunlight is necessary for your body to manufacture its own vitamin D. A dietary supplement may be necessary depending where you live and the time of year.

At any time the transition to vegetarianism should be about achieving a healthy life style. This is especially true when the change to vegetarianism is made during pregnancy. Going vegetarian during pregnancy is perfectly possible provided that you do so carefully and in consultation with your health professional. Above all listen to your own body. The transition to vegetarianism during your pregnancy can be beneficial to both you and your baby.