I won’t give my kid ice cream — they’re never too young to be vegan

Annabel Fenwick Elliott vowed to raise her toddler on a strict diet of plant-based foods — making kid-favorite foods like ice cream out of the question.

Her one-year-old son, Jasper, survives on a diet of oatmeal, coconut-based yogurt, various vegetables, chickpeas, beans, breast milk and baby-safe supplements.

The London-based mom expects pediatricians to “raise an eyebrow” when she reveals that Jasper is a vegan, but he’s totally healthy — he’s “never once been sick and has hit all the milestones,” she told Cater News.

“I’m starting Jasper off on a plant-based diet until he’s old enough for me to explain why,” Annabel said. “After that, he can make his own choices about what to eat.”

The animal-lover, who stopped eating meat in 2011, wished she had been raised a vegan, especially after learning how large volumes of cow’s milk are produced.

Female cattle are inseminated shortly after their first birthday and, after giving birth, lactate for approximately 10 months, according to PETA. Then — after their calves are taken away from them — the cycle beings again, and they are impregnated repeatedly until they stop producing enough milk.

“I did ask the questions as a child ‘Where does meat come from?’ and ‘Isn’t it wrong to kill animals?’ but the answers were always vague,” she explained.

“No one ever explicitly said: ‘We are gentle with dogs because they have feelings and we don’t want to hurt them. Pigs also have feelings, but it’s fine to hurt them.’ But that’s the subtext if you’re feeding your child sausages.”

Now — especially as a mom — she said it makes her “sick.”

“If my parents had told me all this when I was five, I would have turned vegan then,” admitted Annabel, who believes consuming dairy products is worse than meat.

“You can’t be a vegetarian on ethical grounds and still eat dairy. It’s so much worse than the meat industry,” she argued. “I was so devastated that I had to give up cheese.” 

Seeing fellow parents feed their children animal byproducts “saddens and infuriates” her, because she realizes they have “no idea” the “unthinkable abuse” the creatures have suffered.

“All these kids eating something that comes from such a cruel, dark place and they have no idea, usually because their parents don’t,” she explained.

Annabel said she struggles to not “lecture” others — “unless they ask,” of course — but wished she had learned it in school.

“It takes a lot of restraint for me not to say to mums I know: ‘Would you want your dog or cat to have the life of a factory-farmed cow? No? Then don’t buy ice cream!’” she said.

She encouraged curious parents to consider the possibility of introducing their children to a vegan diet, which is possible and safe with the inclusion of supplements and plant-based treats, such as vegan chicken nuggets and non-dairy ice cream.

“Raising children on a vegan diet can be carried out safely when proper planning and attention to a child’s needs are considered,” Sas Parsad, a nutritionist at The Gut Co., told Cater News.

“A healthy gut can still be supported through a well-balanced diet as long as the child is provided with essential nutrients like protein, iron, calcium and omega-3 fatty acids.”

While there isn’t enough evidence to suggest that veganism will result in less sickness, a plant-based diet can promoted “good gut health” along with other benefits, such as “lower risk of heart disease and certain cancers.”

Annabel’s most important tip for parents is to “be honest” when children ask about the origins of their food.

“They’re never too young to get the facts,” she said.

After all her efforts, Annabel said she’ll be “surprised” if Jasper decides to ditch veganism when he grows up, especially if he also turns out to be an animal-lover.

However, she revealed she’d be “totally fine with it.”

“All I want is for people to have all the information,” she said. “If you couldn’t bring yourself to do those things to those animals yourself, don’t pay someone else to do it for you. That’s the message I want to install in my son.”