According to a recent survey, the number of teen vegetarians is growing; in fact, it has tripled in the past 10 years. Experts say if kids think going vegetarian is as simple as giving up meat, they could be making a nutritional mistake. 

While dad grills chicken on the porch, his daughter, Meaghan, sauté’s a soy meal in the kitchen.
 
“Almost all my friends are either vegetarian or vegan or have been at some point in time,” says Meaghan, 18.

In fact, according to the latest Harris poll, 3 percent of teens are vegetarians, up from 1 percent in 1997.  Meaghan was 11 when she decided not to eat meat.

“I just decided to stop, decided it wasn’t my thing anymore and [that meat was] kind of gross and probably not as healthy as I thought it was,” says Meaghan.

Her dad was surprised and a little worried about a diet of just vegetables.

 “’Bunny food’ never really seemed like food to me, and I was worried about her sustaining herself,” says Robert Smith, Meaghan’s father.

Experts say that concern is valid.

“Often what I see with kids is that they’ll gravitate toward vegetables. They’ve completely eliminated dairy, they’ve completely eliminated meat proteins including fish and chicken, and so they aren’t getting complete protein sources,” says Page Love, registered dietician.

“When I first started, and a lot of my friends that were [vegetarians], you just drop the meat out of your diet and you don’t replace it, you don’t get the proper nutrition,” says Meaghan.

Experts say vegetarians need to find replacements for the protein, B vitamins, iron and calcium that meat provides.

“Like soy cheese, soy milk, tofu products. There are now wheat-based meat products like Saytan and these are just excellent protein sources that are available,” says Love.

For some kids, becoming a vegetarian is a fad; but others are more serious.  Either way, experts say, giving up meat can be healthy for a child if done with guidance and care.

“I mean everyone thought it was a phase, and it’s been my eight-year phase,” says Meaghan.

Keeping a watchful eye on a teen’s diet is important for two reasons: first, they require an average of 500 calories a day more than adults because they’re growing; and secondly, vegetarianism in girls is sometimes the first sign of an eating disorder.