I have a vegetarian niece for these compassion reasons. I was a veg for 10 years and have a lot of advice to give her and luckily she comes to me for it. Our phone conversations usually start on her grades, then her diet, then silly stuff. She is a bad vegetarian... she doesn't eat right. She doesn't get her complete amino acid chain with complementary foods all the time, she goes for sugary smoothies and Starbuck's concoctions instead of real food a few times a week and is just a mess. It seems hard to be a teenage girl, want a cute figure, continue to eat crap junk food with your friends, and have a well-balanced diet while being a know-nothington veg.

I'll keep hitting her over the head with nutrition advice and meal ideas though. Maybe it will stick one day?? One cannot live on supplements alone.

I'm a teen vegetarian, and at first, I'll admit, I had no idea what I was doing. My mom got me a book though, and, for a separate reason, I started to see a nutritionist who taught me the correct ratio of carbs and protein (especially important since I'm a runner). There are so many other ways to get protein- all it takes is the right education.

I've been a vegetarian for 10 years. Never really watched what I ate (and I don't eat tofu) and I haven't gained any weight or gotten sick. I'm not anemic, either, which always seems to surprise people.

I don't think being a vegetarian is hard at all. I have never been a vegan but I doubt teen vegans as a group are in dire health.

I've been veg'n since I was 18, and I didn't know what I was doing at first either. But I was a much healthier eater at 18 and 19 than I was when in middle/high school. If I had become vegetarian as a minor, I would have been a very unhealthy one--but then again, my diet included meat and was STILL unhealthy (fast food, junk food, etc), so go figure.

I think that a teen vegetarian needs guidance from someone who is experienced. I think that parents MUST get involved and not discourage them, but make sure that they're choosing the right foods and keeping it healthy.

When I was vegan in my early 20s, I ate a lot of tofu, meat substitutes, vegetables and fruit, but most of the vegans I hung around ate lots of french fries, pasta and potatoes, and that's it.

im going 2 bcum a vegetarian when iturn 18. i want 2 be one now but my mothr thinks im anorexic so she forces me 2 eat way 2 much so if i say id like 2 bcum a vegetarian she would probably try 2 check me in2 a hospital

best regards,
dino dino

Great article. In general I think anyone who is switching their diet lifestyle to a vegetarian one needs help. I have chosen this year to run vegetarian, and I know at 32 I still need all the help and guidance I can get. Keep these great articles coming, and all the advice I've read is great!!!

I've been a vegetarian since I was 12, and tried to be vegan for about 6 months before switching back to vegetarianism because I knew I wasn't being entirely healthy about the veganism. I'd consider myself a healthy vegetarian, and I get a lot of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, and nuts, while keeping soy in moderation (too much is actually bad for you, and there are better sources of protein out there) and I've been cutting back on the dairy recently. I do agree that a lot of teenagers don't approach vegetarianism in a healthy way. I remember ordering fries and dessert from a restaurant if there was no other option while my friends and family had healthier alternatives with meat, but I'm glad I learned a lot so I can continue my lifestyle without compromising my health.

i became a vegetarian at 13 (i'm 25 now) because the idea of eating muscle really freaked me out. luckily my mom was vegi for over 20 years so she was totally supportive and cooked me lots of great balanced meals. brown rice, beans and dark leafy greens were and are the staples of my diet. in college i started eating fish because the cafeteria was really lacking in vegetarian protein options. my little sister became vegi at 15 and just eats complete crap. she basically lives on cookies (we have different moms, so she didn't grow up eating healthy like me). she has ADD and is on adderal, so she has little appetite anyway. its a real problem. ive tried to teach her how to cook and what to eat, but the fact is she doesn't like vegetables that much. i think thats a big problem for a lot of these teenagers. you cant become vegetarian if you don't love veggies as far as i'm concerned.

I went vegan almost 10 years ago but wasn't when I was in high school. In high school I know I ate like crap... fast food, junk food sometimes no food. Now I pretty much just eat whole foods - mainly veggies and grains and I'm very active and healthy. But I do know some vegetarians and vegans who eat only peanut butter sandwiches and soy hot dogs. Not healthy at all!

I really like what Fit said; "it's up to the parents to help educate their kids about how to achieve a balanced vegetarian diet." This is so important and also so easy now with the variety of quality magazines, websites, organizations, etc...

laellavita I agree with you on soy. Though I love my tofu... there is a moderation line when it comes to soy.

Hmm, I thought that this has been a trend in the last 20-30 years or so. I know when I was in high school most of my friends became vegetarians. That was more than 10 years ago. Now most of these guys aren't vegetarians anymore.
I think it has always just been kind of a trend. It's sort of a way to be political active, to stand for something.

I respect people who do it because of moral issues and who stick to it but I have just seen way too many people just doing it because it was the cool thing to do.

I think it's interesting that noone is considering the fact that omnivores also have bad diets, nutritional deficiencies and are unhealthy. Anyone can eat crap like potato chips and soda all day, omnivore, vegetarian, and vegan alike.
Animal flesh, and the mammory secretions from other animals have been proven over and over again to be hazardous to the health of humans, and a diet rich in "vegan" foods; nuts, grains, beans, fruits, veggies, seeds, etc. has been proven over and over again to be essential for optimal human health.
Animal flesh and secretions are often touted as a "complete package" for protein, vitamins, and nutrients, but we can obtain all of those things from plant foods while also getting dietary fiber (animal foods are completely devoid of fiber!) and not getting the dietary cholesterol (only found in animal based foods!) or hormones or bioaccumulated toxins (found in abundance in the flesh and secretions of "food animals"!).
It is simply not true that vegans don't get enought protein, iron, calcium, b12, or D. All whole foods contain protein and the myth that vegetarians have to carefully coordinate their sources of protein has loooong been debunked. Iron and calcium can be found in abundance in beans and leafy green vegetables, as well as other sources. Vitamin D (in a nutshell) comes from the sun, and if one cannot get enough sun there are vitamin D supplements, ergocalciferol or D2, that are made from yeast. Actually many non-vegans suffer from Vitamin D deficiencies quite often. That's why many foods, including cow's milk, are fortified with it. That's right, cow's milk does not naturally contain Vitamin D. Vitamin B12 is made by bacteria (that's why it's in the rotting corpses of other animals) and is naturally found in the soil (that hasn't been destroyed by intensive agriculture) and can also be found in nutritional yeasts and fortified foods.
I've been vegan for many years now and I'm healthier than ever (my doctor agrees!). I have lost weight, gained muscle mass, and I rarely get sick. I love it when people say, "you don't look like a vegan" as if I should be hunched over in agony because I'm so brittle and weak. There's a lot of dis and misinformation out there. Living as a healthy vegan is a great way to set the record straight. Forget the hype. Try it, live it, and love it!

I like my chicken far too much.

I've been a vegetarian for the past 2 years, although I do eat fish (so I guess that would make me a pescatarian?). At first, it was difficult to come up with good recipes that were easy to make, but after a while, it has become natural. Even eating at restaurants has become easier, as a lot of restaurants have learned to accomodate vegetarians. A really good website for vegetarians is 101cookbooks.com. She has some GREAT recipes.

I'm 18 and I've been a vegetarian for about 5 months. My mom raised me to be a very healthy eater, and we even had "meatless Mondays" to try new vegetarian recipes throughout my childhood. I originally considered becoming vegetarian simply because it was healthy and I wasn't a big meat-eater anyway. But as I began to research it, I became more aware of the animal rights side of the issue, and suddenly it just felt wrong for me to be eating animals. I can honestly say I've never watched any of those videos. I know I wouldn't be able to handle it. I have done plenty of reading and I am aware of the vitamins and minerals I need in my diet. I always get the "how do you get enough protein?" question, but I've read that most people get excess protein anyway. Like another commenter said, I think it's always great for us veg*ns to hear more information about living a healthy lifestyle, and not perpetuating the stereotype that meat-eaters have of us... weak, pale, and eating nothing but crackers and salad. I appreciate that you and Yum always provide resources and recipes for us =]

Um, EVERY diet is healthy "if balanced correctly." It's not a stipulation that's limited to vegetarianism. Parents aren't worried about their kids not getting enough B12, they're pissed because their kids are doing something different and messing up their menus!

Oh, and ditto everything in HealthyVegan's post.

I say, GO TEENS! You are the future!... and all that cheesy stuff.

well i think that it goes without saying that if you make a choice to change your diet in any way that you have to know what you're getting and what you're not getting. i know that for myself i became a veggie over 15 years ago to be difficult, but now it's for the moral piece of it too. i do know more now though about what i need to eat in order to be healthy vs. what i did back then since i ate a lot of bread etc.

I'm not saying this is the case for all vegetarian converters in their teens, but many of them do it to lose weight, or sometimes it masks disordered eating issues. It's important to make sure that teens still eat normal meals and sufficient amounts of food.

i was interested in becoming a veg at age 15 and before youtube/internet was readily used as it is today. i got books, rented vids and talked to people. it's easy to 'get into things' today when it's all at your finger tips. minimal effort..propagandist theory. not saying peta's stuff isn't worthy- just saying it's easy to appeal emotionally to teens about vegetarianism but it's not the only form of education. it's shouldn't be only for one reason...it should be studied and understood. but i have to admit this is music to my ears it's like all my wishes for the world came true.

I eased into vegetarianism in my first year at university and luckily, there were plenty of options available for vegetarians, vegans, kosher -- you name it. I've been veg'n for less than a year now and I find meal preparation difficult, not only because I am very health-conscious (so I'm looking for optimal nutrition in meals) but also because if I just put something together without much thought I'll often feel unsatisfied, and that easily leads to snacking on unhealthy foods for a quick fix.

Still, at this age (teenagers, young adults in university), vegetarian or not, many people are eating junk food.

My best advice for parents with concerns is to bring their kids to a nutritionist if they are serious about becoming a vegetarian... and be patient! Like foxie said, yeah, my mom admitted only recently that she was frustrated by my choice at first because it was different and it messed up her menu. (Embrace your child's decision if it's for the right reasons!)

You see, i absolutely love any types of meat... but i also love the taste of tofu- since it really has none, it takes the taste of whatever its in.. which is great.... i'd only go vegetarian for health purposes (perhaps meat intake is the reason i've had problems since iwas 16 with my innards.)

Teenagers will just eat junk regardless.

I think Lucky has the right idea- when I was a teenager I had a BMI of 18, and I thought I'd live forever, so I ate whatever I wanted whenever. So sure, I wasn't a vegetarian, but the meat in my diet was mostly pepperoni (on pizza) and burgers.

In some ways, I think that a teen taking up vegetarianism could be a good thing, because it could be a way to get him/her interested in a good diet. Or, it could mean instead of subsisting on pizza, burgers, fries and coke, the teen will subsist on fries and coke.

I'm a teenager, with quite a few vegetarian friends. They all made the choice to become vegetarian after hearing that it would help them lose weight, with the exception of one, who has a horribly unhealthy diet (ice cream and chips are pretty much all she eats). I'm sure there are teenagers who make the choice for more positive reasons, and who experience health benefits as a result of vegetarianism, but I'm guessing the majority of teenagers aren't helped by vegetarianism. (Just talking about teenagers here...)

I was vegetarian for a full year, but stopped for personal reasons. I liked being veg, but it's hard getting all your nutrients in. I ate a lot of dairy, fruits, veggies, beans, almonds, ect. I put protein in everything I could. Beans and almonds on my salads, peanut butter (the natural kind) in veggie/fruit dips. My friend, who is veg, however lives off of chips and candy. It's terrible, but who am I to say anything haha? Anyway, this article is so true and I think that all teens who go veg should definitely see a dietician first.

I'm so disappointed: there's nothing wrong with making moral decisions!
I've always been veggie, and went vegan when I was 16. I did a lot of research beforehand and was a lot healthier as a teen than many of my (usually starving-themselves-thin) omnivore peers.

Give teens a bit of credit: many are decent compassionate people, and should be able to make their own decisions. Sure, make advice available to them. Teens do need to eat right for their age and growing bodies, but let them keep their ethics.

I became vegan a year and a half ago when I was 19 after I read Skinny b*tch, not because I wanted to be thin but because I love animals. I eat a lot of tofu and frozen veggies and peanut butter. I take b-12 supplements and I have done a lot of research about how to eat correctly. There is nothing healthy about meat and cheese and vegetarians who choose to eat cheese and milk products are not any healthier than those who eat meat. To do it right takes some research and dedication.

....It's probably harder to get all your nutrients in when you're eating junky animal foods in place of more nutritious options....

some people say it's really hard, but when there is a will, there is a way

but i think, before you convert to a vegetarian, you should consult your doctor, it's really important

the key is to maintain the balance of nutrition while at the same time living your philosophy of life (though i know some people became vegetarians just to lose weight)

I became a vegetarian when I was 14 because I was concerned about animal rights. I saw the videos and I read a lot about how poorly animals were treated. My parents didn't know how to react since both of them were raised on farms where eating the cow your father slaughtered a few days ago was completely normal. Since there were more options available to me as a teen living here then they had, I saw no problem with my choice. I didn't know what I was doing, but I stuck with it and learned more about it as the months went on and now, 6 years later, I'm probably healthier than I ever have been in my life.

What I recommend for teen vegetarians is meat alternatives. I found that tofu can be hard to cook, so I have stuck with meat alternatives and of course, lots of fruit and veggies.

i definitely get parents wanting to make sure their teenagers are making this change in a healthy way. i've been vegan for about a year and absolutely love it, but it was definitely a challenge to figure out how to eat in a healthy way after so many years of making meat and dairy proteins the bulk of my meals. since it is such a drastic lifestyle change, it would probably be beneficial for parents to learn about a vegetarian/vegan lifestyle to help their kids make the change in a healthy way. i wouldn't be surprised if those parents decided to go veg as well!

lizzie-
i went vegan after reading skinny b*tch as well; awesome