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To vegan or not to vegan when pregnant, lactating or feeding young children

European Journal of Clinical Nutrition volume 71, pages 1259–1262 (2017)Cite this article

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In 2016, two professional organizations, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and the German Nutrition Society (DGE), each issued conflicting with each other statements regarding a vegan diet. According to AND, 'Well-planned vegan, lacto-vegetarian, and lacto-ovo-vegetarian (LOV) diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy and lactation'.1 Yet, just a few months earlier, DGE has stated that, 'With a pure plant-based diet, it is difficult or impossible to attain an adequate supply of some nutrients. The most critical nutrient is vitamin B12. […] The DGE does not recommend a vegan diet for pregnant women, lactating women, infants, children or adolescents'.2 To confuse the matter further, the American Academy of Pediatrics in its Pediatric Nutrition Handbook, in one place repeated the AND’s position, while in another place it stated that vegan diets should not be recommended for children.3 Most recently, the European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition Committee on Nutrition, in its position paper on complementary feeding stated that, 'Vegan diets have generally been discouraged during complementary feeding. Although theoretically a vegan diet can meet nutrient requirements when mother and infant follow medical and dietary advice regarding supplementation, the risks of failing to follow advice are severe, including irreversible cognitive damage from vitamin B12 deficiency, and death. If a parent chooses to wean an infant onto a vegan diet this should be done under regular medical and expert dietetic supervision and mothers should receive and follow nutritional advice'.4

During pregnancy, vitamin B12 (B12) deficiency and/or hyperhomocysteinemia, which can be caused by inadequate B12 status, have been associated with several adverse health outcomes that include preeclampsia, recurrent fetal losses, intrauterine growth retardation, preterm delivery, low birth weight and neural tube defects.5, 6, 7 Infants born to mothers with inadequate B12 status during pregnancy have a high risk of developing a variety of hematological, neurological and developmental abnormalities that include growth failure indicative in weight, height and/or head circumference below 10th or even 5th percentile, anorexia, involuntary movements, hyperpigmentation, abnormal EEG and delays in speech development.8

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  1. Department of Nutrition Science, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC, USA

    R Pawlak

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Correspondence to R Pawlak.

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Pawlak, R. To vegan or not to vegan when pregnant, lactating or feeding young children. Eur J Clin Nutr 71, 1259–1262 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/ejcn.2017.111

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