Family dietary pattern
The overall way your family eats: omnivore, mostly vegetarian with some meat, vegetarian, or vegan.
Should our child follow a vegetarian, vegan or other family diet?
In short: Parents choose between 4 main approaches: Omnivore; Flexitarian; Vegetarian; Vegan with supplements and dietitian support. Evidence: experts disagree. Credible bodies or researchers disagree — decide whose guidance you'll weigh. Best settled: 6–12 months.
- Evidence
- Experts disagree
- Best settled
- 6–12 months
- Part of
- Raising the child
Family dietary pattern: what are the options?
Parents usually land on one of these 4 approaches.
1. Omnivore
Your family eats meat, fish, dairy and plants.
2. Flexitarian
Your family eats mostly plants and some meat.
3. Vegetarian
Your family eats no meat or fish.
4. Vegan with supplements and dietitian support
Your family eats no animal products, with supplements and professional advice.
Family dietary pattern: what does the evidence say?
Experts disagree. Credible bodies or researchers disagree — decide whose guidance you'll weigh. (Contested between national bodies)
Canada's pediatric society accepts well-planned vegan diets; Germany's nutrition society advises against them for children
Sources
What else is worth knowing?
A family's way of eating reflects health, ethics, culture and budget. Vegetarian and vegan diets can meet a child's needs with planning and, for vegan diets, supplements. It helps to decide what you would do if your child wants to eat differently from you.
Questions to ask each other
- What does our family eat now, and do we want to change it for a child?
- How would we handle a child who wants to eat differently from us?
- Would we ever raise a child vegetarian or vegan, and how would we make sure they get what they need?
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First published 2026-10-03. Last updated 2026-10-05. General information, not medical advice.