I just started eating raw and my 13 month old wants to try everything I eat. The thing is that he wants my food instead of the "regular" food I make for him and the rest of my family. He wanted sprouted sunflower seeds last night instead of pizza, he eats my goji berries at breakfast, dehydrated burger for lunch, and tonight he drank an adult sized spinach/banana/raspberry smoothie. The smoothie was supposed to be my dinner and when I gave him a taste, he grabbed it & chugged the whole thing in about 2 minutes. Then he refused to eat his chicken dinner. I have seen that most people say it is unhealthy for babies to do raw.

ew, why on earth would you ask is it okay to feed a 13 month old raw and NOT ASK is it okay to feed them pizza and chicken dinners. most kids have to be coaxed to initially eat grains, legumes, meat/flesh, etc. for the love of god, give the kid some nutrients - raw fruits and vegetables.

More nutrients and less toxins have to be better for a baby than less nutrients and more toxins

Zenstorm,
I think the child is on to something! Isn't it interesting that he enjoys eating raw vegan foods? If he really wants those other items, don't you think he will reach for them or request them? My sisters child way, way prefers to eat fresh fruit over anything else. In fact she generally doesn't enjoy eating unless its fruit.Last summer I was just so incredible seeing a young child with a fresh blackberry she picked, she was just overjoyed with everything about it. I think a young child will reach for something fresh and vibrant over something less healthy, if they haven't been encouraged to do otherwise.

The main reason why one has to be careful about raw foods and children is that their brains require a greater volume of nutrients by body weight, especially fats, than an adolescent or adult brain. The other foods you mention as being family food are not nutritious and your child's instinct is steering him toward the natural path--please, please don't derail him. A well regarded book that provides advice on how to raise a raw child is Shazzie's, "Evie's Kitchen":

[www.amazon.com]

Do an Amazon search for others along the same lines. Good luck.

Your 13-month old is much smarter than you are giving him credit for. He still has the natural instinct for biologically appropriate foods (besides mother's milk) – fruits and vegetables.

So my answer to your question is: Yes! Although for a 13-month old, I think that mother's milk is also appropriate.

I never had kids,and didnt know a 13 month old could even comprehend what it was eating.
I thought they just went goo goo and gaa gaa



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/12/2010 12:26AM by eaglefly.

David Klien talks about children in his book. He said make sure they get enough brest milk and dont take it away from them unles they reject it. this is because of what Tamukha said. David Klien advises only on the children who have IBD though. so be careful. especailly with calcium. If you dont get the calcium when your young you are never are able to get it throug the rest of you life there is no making it up. thats why mothers milk was crucisal. i would personlly speak to Klien about this. if your going to let your baby go raw.

I have a ten months old who eats mostly raw (a bit of cooked to make her SAD-happy daddy happier). My four year old also eats mostly raw. They just do what mom does.

The baby absolutely loves her green smoothies! Kale and apple with a bit of lemon is her favorite. She also really digs very soft fruit like bananas, papaya, ripe pear. Although she has no teeth yet, she is also discovering the joys of cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, and green beans. I once had a fight between the two of them for the last sips of freshly squeezed O.J.

Both of my kids are healthy, happy, and rarely get sick.

Where are these "most people" you talk about that say it's unhealthy? They're probably SAD'ers and/or anti-raw themselves.

I know there's been a few wackjobs in the news that fed their kid a raw or vegan diet and made the kid sick and had the kid taken but they weren't doing it right at all. I know one couple was giving their infant enemas.... If the kid was eating right, he would've been having bowel movements on his own.


Just keep it simple and make sure they get variety. Smoothies, juices, variety of nutrients. How can you go wrong giving a "spinach/banana/raspberry smoothie" compared to whatever that chicken dinner was? Was it some frozen junk you found at the grocery store? Would you have eaten it? LOL What could possibly be wrong with making your own juices/smoothies compared to the parents who buy their kids strawberry smoothies from Starbucks or dead, bottled juice aimed at kids with chemical vitamins like Pedialyte or Ocean Spray ? Really, just use common sense here. Fresh apple juice vs koolaid and milk which is what most parents give their kids?


Also since you mentioned chicken.... (This is a vegan forum by the way..) you don't want to give him chicken or cooked after something raw anyway. It gives adults stomaches, gas, bloating..etc. They digest differently. So if you're still going to do cooked.. you don't want to let him drink a raw smoothie and then feed a cooked meal on top of it.

Also if you're worried about protein... spinach has protien, mixes well with carrot juice and you can hide a few spinach leaves in smoothies. And there's nuts/seeds.. just turn them into nut butters or add flax seeds to smoothies..etc. Sprouted foods, wheatgrass..

And breast milk as it's already been said.

My almost 3 year old son, Andrew, is eating a raw diet and is THRIVING.

He still nurses 3x/day.

He likes eating almost all fruits and vegs out there.

He enjoys fatty foods like avocados, durian and young and mature coconuts.

He loves snacking on greens. Just the other day he had a fit because he wanted to eat some raw broccoli (plain). I find this amazing because I don't want to eat plain raw broccoli, lol.

Storm and Jinjee Talifero are raising 5 children on a raw diet. The oldest is 15 and the youngest is 2.
[www.thegardendiet.com]

All the best,

Karmyn
[karmynmalone.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/28/2010 02:02PM by inshapeforever.