The Plant-Based Baby and Toddler

Book excerpt: An accessible guide for vegan, vegetarian, or veg-curious parents from the dietitian duo behind online community Plant-Based Juniors®--includes a bonus chapter on feeding infants up to six months! More of us are turning to plant-focused diets for our health and the health of the environment. But there haven't been reliable, evidence-based resources out there for a new generation of compassionate, conscientious parents--until now. The Plant-Based Baby and Toddler is your go-to resource, offering easy-to-digest nutritional facts and guidelines that aren't available elsewhere, with a special focus on the most important period of a child's life when it comes to developing good eating habits: infancy and toddlerhood. Whitney and Alex discuss: • the PB3 plate: a visual guide to structuring meals that are nutritionally balanced--1/3 fruits and vegetables; 1/3 legumes, nuts and seeds; and 1/3 grains and starches--and easy to adapt for the entire family • how to meet needs for critical nutrients such as iron • a primer on both traditional purees and the baby-led weaning/feeding approach • strategies for dealing with challenges such as picky eaters • sorting fact from fiction when it comes to nondairy milks and other substitutes • 50+ plant-based recipes created specifically for stages from first bites to age three As dietitians and moms, Whitney and Alex pored over nutrition journals and called on the experts to learn how to provide their babies with the best diet possible. They found that plant-based diets are associated with a reduced risk of obesity, decreased cholesterol levels, and increased fruit and vegetable intake; in short, not only are they safe for kids, they're pretty freaking awesome.