By Elsa Gil Martínez
We've been asked to write a few lines about the daily life of a vegan family like ours. Writing about it isn't difficult; the challenge lies in conveying so many emotions and feelings through writing without making the text too long. We'll try to offer you a journey from a different, yet enjoyable, perspective.
First, let us introduce ourselves. We are Elsa and Javi, and for the past two years we have been committed to raising our daughter Aluhe vegan, starting from pregnancy. This approach aligns with our ethical stance, which we have maintained for the last five years.
Our journey of criticism began after a vegan pregnancy and the birth of a perfectly healthy baby girl, who was placed under "special assessment" with more frequent monitoring after I informed the staff that I followed a diet free of animal products. I remember the mix of conflicting emotions: the fears the medical staff conveyed to us, combined with the reassurance they gave us over months of informing and advising us that raising a vegan child was possible and even beneficial. But without any support in a situation where your mind and body walk a tightrope that could slip at any moment, this experience makes us remember, not without a smile of pride, that the obstacles along the way have served to strengthen our foundation.
The lack of professionals (breastfeeding counselors, nutritionists, psychologists, pelvic floor physiotherapists, etc.) that most mothers and many fathers need in these early years of life, and for whom the Public Health System has no answer in most cases, is compounded in vegan families by the shared lack of knowledge in the vast majority of hospitals, health centers or pediatricians to answer the doubts that may arise and attend to our needs.
Blaming us for the spread of a common virus to any other baby, accusing us of "imposing" our will, including our babies in the "at-risk" category, advising us to undergo constant and unnecessary tests from birth, refusing to provide menus that meet our needs in educational or hospital settings, non-exclusive leisure/educational activities, and most terrible of all, trying to dissuade us from what they consider "a dangerous trend," are situations that you have to face every day in the health, educational, and social environments in which you work.
We live in a society where, contrary to what happens in adulthood, health and beauty standards in babies are based on weight, many of whom are overfed due to the high intake of empty calories present in sugary products and processed baby food. According to the Alsalma child nutrition study, led by Dr. Ana Moráis of La Paz Children's Hospital, 90% of Spanish children between 1 and 3 years old consume more than double the recommended daily protein intake due to excessive consumption of cow's milk and meat, and 71% consume more calories than necessary, a breeding ground for the development of many early diseases.https://m.eldiario.es/caballodenietzsche/Ofrecer-alimentacion-vegetariana-regalos-hacerles_6_629647067.htmlIt is crucial to make the public understand that vegan diets for babies are not "unhealthy" or "lacking in nutrients," the main weapon used against our families. Our society is more concerned with pointing fingers and attacking vegan families, when in reality, veganism as an "ethical stance" not only involves not consuming animals and their byproducts, but also choosing locally sourced products, seasonal fruits and vegetables, natural and unprocessed products, and those that have minimal environmental impact or human exploitation. Instead, we should be more concerned with learning that in the 21st century it is possible to eat healthily at any stage of life while minimizing the impact on the lives of other sentient beings.
The misinformation and fears that are present in our environment often turn a "normal" life, albeit different, into an obstacle course with very painful and unfair experiences and discrimination that leads us to be "excluded" solely due to prejudices based on fear, ignorance and the lack of scientific evidence.
An example of this is the sad situation we experienced not many months ago. We learned about the wonderful work of the NGO Infancia Solidaria (Solidarity for Children) through the press. It's a surgical care program for children from developing countries, offering them medical and surgical assistance in Spain, along with a host family that covers the costs of accommodation, food, transportation, and any other expenses incurred during their stay in Spain. Our family understands veganism not only as a way of eating—our diet is strictly vegetarian, but it's commonly known as vegan, which is why I'm using the same term in this article. Veganism goes beyond mere lifestyle; it's a way of living, thinking, and acting aimed at ending oppression, injustice, and inequality. Therefore, we believe that participating in this wonderful project would not only benefit the families we could host, but would also be a very enriching experience for our little one. It would expose her to the diverse realities that exist, helping her develop an open and compassionate mindset and normalizing empathy from childhood—one of the most important qualities of emotional intelligence. These skills will equip her with the tools to work towards a more just world, which is our priority in her education.
This hope turned into helplessness and disappointment when, after speaking by phone with the person who introduced himself as the president of said NGO, we were denied the opportunity to be a foster family solely because we are vegan, since, as he argued, "they have to ensure the maximum well-being and care of the children and he believes that there is no medical consensus on whether a vegan diet is the most suitable for children."
During these two years of raising our little one vegan, we have had the personalized advice and immense support of pediatrician Miriam Martínez Biarge, a neonatologist (a pediatrician specializing in the care and problems of newborns) and author of the blog "mipediatravegetariano" (myvegetarian pediatrician). A specialist in infant nutrition, she is a member of the Advisory Committee of the Vegan Doctors Group in the United Kingdom, advises healthcare professionals, currently practices in the UK and Spain, and has just published "My Vegan Family." It was to no avail that we explained to this NGO that this professional was our advisor and that we relied on her both personally and professionally. It was also to no avail that we offered to cover the costs of another "non-vegan" childcare arrangement outside our home if it was the only medical/professional option.
Faced with the unknown, fear and prejudice prevail.
We are currently waiting for confirmation on whether we can enter the Cantabria Government's Family Foster Care Program without having to give up raising children according to our principles, because the "flexibility" they demand forces us to change them and we are not willing to do so.
Many of you may wonder why we want to reveal upfront that we're a vegan family, and the answer is quite simple: we're under no obligation to do so, but neither are we obligated to hide it. Participating in any of these programs, both public and private, involves interviews, time and dedication, adjustments to our work schedules, training, and meticulous monitoring that would sooner or later reveal that we raise our children differently and would likely result in the same fears and prejudices mentioned earlier. Therefore, we prefer to avoid rejection before we become emotionally involved with the projects and organize our lives around them.
We hope not to receive another rejection and to be able to follow in the footsteps of our colleague Lucía MN and her partner Abel GR, who have been foster families in another province for a 6-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy, and all of them lead a happy vegan life.
For all the reasons stated above, we consider early childhood activism not only necessary but urgent, with a primary focus on nutrition. Upon becoming mothers and fathers, I believe we all experience ambiguity and ambivalence in our feelings. We experience with greater intensity what it means to assume responsibility and play a new role. Therefore, any social pressure that judges a particular parenting style will increase fears in many families, including those who are already informed or have taken this step. Many people who were vegan before becoming parents have not maintained the same diet with their children after having a baby due to this intense pressure.
There are significant economic interests behind the fears that are being instilled in families who choose to raise their children on a vegan diet. Therefore, together with the aforementioned pediatrician Miriam Martínez Biarge, we have jointly undertaken a project to raise awareness of this increasingly common lifestyle in our society. This lifestyle involves a diet that is becoming more and more prevalent in schools, and we aim to demonstrate how it is completely valid, even healthy and beneficial at any stage of life, including pregnancy, breastfeeding, and childhood.https://noticias.funiber.org/2017/01/20/asociacion-americana-nutricion-dietetica-ratifica-dietas-vegetarianas-saludablesA project that brings together Miriam's medical perspective and my psychological perspective, not only from my experience as a mother, but also from what I learned in my training as a psychologist specializing in childhood, gerontology, and gender.
Debunking the prejudices and falsehoods surrounding vegan diets for children, which are often labeled as "deficient," "unhealthy," or "unhealthy," is the primary objective of this project, which we are still developing and seeking opportunities within various provincial administrations to reach not only educational settings but also pediatricians and other healthcare professionals. We recently held our first workshop this past December at the Besaya Institute in Torrelavega (Cantabria) for first- and second-year students of the Higher Level Vocational Training Module for Early Childhood Education. We are very pleased with the participation and optimistic about reaching as many professionals as possible who work directly with vegan families.
No family, person, or group will be open to listening or willing to develop lifestyles based on ethics or justice towards all sentient beings as long as it is mistakenly believed that we only have one way to feed ourselves and avoid illness, and that this involves "eating certain animals." Therefore, we extend our most sincere and heartfelt recognition to all those brave individuals who have opted for family models (whatever type of family) that entail daily, constant, and exhausting activism in defense of values based on empathy, values that break with the established order and demonstrate that a different world is possible, and what better way to create it than by starting in childhood and setting an example for children.
To all the vegan families who share this journey, we say: "We are unstoppable and together invincible!"