Kids with vegetarian diets record similar growth, nutrition measures as those who eat meat: Study

A study of nearly 9,000 children has found those who eat a vegetarian diet had similar measures of growth and nutrition compared to children who eat meat. The study, led by researchers at the University of Toronto and St. Michael's Hospital of Unity Health Toronto, also found that children with a vegetarian diet had higher odds of underweight status - emphasizing the need for special care when planning the diets of vegetarian kids. The findings, published in the journal  Pediatrics , come as a shift to consuming plant-based diets grows in Canada. In 2019, updates to Canada's Food Guide urged Canadians to embrace plant-based proteins, such as beans and tofu, instead of meat. Professor Jonathon Maguire (photo courtesy of St. Michael's Hospital, Unity Health Toronto) "Over the last 20 years we have seen growing popularity of plant-based diets and a changing food environment with more access to plant-based alternatives, however we have not seen research into the nutritional outcomes of children following vegetarian diets in Canada," said  Jonathon Maguire , principal investigator on the study who is a professor in University of Toronto's department of pediatrics in the Temerty Faculty of Medicine and a pediatrician at St. Michael's Hospital. "This study demonstrates that Canadian children following vegetarian diets had similar growth and biochemical measures of nutrition compared to children consuming non-vegetarian diets," said Maguire, who is also a scientist at University of Toronto's  Joannah & Brian Lawson Centre for Child Nutrition.