Get Premium
Dark mode theme is available exclusively for premium users. Learn more about the benefits of subscribing.
No fees, cancel anytime.
Dark Mode 
No fees, cancel anytime 
then open in external browser
and click "Open in External Browser" 
People become vegetarians for a variety of reasons and at different points in their lives. For Reddit user CompetitionExtreme36‘s son, it happened when the boy turned six.
In a candid post on the subreddit ‘TIFU,’ the father explained that the action took place at a fair and that much of the decision could (indirectly) be attributed to him.
He came up with the idea to tell the child where the meat on their table comes from and which animals are involved. After realizing it, the little one decided he wanted nothing to do with it, and now his parents are accommodating the kid’s vegetarian diet.
RELATED:
This father took his son to the local fair where he wanted to teach him about farming and the origins of their food
Image credits: mverkhoturtseva / Envato Elements (not the actual photo)
But he inadvertently made the boy a vegetarian
Image credits: Laure Noverraz / Unsplash (not the actual photo)
Image credits: CompetitionExtreme36
Image credits: Greta Hoffman / Pexels (not the actual photo)
Kids can grow up strong and healthy on a vegetarian diet, too
Interestingly, the proportion of vegetarians and vegans in the United States is surprisingly small. Only about 3% of Americans fall into each of these categories (for a total of 6% of the population). Furthermore, around five out of six vegetarians go back to eating meat.
But according to experts, as long as it’s planned well, a vegetarian diet can be a healthy choice for all kids.
In fact, it’s not rare that preteens and teens voice their independence through the foods they choose to eat. One strong statement, just as it was in the Reddit post, is the decision to stop eating meat.
A vegetarian diet that includes dairy products and eggs (lacto-ovo) is a really good choice for growing kids. However, a more strict vegetarian diet can meet their nutritional needs too, but will require more attention and planning. Kudos to the author of the post for doing it!
Parents who are concerned that their child is not getting enough important nutrients such as iron, calcium, and vitamins D and B12, should talk to their doctor, who may recommend a vitamin and mineral supplement.
The good news for young vegetarians — and their parents — is that many schools these days have vegetarian fare, including salad bars and other suitable options. But if yours does not, you will probably have to pack lunch.
Even if preteens or teens approach vegetarian diets in a healthy way, it’s still important for them to understand which nutrients might be missing, so to support them and set a good example, parents should have the whole family eat a vegetarian meal at least one night a week. And again, sounds like CompetitionExtreme36 and his wife are on the right path!
People have shared a lot of reactions to the story
Some also shared their own similar experiences
Poll Question
Total votes ·
Thanks! Check out the results:
Total votes ·
Newsletter
Subscribe to Access
Exclusive Polls
By entering your email and clicking Subscribe, you're agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Privacy Policy.
Thank you! You've successfully subscribed to newsletters!
What do you think ?
MoriahPapaya 1 year ago
It was nice to see a cluster of comments that weren't bashing vegetarian/vegan ethics. I wasn't expecting to see support.
Tempest 1 year ago
Same! I was surprised too! I’m a vegetarian. I made the decision by myself (I can’t remember the exact reasons) when I was 8/9 years old. Growing up I was constantly hounded by a barrage of “that’s not healthy for a child”, “you’re going to end up severely ill soon”, etc from people left and right (mostly from relatives who couldn’t keep their opinions to themselves). I stuck to my guns and only narrowed down my choices with time (stopped eating eggs in themselves but don’t mind them used in baked products). Although my parents were not 100% supportive, they helped me get a balanced diet and went out of their way to make sure I had food I can eat. Now they’re also almost vegetarians (they only eat seafood and eggs). I excelled at school and was always healthy (never been to the hospital other than for a cold, cough, etc). I lost some weight when I went off to uni and started living on my own because I didn’t have much time for meals so I started taking some vitamin supplements.
Load More Replies...
My O My 1 year ago
This dad didn't f**k up. But he seriously needs to learn how to explain things to children. I would recommend a bit of child friendly education on the different forms of farming e.g. the differences between conventional cattle/beef and ecological
Procny 1 year ago
💯 and the petting zoo animals likely won't end up as human food even if euthanized. Even in farms they wouldn't eat a kid's pet chickens, sheep etc. They'd have tougher meat when old anyway also.
Load More Replies... Harper 1 year ago
Silly lies stick with kids. When I was 5, I accidentally saw a Turkey killed at my aunts farm. Traumatized, I refused to eat it. My mom, trying to save Thanksgiving, told me meat was from frozen turkeys (I'd seen at the grocer) who lived happy lives near Santa in the North Pole & died of old age. I believed her until I stopped believing in Santa. I've been vegetarian for 28 years now.
DC 1 year ago
"What do you think?", I am asked here. I think talking children out of such is abuse. End of. They have reasons, and these reasons, usually, add up a lot more than the lame excuses of the animal industry why they are the biggest FU mankind has ever developed. EVERY global problem of today is, causally, not coincidentally, linked to factory farming.
Reuben Estrada 1 year ago
how is pedophilia and warmongering due to factory farming?
Load More Replies...
Der Kommissar 1 year ago
Japan's "Class of Life" is a controversial school project that aims to teach students about valuing their food and the environment by having them raise and eat animals like fish and chicken.
Dee on bikes 1 year ago
As a vegan, I am for this. Take responsibility for it if you want to make the choice to eat meat.
Load More Replies...
Kraneia The Dancing Dryad 1 year ago
It's not a bad thing. If the child is making a conscious effort to give up meat, and the parents are making up for the missing nutrients... This is different from the parents who force the child to change and don't keep up with the vitamins and iron the child still needs to grow.
meeeeeeeeeeee 1 year ago
I know someone who has banned people explaining to their kids where meat comes from. Like, if they realise chicken and chickens are the same words you just have to ignore it.
Deborah B 1 year ago
The only FU I see here is being unclear about where eggs come from. Vegetarian substitutes will be fine, just let the kid live his life.
Jessica Urquhart 1 year ago
Processed imitation meats are not fine. We cannot digest them as well as real meat and it's usually loaded for of unhealthy ingredients. Read labels! My 5 year old chose to go vegetarian. I don't feed her those substitutes. Instead, I make real food from fresh ingredients. Veggie frikadelas are a good alternative to burger patties, for example. Beans, nuts, seat to replace protein from meat. You can make amazing hollandaise sauce or vegan queso from cashews and nutritional yeast that is actually healthy! I do this from time to time just to mix it up, even though my whole family eats eggs and dairy.
Load More Replies...
Goth Mouse (he/they) 1 year ago (edited)
I became veggie at about the same age maybe a bit younger when I asked why chicken and lamb the foods had the same name as the animals. Sheep especially were my favourite animal since I was a baby, my favourite toy was a sheep, I had a sheep onesie and my favourite thing was to bottle feed the baby lambs at the farm. My parents were honest with me and despite all my family being big meat eaters im so glad they never tried to force me to eat meat and were happy to provide plenty of alternatives. I realised I was already vegan when I first heard the term about 10 years ago because ive been allergic to dairy since i was a baby and was put off eggs permanently when I found blood in one. There’s so many more great foods in the shops the last few years, i can finally have things I couldn’t have when i was little because they had dairy in
DC 1 year ago
Especially ice cream. And yet, I had a coworker complain when she opened a browser and there's those so-called news ... "XYZ ice cream now plant based, blabla...". She went off on a stupid rant about "beliefs being shoved" (about 99% of the time this complaint comes up, it's either similar to this one, or THEY started the debate to begin with, and wouldn't stop until we'd say that we were totally wrong, let emotion lead over reason and such - you can NEVER please them below the level of sugarcoated pictures of pigs happily cutting themselves into salami slices...), so I asked her, what were the previous announcements of foods that she simply didn't like, but weren't of any V sort? She seemed to be ok with those being "shoved down her throat". Ears on bypass to that complaint, never your loss...
Load More Replies... Daya Meyer 1 year ago
I think that it is just fair to tell children where the food comes from. This father did it and iis supportive and that is fine. But please Tell your child the truth about how eggs are laid. Is it really better to tell him that chickens vomit eggs instead they come from the butt?
MoriahPapaya 1 year ago
It was nice to see a cluster of comments that weren't bashing vegetarian/vegan ethics. I wasn't expecting to see support.
Tempest 1 year ago
Same! I was surprised too! I’m a vegetarian. I made the decision by myself (I can’t remember the exact reasons) when I was 8/9 years old. Growing up I was constantly hounded by a barrage of “that’s not healthy for a child”, “you’re going to end up severely ill soon”, etc from people left and right (mostly from relatives who couldn’t keep their opinions to themselves). I stuck to my guns and only narrowed down my choices with time (stopped eating eggs in themselves but don’t mind them used in baked products). Although my parents were not 100% supportive, they helped me get a balanced diet and went out of their way to make sure I had food I can eat. Now they’re also almost vegetarians (they only eat seafood and eggs). I excelled at school and was always healthy (never been to the hospital other than for a cold, cough, etc). I lost some weight when I went off to uni and started living on my own because I didn’t have much time for meals so I started taking some vitamin supplements.
Load More Replies... My O My 1 year ago
This dad didn't f**k up. But he seriously needs to learn how to explain things to children. I would recommend a bit of child friendly education on the different forms of farming e.g. the differences between conventional cattle/beef and ecological
Procny 1 year ago
💯 and the petting zoo animals likely won't end up as human food even if euthanized. Even in farms they wouldn't eat a kid's pet chickens, sheep etc. They'd have tougher meat when old anyway also.
Load More Replies... Harper 1 year ago
Silly lies stick with kids. When I was 5, I accidentally saw a Turkey killed at my aunts farm. Traumatized, I refused to eat it. My mom, trying to save Thanksgiving, told me meat was from frozen turkeys (I'd seen at the grocer) who lived happy lives near Santa in the North Pole & died of old age. I believed her until I stopped believing in Santa. I've been vegetarian for 28 years now.
DC 1 year ago
"What do you think?", I am asked here. I think talking children out of such is abuse. End of. They have reasons, and these reasons, usually, add up a lot more than the lame excuses of the animal industry why they are the biggest FU mankind has ever developed. EVERY global problem of today is, causally, not coincidentally, linked to factory farming.
Reuben Estrada 1 year ago
how is pedophilia and warmongering due to factory farming?
Load More Replies... Der Kommissar 1 year ago
Japan's "Class of Life" is a controversial school project that aims to teach students about valuing their food and the environment by having them raise and eat animals like fish and chicken.
Dee on bikes 1 year ago
As a vegan, I am for this. Take responsibility for it if you want to make the choice to eat meat.
Load More Replies... Kraneia The Dancing Dryad 1 year ago
It's not a bad thing. If the child is making a conscious effort to give up meat, and the parents are making up for the missing nutrients... This is different from the parents who force the child to change and don't keep up with the vitamins and iron the child still needs to grow.
meeeeeeeeeeee 1 year ago
I know someone who has banned people explaining to their kids where meat comes from. Like, if they realise chicken and chickens are the same words you just have to ignore it.
Deborah B 1 year ago
The only FU I see here is being unclear about where eggs come from. Vegetarian substitutes will be fine, just let the kid live his life.
Jessica Urquhart 1 year ago
Processed imitation meats are not fine. We cannot digest them as well as real meat and it's usually loaded for of unhealthy ingredients. Read labels! My 5 year old chose to go vegetarian. I don't feed her those substitutes. Instead, I make real food from fresh ingredients. Veggie frikadelas are a good alternative to burger patties, for example. Beans, nuts, seat to replace protein from meat. You can make amazing hollandaise sauce or vegan queso from cashews and nutritional yeast that is actually healthy! I do this from time to time just to mix it up, even though my whole family eats eggs and dairy.
Load More Replies... Goth Mouse (he/they) 1 year ago (edited)
I became veggie at about the same age maybe a bit younger when I asked why chicken and lamb the foods had the same name as the animals. Sheep especially were my favourite animal since I was a baby, my favourite toy was a sheep, I had a sheep onesie and my favourite thing was to bottle feed the baby lambs at the farm. My parents were honest with me and despite all my family being big meat eaters im so glad they never tried to force me to eat meat and were happy to provide plenty of alternatives. I realised I was already vegan when I first heard the term about 10 years ago because ive been allergic to dairy since i was a baby and was put off eggs permanently when I found blood in one. There’s so many more great foods in the shops the last few years, i can finally have things I couldn’t have when i was little because they had dairy in
DC 1 year ago
Especially ice cream. And yet, I had a coworker complain when she opened a browser and there's those so-called news ... "XYZ ice cream now plant based, blabla...". She went off on a stupid rant about "beliefs being shoved" (about 99% of the time this complaint comes up, it's either similar to this one, or THEY started the debate to begin with, and wouldn't stop until we'd say that we were totally wrong, let emotion lead over reason and such - you can NEVER please them below the level of sugarcoated pictures of pigs happily cutting themselves into salami slices...), so I asked her, what were the previous announcements of foods that she simply didn't like, but weren't of any V sort? She seemed to be ok with those being "shoved down her throat". Ears on bypass to that complaint, never your loss...
Load More Replies... Daya Meyer 1 year ago
I think that it is just fair to tell children where the food comes from. This father did it and iis supportive and that is fine. But please Tell your child the truth about how eggs are laid. Is it really better to tell him that chickens vomit eggs instead they come from the butt?
Related on Bored Panda
25
52