Vegan Nutrition with Dina Aronson, M.S. R.D.

Dina Aronson, MS, RD is a vegan dietitian whose specialties include chronic disease prevention, vegetarian/vegan nutrition, and lifestyle management. She is the founder and director of VeganRD.com, a nutrition consulting company. Active in many vegetarian nutrition organizations, Dina was the recipient of the American Dietetic Association's Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year Award in 2002.

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My son is almost four years old. He was diagnosed with diabetes about six months ago. What can I do to give him a balanced vegan diet, considering his diabetes?

For the purpose of this question, I am assuming that your son has type I diabetes, where he needs insulin injections to control his blood sugar levels. The good news is that this type of diabetes is totally manageable with insulin therapy and a healthy diet. A diet containing meat, dairy, and/or eggs offers no benefit to diabetes management and control; in fact, whole plant foods are health-supporting and will supply your growing son with essential nutrients. However, the types of foods that make diabetes management more challenging ? sugar, refined grains, desserts, etc. ? may indeed be vegan foods.

This is why it is important to structure a diet around as many whole foods as possible. Vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes (beans, nuts, and seeds) are the mainstay of any health-supporting vegan diet. It will be challenging to get your pre-schooler to eat healthfully, especially when he sees other children munching goodies that he is not allowed to eat (or can only eat in small quantities). But good habits now will evolve into good habits and choices later, which will make a tremendous difference in his long-term health.

It will also be challenging for him (and of course his caretakers) to accept and get used to the fact that he will need to pay attention to and take care of his condition every single day for the rest of his life (unless a cure is found). I recommend a diabetes support group for parents and small children, to help the family with this transition and lifestyle change.

No matter what diet your son follows, it is very important to keep in mind some basic strategies to keep his blood sugars under control:

Monitor your son's blood sugars with regular testing. Timing of meals, snacks, and insulin are as important as what foods your son eats, so get into the habit of checking your son's sugars at regular intervals throughout the day, and working with his doctor to adjust insulin dose as needed.
Offer small, frequent meals. This will help prevent extremes in blood sugar and make it easier to keep tighter control of the levels.
Try to have protein, fat, and complex carbohydrates featured at each meal and snack. Since these foods are low in simple sugars and digested and absorbed slowly, this approach should help prevent blood sugar spikes and drops.

Here is a sample kid-friendly vegan menu (with alternatives) that will help get you thinking about ways to incorporate a healthful balance of vegan foods into your son's diet:

Breakfast:
Plain oatmeal (instant is fine) made with fortified soy milk, mixed with ground flax seeds and topped with fresh fruit

Lunch:
Whole wheat flour tortilla rollup with your son's favorite fillings, such as peanut butter and banana; tomato sauce and soy cheese; black beans, sliced avocado, and salsa; or a veggie burger or veggie dog

Dinner:
A good protein source (e.g. lentil or other bean soup, a bean-based dish, oven-fried "fish" (tofu) sticks, soy meat balls), at least one vegetable (e.g. salad and a favorite steamed vegetable sprinkled with nutritional yeast or toasted sesame seeds), and a whole grain ( e.g. brown rice or other whole grain; if your son prefers strong flavors, toss with herbs, favorite nuts or seeds, and/or a small amount of dried fruit). If there are no nuts or seeds with dinner, toss vegetables with a healthy oil, such as canola or olive, or throw avocadoes or olives into the salad.

Snacks:
Apple slices spread with almond butter; whole grain crackers and raw vegetables with hummus; popcorn with a few nuts; natural chips with mild guacamole; homemade low-sugar whole-grain muffins or bars.

This is in no way a complete guide. Please visit a dietitian specializing in plant-based diets, and keep on hand a more comprehensive resource such as Becoming Vegan by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina, and Raising Vegetarian Children by Vesanto Melina and Jo Stepaniak.

Diabetes is a complex condition and requires individualized treatment. Please visit regularly with your son's doctor and dietitian to be sure that the meal plan and insulin schedule are balanced such that your son's blood sugars are, and continue to stay, in tight control.

Disclaimer: The advice given here is for eductional purposes only. You should not use this information to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease without consulting with a qualified health care provider.

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