Illustration of a child's bowl of red lentils with soft tofu and broccoli, a plate of orange slices and a small striped cup of oat milk.

Is a vegan diet safe for kids? It can be healthy, and the US dietitians’ 2016 backing has expired

Gregory Knox
November 4, 2026
6 mins

It can be healthy. An article on the American Academy of Pediatrics’ site for parents says an egg- and dairy-free vegan diet “can also be healthy and complete” if sources of vitamin B12, calcium, zinc, vitamin D and iron are maximized. Germany’s nutrition society says the data on children are too limited to recommend a vegan diet or advise against it. The US dietitians’ current position covers adults only.

The US dietitians’ endorsement of vegan diets for children has lapsed. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics’ 2016 position called appropriately planned vegetarian diets, vegan ones included, appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, infancy, childhood and adolescence among them, and said vegans need reliable sources of B12 such as fortified foods or supplements. The paper itself says that position was in effect until December 31, 2021. Its 2025 replacement is titled “Vegetarian Dietary Patterns for Adults”, and its abstract says that in adults, appropriately planned vegetarian and vegan dietary patterns can be nutritionally adequate. It describes its subject as nonpregnant, nonlactating adults. So the US body for dietitians has no current position on vegan children that we could find. The German Nutrition Society’s 2024 update says a vegan diet can be health-promoting for the general population, provided B12 is supplemented, the food is balanced and well planned, and the needs for potentially critical nutrients are covered, possibly with further supplements. For children, adolescents, pregnant and breastfeeding women and older people, it says it cannot make a clear recommendation either way because the available data are limited, and it warns of possibly irreversible consequences if the diet is not implemented properly. For those groups it strongly recommends counseling by qualified specialists. Iron is on the AAP article’s list, and our guide to where vegans get iron covers the foods for adults.

What studies of vegan children found

A systematic review, published online in 2023, included 18 studies of vegan children and adolescents up to 18, 17 of them cross-sectional and one a randomized trial. In its meta-analyses the vegan children had lower intakes of protein, calcium, vitamin B2, saturated fat and cholesterol, lower ferritin and HDL and LDL cholesterol, and were shorter than omnivores. They ate more carbohydrate, polyunsaturated fat, fiber, folate, vitamins C and E, magnesium, iron and potassium, and their blood B12 was higher, which the authors put down to supplement use. Single studies pointed to lower bone mineral content and lower urinary iodine in vegan children. The review rated the risk of bias high or very high in 7 of the 18 studies and the certainty of its meta-analyses low or very low. It concluded that the evidence points to both risks and benefits, and that more and better designed studies are needed. For adults, our look at whether vegans get enough protein covers that line.

One detailed study, published in 2021, measured 52 vegan, 63 vegetarian and 72 omnivore children aged 5 to 10 in Poland. The vegans were on average 3.15 cm shorter than the omnivores. Their bone mineral content for the body below the head was 15.2% lower, and still 3.7% lower after the authors adjusted for height, weight and bone area. Their LDL cholesterol was 24 mg/dL lower, and almost none had high LDL, but low HDL cholesterol was more common: 26% of the vegans against 7% of the omnivores. So were vitamin B12 deficiency and iron-deficiency anemia. Probable B12 deficiency turned up in 13% of the vegans and 3% of the omnivores.

The study’s table also shows how the vegan children got their B12, or didn’t. Fifteen of the 52 got neither a B12 supplement nor B12-fortified food. The 14 vegans given fortified foods without a supplement still had lower serum B12 than the omnivores, and the authors report that supplementation resolved low B12 and vitamin D. They call the cross-sectional design their main limitation, and say convenience sampling, through advertisements and social media, put the study at risk of selection bias.

The strongest case against

The German society’s warning is about consequences that may not be reversible, in groups where it says the data are limited. The Polish study’s authors write that their data suggest restricting animal-based foods could keep children from reaching optimal height or bone mineral status and could lead to some nutritional deficiencies. And the review rates the certainty of its own meta-analyses low or very low. A parent choosing for a child is choosing for someone who can’t weigh any of that, and the Polish authors say plainly that whether the height differences persist into adulthood is unclear.

Our line

Our line at Vegan Pots is that a vegan diet for a child is defensible as a plan with professionals involved, and not as a default. That is also what the AAP article, the German society and the Polish authors advise. The AAP article says to talk with your pediatrician if you have questions or concerns about your child’s diet or health. The German society strongly recommends counseling by qualified specialists and says vegan diets in these groups require particularly well-founded nutritional knowledge. The Polish authors propose that physicians and dietitians tell families about both the potential benefits and the risks, with emphasis on stature and bone. We’d ask the pediatrician about B12 with the Polish fortified-food result in mind, and bring the rest of the AAP’s list, calcium, zinc, vitamin D and iron, to the same appointment. One study in the review found lower urinary iodine in vegan children, so we’d add iodine to the questions.

The part I’m least sure about is height and bone. The Polish vegans were about 3 cm shorter and had less bone mineral, and the authors suggest their lower protein, calcium, B12 and vitamin D intakes may explain the bone result. Nothing we read for this page followed vegan children into adulthood. For the calcium side of that, our guide to calcium on a vegan diet covers the foods that deliver it.

Sources

Gregory Knox

Gregory has been vegan since 2012 and came to it as a sceptic. He believed a balanced diet needed meat and dairy, so he read the studies and the books until he was sure it didn't. He still reads them, and turns what he finds into plain answers on food, ingredients, supplements and health questions. He also runs the technical side of Vegan Pots. Not a doctor, just very thorough.