LK: How old are your kids?

EL: We have two kids that are both being raised vegan. One who is five, and can lift a Volkswagen over his head, one who is three-and-half, who tears around the apartment on her scooter and bike at breakneck speeds. Both have been vegan since birth.

As vegan parents we knew immediately we would be raising our kids vegan; there was just no other option as we saw it. Our entire household, including our dog, is vegan.

Once you understand the benefits of a vegan diet for human health, the sustainability of the planet, and for the animals, we clearly know we’re doing the right thing for our kids. As expected, there are other, well-intended friends and family members who think otherwise and have both cautioned us about our choices or judge us because we are raising them vegan.

As I said, they are well-intended.

Guaranteed, they wouldn’t say one word if we were raising them on the Standard American Diet (SAD) or taking them to McDonald’s for a Happy Meal. “Happy Meal,” by the way as its marketed by McDonald’s, is the ultimate oxymoron. The way we think about raising our kids vegan is that we’re giving them an advantage they will thank us for later in life.

LK: Are there challenges you experience raising kids vegan (either from your kids or school/ caregivers, peers, pediatricians, etc) and how do you handle them?

EL: While there are challenges to raising vegan kids there is nothing insurmountable as 75% of what everyone else eats, on a balanced diet, is vegan anyway. The occasional birthday party, which in our case is as many as two per weekend, where we didn’t come well-prepared or the school snacks that consists mostly of dairy and egg-laden ingredients, or the grandparent who feels the need to ask if they can have a piece of fruit (yes, this happens — actual fruit); we’ve easily overcome these challenges, so far.