Monday, June 9, 2008

First, they came for the polygamists . . .

. . . now, they come for the vegans:
A 12-year-old girl in Scotland brought up by her parents on a strict vegan diet has been admitted to hospital with a degenerative bone condition said to have left her with the spine of an 80-year-old woman.
Doctors are under pressure to report the couple to police and social workers amid concerns that her health and welfare may have been neglected in pursuit of their dietary beliefs.
The girl, who has been fed on a strict meat and dairy-free diet from birth, is said to have a severe form of rickets and to have suffered a number of fractured bones.
The condition is caused by a lack of vitamin D, which is needed to absorb calcium and is found in liver, oily fish and dairy produce.
Decalcification leads to the bones becoming brittle and can cause curvature of the spine.
Of course, there are vegetable sources of vitamin D, but apparently the girl's parents were ignorant of that fact.

Our family is vegetarian, but not strictly so. We seldom eat meat at home, but if we're out somewhere and want a cheeseburger or a Chic-Fil-A, that's no problem. And the dairy-free thing is not something we've ever worried about. Soy milk and soy cheese are far more expensive than the real deal.

Parents who would allow ill-informed fanaticism to ruin a child's health, as has evidently happened with this Scottish girl, are without excuse. You'd think someone might have noticed this before the kid turned 12, though.

All six of our children are vigorously healthy, and if a few animals have been "oppressed" to achieve that results, well ... my apologies to the cattle and poultry communities. My kids come first.

BTW, the animal-rights movement stinks.

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