Vegan diet blamed for malnutrition in family.

June 17, 2008

Yet another lie about vegan diets - only this was a raw diet; not just vegan. Probably paid for by the beef and dairy industry. Holly Paige thought her family's food regime would boost their health– but stick-thin legs and rotten teeth made her think again...One morning over breakfast, Holly Paige looked at her daughter andrealised things weren't right. Lizzie should have been flourishing.Instead, her cheeks were pinched, she was small for her age, andalthough she had skinny arms and legs, her belly was big and swollen.When Lizzie smiled, Paige suddenly noticed her upper front teeth werepitted with holes."I was absolutely horrified," recalls Paige.At the time, Paige was feeding them what she thought was the mostnutritious diet possible. They had been raw vegans for three years,and ate plenty of fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, grains,

soya andpulses, but no meat, fish or dairy. According to the raw-fooddoctrine, Lizzie and Bertie, then three and four-and-a-half, shouldhave been brimming with good health. But Paige's mothering instinctwas on the alert."I knew something was wrong, but I couldn't put a finger on it," saysPaige, 45. "They were two sizes behind in clothes. Of course, childrencome in all different shapes and sizes, but their growth seemed to beslowing further. I have two older children so I had their developmentto measure Lizzie and Bertie's against."...Finally, Paige stumbled across the answer in an old vitamin book.Although she has no medical confirmation, she believes the family hadsymptoms of vitamin D- and protein-deficiency. "I felt like such anidiot. I got the information from a book I'd had sitting around on myshelf for 20 years."The discovery brought a swift end to her experience of veganism. InTotnes, where

she lives, Paige knows many other raw vegans who have anature-loving lifestyle. But despite taking a daily supplement thatincluded vitamin D and B12, she and the children were suffering.Today, the family still mainly has a raw diet, but Paigeincludesbutter, cheese, eggs and occasionally fish. "I had let malnutrition inthrough the back door in the name of health," says Paige. "It wasridiculous."There is a significant difference between being vegan (and eatingcooked foods) and raw vegan. Vegans benefit from fortified cereals,baked goods and a wider variety of grains and pulses; what's more,cooking aids the absorption of some micronutrients. But Lisa Miles,from the British Nutrition Foundation, says: "The most dramatic changeto the diet is being vegan rather than the raw element, because youare cutting out two huge food groups. This affects vitamin D andprotein."Last week, strict diets for children were

questioned after a12-year-old vegan girl was admitted to a Scottish hospital withrickets. Her spine was said to resemble that of an 80-year-old woman.-- full story:http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-wellbeing/healthy-living/how-our-vegan-diet-made-us-ill-848322.html http://pets.Fortheanimals7/join http://www.myspace.com/fortheanimals7