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Experimenting with a vegetarian diet is almost a rite of passage for many teens, although it can create a bit of meal-time tension in meat-loving families.

"Parents need to respect their teen's right to consider this dietary alternative. If they don't, it can quickly escalate into a control issue," says Becky Gorham, a registered dietitian with the USDA's Children's Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine. "A teen's interest in vegetarianism can be triggered by a need for independence and identity, health or environmental concerns and even peer pressure."

Not every teen who tries a meat-free diet will remain a vegetarian. But, to make sure this dietary journey is a healthy one, Gorham offers the following tips:

• Ask your teen what vegetarianism means to him or her and how the new diet will be implemented. Some teens might only wish to eliminate red meat, while others might have more limiting plans in mind.
• "Assure your teen that vegetarian diets can be healthy, but they take planning," Gorham says. The best vegetarian diets are not overly low in fat, include a variety of foods, provide all necessary nutrients and enough calories for growth. Those that are poorly conceived can jeopardize growth and health.
• Avoid becoming a short-order cook. "Although supporting your teen's decision is important, it's fair to expect them to help plan their meals, shop, and prepare special foods," she says.
• Follow the general guidelines of the USDA's Food Guide Pyramid to help teens plan a nutritionally complete diet. This includes a minimum of 6 servings of grain-based foods, 4 of milk or other high-calcium food, 2 of fruit, 3 of vegetables, and 2 or more servings of protein-rich foods each day.

Healthy protein-rich alternatives for meat-free teens include fish, eggs, dairy foods, soy-based meat substitutes, legumes, peanut butter and nuts. If dairy products are also excluded, insist that teens consume calcium-fortified juices, cereals and soy milks, and high-calcium vegetables, such as kale and broccoli. Vegetarian girls can also have difficulty getting enough iron on a meat-free diet, and any teen who completely eliminates dairy and animal products can also run low on protein, calcium, zinc, and vitamins B-12 and D. Soy-based foods, a daily vitamin and mineral supplement and calcium-fortified foods can generally safeguard against these problems.

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©2006 Texas Medical Center

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