Meatless Monday: Vegetarian Teens!
By: Anneka Gerhardt
Published: July 5, 2010

More and more, kids are going veggie. According to a 2010 poll by the Vegetarian Resource Group, a full seven percent of teens (age 8-18) are vegetarian, up from one percent in 1997. Of the vegetarians, one-third (approximately 1% of the US youth population) also abstain from eating eggs, dairy, and honey and fall under the classification of vegan.
Teens decide to go vegetarian for reasons ranging from animal rights concerns to desire for a better diet and health—but often, non-veggie parents are the ones with heightened anxiety in the wake of a teen swearing off meat. Before the Food Pyramid debuted in 1992, the United States Department of Agriculture recommend the Basic Four: meat, dairy, grains, and fruits/veggies. Parents of young veggies struggle with the idea of their children giving up one or even two of the Basic Four—how could it possibly be healthy for a still-growing young adult?  It can be! Check out this vegan food pyramid:

Veggie kids are also making efforts to mold a meat-eating world to their needs. For example, 17-year-old New Yorker Jay Astafovic decided to become vegetarian and then vegan while working at his family’s pizzeria. The New York Times quotes Jay as saying, “I would look at all those pizzas” topped with cheese, “and wish there was a vegan option.”Jay has helped his family pioneer a veg-friendly menu, including vegan versions of meat-eater Italian staples such as chicken parmesan. Check out a CBS Health and Wellness three-minute feature on Jay and his vegan pizza here.
Vegan kids like Jay are demanding tofurkey at Thanksgiving and veggie burgers during summer barbecues, and opting for veggie wraps for lunch. As long as parents are careful to help their veggie teens maintain a nutritional diet, going vegetarian be beneficial in terms of not only health but also carbon footprint. Vegetarian high school students can even win college scholarships of $5000 from the Vegetarian Resource Group.
Some easy vegetarian recipes to get you (and your teens!) cooking:
Vegetarian Meatballs 
Vegetarian Tacos
Golden Onion Quiche
Aubergine Rolls

Comments:
Penny

This is a great article! I'm a veggie teen and I love these ideas, which I'll definitely be incorporating into my recently new lifestyle in the future. I heard about Jay's story and think it's really great. I've also grown to love tofurky and so have my parents too. I think it would be great if you did a post about top vegetarian brands too. I know that some of my favorites are Kashi, Amy's and Tastybite, but I'm always looking for more. Lately I really can't get enough of Tastybite's Peas Paneer and Jaipur Vegetables - and they only take 90 seconds to make. These are great to take with me to school because the only vegetarian options offered inthe cafeteria are pretty unhealthy. So thanks for the great article and can't wait to hear what you have to say!
Japanese knotweed

Hey i think its great to let children gain an understanding of their own free will when it comes to food. If the child wants to be a veggie than i would definetly encourage it, however I think when adults have a stong influence on their child because they are themselves a vegetaitian i believe this is wrong. 
Thanks for the post