Guest Post By Louise Palmer Masterton, Stem & Glory¦ Having experienced first-hand advice from family and so-called ‘experts’ on the subject of veganism, I found that throw vegan pregnancy into the mix, and suddenly it becomes about moral choices. Veganism is ok it seems when it’s our own choice, but can be questioned when we’re dealing with an unborn child. The idea that we’re omnivorous and therefore a vegan diet cannot be safe in pregnancy is a fairly widely held view.
Personally, my experience with being vegan during pregnancy is that it was completely normal. I had no morning sickness, no cravings, no complications, no deficiencies and delivered both my children safely at home. For both pregnancies, I did take a pregnancy multivitamin, and the recommended folic acid. I said to myself when I first became pregnant that if I craved something in pregnancy, then I would eat it. Fortunately, I didn’t have any cravings.
Writing this article got me wondering if my experience was an isolated one, or if in fact many vegan women experience completely problem free pregnancies like I did.
I spoke to seven women who had been vegan through pregnancy (sometimes multiple pregnancies), and here is what they told me: