As the other responders said, this baby didn’t die because his parents are vegans. He died because his parents are morons.

There are vegan couples all over the world raising vegan babies with no problem, because they read basic baby books that tell everyone (vegan or otherwise) that giving an infant fruit juice is a bad idea. Breast milk is vegan, and it’s the healthiest thing for any baby, regardless of their parents’ diet.

Yes, this baby’s death was an absolute tragedy. But please don’t generalize about the “unnatural and crazy vegan diet” or that this is in any way “typical of vegetarians in America!” If this WAS typical of vegetarian and vegan parents, then there would be many more cases of infant malnutrition and death in the news! There are more of us vegan parents out there than you think, and most of us are very careful to feed our children appropriately.

The only proper food for a 6-week-old baby is either breastmilk or infant formula. Breastmilk is vegan, and soy formulas are an appropriate vegan alternative to cows milk-based formulas. Any parent who feeds their baby a diet of soymilk and apple juice is grossly misinformed and neglectful, and this has nothing to do with veganism.

I am the parent of 2 healthy, thriving vegan children - who are both tall for their age, have always had a healthy weight, and are very intelligent and have met all major milestones early. Our family physician has known about their veganism from day 1 and has never so much as commented about it, as she can see that they are clearly healthy. Please note that both the American Dietetic Association (ADA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) acknowledge that a well-planned vegan diet is adequate for all stages of life, including infancy.

LOL!