> From: Linda Burton <lburton@cce.cornell.edu>

> Anytime you recommend the avoidance of a complete food group,

> you run the risk of an unbalanced diet.

A what?? Even the USDA has given up the notion of food groups and their

implication that meat and dairy are necessary and are (each!) as important

as fruits and vegetables combined.

> Although some vegans can plan a

> balanced diet without dairy products, it takes a lot of conscious effort

> that you will not get from ALL moms.

Let's see.... Eat enough calories; take some calcium supplements (iff you

don't eat enough kale and such); make sure you are out in the sun a tiny

bit (or eat some other food that is fortified with vitamin D); and....

Hmmm, that's about it. I would hope that someone who is about to raise a

child could muster that "lot of conscious effort". It is certainly

trivial compared to the total attention that eating a healthy diet

(omnivorous or vegan) requires.

Whether or not the reasons for pregnant or lactating women to avoid dairy

are stronger than the reasons for the rest of us to do so, the reasons for

them to seek it out are no more compelling (i.e., not at all so).

--Carl Phillips, PhD

U of Michigan SPH