Do vegetarian moms lead to troubled teens?

Q: I just read that because I’m a vegetarian — and will be when I get pregnant — my kids will be at increased risk for alcohol, cigarette and marijuana use as teenagers. That seems insane! What is that all about? — Sharon F., Charlotte, North Carolina

A: The information you’re referring to was generated from data on 5,109 women and their children in a long-running study in England called ALSPAC (the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children). Overall, about 10 percent of 15-year-olds smoked at least once a week, used moderate amounts of marijuana and drank enough to cause behavior problems. But teens of vegetarian moms were 75 percent more likely to have alcohol-related issues, 85 percent more likely to smoke cigarettes and 2.7 times more likely to smoke marijuana than teens whose moms ate meat when pregnant. That’s what’s making headlines.

But when the researchers looked more closely at their data, they found that both vegetarian and meat-eating moms who lack genes that help the body absorb and use vitamin B-12 and deliver it to the fetus, have kids with a greater risk for those behavior problems.

Among meat-eating and vegetarian moms who have the genes that help make sure B-12 is delivered into their bloodstream, well, in that subset, vegetarian moms are more likely to have at-risk teens. That may be because B-12 is easiest to get from meat and a lack of B-12 affects fetal brain development, causing poorer impulse control as a teen.

The lesson? Vegetarian or a meat-eater, pregnant or not, get a good supply of essential nutrients. Have your B-12 levels checked, and take supplements if your doctor recommends them. Make sure you’re eating nine servings (think handfuls) of produce daily, skip highly processed foods and added sugar and syrups in foods and beverages. Then protect yourself with half a prenatal multivitamin morning and night starting three months prior to and during pregnancy. Not only will your children get appropriate B-12, but they will have 80 percent fewer congenital defects of any cause, 65 percent fewer childhood cancers to age 6 and 40 percent fewer autism spectrum disorders.