Vegetarian children are nearly twice as likely to be underweight as their meat-eating peers, a study has found.
Researchers led by St Michael's Hospital in Toronto, Canada, tracked 9,000 children — including 250 vegetarians — from about their second to fifth birthdays.
Those who stuck to a plant-based diet had the same height, body mass index (BMI) and nutrition on average as those who ate meat.
But they were also up to 94 per cent more likely to be underweight when their BMI was calculated.
Scientists suggested this may be because a plant-based diet does not contain enough nutrients for growing children.
But they added it might also be due to more Asian children being vegetarian, who BMI is more likely to show as being underweight.
Vegetarian children were nearly half as likely to be underweight as their peers, a study found (file photo)
Being a vegetarian has never been more popular in the U.S. in modern history, with about 10 percent of people now saying they only eat plant-based foods — compared to two percent as many decades ago.
Many health experts say it is perfectly possible to get all the nutrients you need with a 'well-planned' vegetarian diet.
But some European countries have warned against giving youngsters a vegan diet — which excludes eggs and milk — because of the risk of malnutrition.
