Hello everyone !
I am writing today about something that recently happened in Italy.
"Savino Law"
For those who don't know, the Savino Law is a bill proposed by Elvira Savino of the center-right Forza Italia party, a bill that will sentence to up to six years in prison , all parents who give their children (16 yo and under) a somehow inadequate diet.
Yes, we are talking about parents who subject their kids to vegan diets - the kind of diets without meat , eggs , dairy or any kind of animal products - that can and will leave children with a deficit of iron, zinc, B12 and so many other vitamins that are necessary for their development.
How ever , the Italian Society of Food Science, rejected Savino's assertions, saying that a diet containing excessive sugar and fat were a bigger concern than some vitamin deficit.
This Savino Law comes after a line of cases of malnutrition caused by veganism. Last month, a one year boy in Milan , raised on a strict vegan diet was removed from his parents custody, because he was found severely malnourished, weighing only 5 kg (11 lb). In June a two year old girl was admitted in a serious condition to a children's hospital in Genoa, because of vitamin deficiencies caused by a vegan diet. These are just 2 examples out of many cases happening in the last 18 months.
The dieticians such the American Dietetic Association said that vegan diets are suitable for children, but they also said , that the need for vitamins necessary for the development of children should be ensured. They also said that maybe the guardians of the hospitalized children did not understood how to supplement a vegan diet to make it safe for children, which in my opinion is a lot of bullshit.
What is VEGANISM?
A vegan diet eliminates anything that comes from animals:
No meat, fish, animal fats or gelatin
Image source
No dairy products such as cow's milk, cheese, butter, yogurt, goat's or sheep's milk
No eggs nor foods containing eggs
No honey
Elvira Savino also said:
There is no objection if the person making this choice is an informed adult. The problem arises when children are involved... The vegetarian or vegan diet is, in fact, deficient in zinc, iron, vitamin D, vitamin B12 and omega-3
So her draft bill aims to "stigmatize the reckless and dangerous eating behavior imposed by parents" who pursue a vegan diet, "to the detriment of minors".
According to her bill, offenders would face up to a year in jail , rising to a maximum of four years if the child suffers illness or permanent injury and six years in the case of death.
Some nutrition experts challenged the validity of the bill, while other commentators are worried about the imprecise wording, because it can be used against a far greater range of parents than vegans or vegetarians, for instance parents with obese children, which wouldn't be so bad , because obesity is becoming a great concern for Italy.
Even if Italy has one of the lowest adulthood obesity rates in Europe, approximately 10% of the population, the rates for childhood obesity are notoriously considered one of the highest, 36% for boys and 34% for girls.
There is a lot of controversy going around about vegan and vegetarian diets, but i do agree with the Savino Law simply because as an adult you can do anything you want, but please don't subject a child to your life style no matter what lifestyle you choose, because children have different needs compared to the needs of an adult.
I have nothing against veganism, or vegetarianism , i can see and understand the benefits of those diets , but i do have something against radicals and fanatics especially when minors who can't choose for themselves are involved and that's where the Savino Law comes in place. The bill will be discussed by parliamentary committees before it goes to the floor for debate. That is expected this year.Hopefully it will pass.
I only wish there would also be a bill for pets too, because there are a lot of animal owners who subject their pets to a vegan or vegetarian diet which is cruel and abnormal and goes back to different species having different needs.
Thank you for reading. Please state your opinion bellow in comments.
Sources:
http://easo.org/media-portal/country-spotlight/obesity-in-italy/