I was very disappointed to look in Lawrences 94 edition
and see that she has perpetuated the incorrect myth that
vegans must use complimentary proteins at a single meal.
This is very out-dated info, and as a vegan myself, I get
really tired of hearing it.  I can tell you that if you
start preaching this stuff to a well-read vegan mom, you
will lose a lot of credibility.  When I was at the LLLI
Lactation Specialist Workshop this year, I was thrilled to
hear the speaker say that this myth was debunked by the
American Dietetic Assn several years ago.
   About B-12...a mom really only needs to worry about this
if she has absolutely no animal products at all for several
years, since B-12 is stored for years in the body, and we
don't need very much of it.  As a vegan myself, I doubt that
I ever go more than a few months without any animal products
at all, because I do find myself in the unfortunate position
sometimes of either eating cheese or nothing at all.  Also,
tempeh (fermented soybeans) contain B-12, and many vegans
eat this.
   To educate yourself on this topic, I'd suggest two
well-written and wonderfully referenced books:  May All Be
Fed by John Robbins (also contains a chapter on artifical
feeding of babies that will make you cheer loudly!) or The
McDougall Program by John McDougall, MD.  Both of these
books contain accurate up-to-date info on vegan diets.
BTW, if you want to sound really credible when talking about
these things, be sure to pronouce vegan correctly (it's
vee'-gun).
  I hope it doesn't sound like I'm on a soap-box, because I
try to limit myself to presentations on breastfeeding.
:)  Hope this info helps.          Debby Boehle, IBCLC