The Difference Between Vegan and Vegetarian

By Lisa (Guest Post)

I am vegan, have been for 6 years and its been the best thing I've done for myself! There is a lot of heart disease/diabetes in my family and I am the only one who isn't on medication. :) Some vegans do eat honey too, I am one of them. My naturalpath says thats why my skin looks great and I look 10 years younger than my age. I write a series of zines and articles about veganism if you are interested: http://goddessfreya.googlepages.com

By (Guest Post)

True vegetarians do not eat any flesh, from any animal, including seafood. Some eat eggs, or dairy products, or a combination of both. Ethical Vegetarians also do not use any products that contain animal flesh (leather, for example), or use products tested on animals. Vegans do not eat or use anything derived from an animal in any way. This includes honey, silk, wool, etc.

Many people will call themselves vegetarians, but still consume poultry or seafood. They are not true vegetarians.

By

Jilson

In general, vegans also do not use things like leather or other products that may have animal origins, too. Complete vegans are not as common as other "vegetarians", and they are usually very careful eaters. My 16-year-old daughter is an "ovo-lacto-vegetarian", meaning she will eat eggs and drink milk and eat milk products, such as cheese, yogurt, etc. She will not eat every brand of yogurt, as many contain gelatin--which is a meat product. Gummy candies and marshmallows also contain gelatin; though marshmallow fluff does not, and there are vegetarian friendly gummies available. We also watch labels on instant soups and flavorings, such as the packets in ramen noodles, as they contain chicken fat. The food coloring "carmine" is an insect by-product, (also called "crimson lake" or "natural red #4").

We just do a lot of label reading. It has not been difficult to help her keep meat out of her life. The rest of the family continues to eat meat, but she doesn't feel pressured to do so. The biggest thing she had to learn to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle was to be aware of her protein needs and learn how to obtain protein from alternate sources. She chose to stop eating meat at 13, and probably knows more about nutrition than most adults!

By

cjgeo

Vegans eat nothing that comes from any animal. No fish, no cheese, no milk.

By ps (Guest Post)

No honey either.

By

MCW

I'm vegetarian and not vegan because the body needs some form of Vitamin B-12 to function properly. I drink rice milk and not cow's milk because the hormones cause me to put on added weight. I eat eggs and cheese, but don't eat poultry or meat. I eat fish in place of the poultry and meat for the Vitamin B-12.

Six years ago I chose a vegetarian life style for health reasons.