Difference Between Vegan And Vegetarian Diets
The two terms vegan and vegetarian create a lot of confusion and there are people who think both indicate the same food habit with different name. However they should not know that these two terms that stand for food habits are totally different.
According to dictionary those people who do not consume meat however eat eggs and other dairy products are called vegetarians. However the vegans do not eat any food stuff that is derived from animals. The vegan diet is indeed a strict one. But both the vegans and vegetarians are admirable as they modified their own lifestyle and food habits in a way that makes them feel happy and healthy. According to people the vegan diet is not a very exciting one. Their meal consist of plenty of fruits, grains, pulses, cereals, vegetables etc. A vegan meal is rich in fiber and while it is low in fat content there is almost no amount of cholesterol. A vegan meal can give you all the necessary nutrients minus the animal products. The main point for the vegan diet is that the food need not be of a good taste to be healthy.
However a vegetarian diet consists of plant products that may or may not include dairy products. However they do not consume any animal parts.
So we can see that a vegan diet consists of nothing that is associated with animals and the food that the vegans eat include all sorts of vegetables, cereals, pulses, whole grains, fruits and other allowed foods like maple syrup.
There are seven sorts of vegetarian diets.
1. Pescatarians- They do not eat any sort of meat except fish. It not a well known diet and not many people know about this either, however it is growing in popularity due to its health benefits.
2. Flexitarian- They are vegetarians but do eat meat occasionally.
3. Semi-vegetarians- These people do eat meat but their meat consumption is only related to chicken and fish.
4. Macrobiotic
5. Lacto vegetarian
6. Ovo vegetarian
7. Lacto-ovo vegetarian
Thus the differences between the two diets are evident. The knowledge will help people decide the diet of their own choice.