Vegetarianism and veganism - what's the difference?
All vegetarians avoid, to some degree, animal foods - fish, poultry, meat, and dairy - but to what degree is the one's choice. So-called semi-vegetarians avoid meat but still eat poultry and other animal foods. Lacto-ovo-vegetarians avoid poultry, fish and meat but do consume milk and eggs. Lacto-vegetarians don't eat any animal foods other than milk products.
In addition to being vegetarian, vegans do not use other animal products and by-products such as eggs, dairy products, honey, leather, fur, silk, wool, cosmetics, and soaps derived from animal products. Many vegans choose this lifestyle to promote a more humane and caring world believing they have a responsibility to try to do their best to not support animal exploitation.
Vegans feel that consuming eggs and dairy products only promotes the livestock industry and supports the intensive rearing of animals in bad conditions. And these animals will be more likely be sold for meat purposes once egg and milk productivity drops off.
Common vegan foods include oatmeal, cereal, toast, orange juice, peanut butter on whole wheat bread, frozen fruit desserts, lentil soup, stir-fried vegetables, salads, dates, apples, macaroni, fruit smoothies, spaghetti, vegetarian baked beans, guacamole, chili and lots more tasty foods. Soy products often form the basis of many dishes including soy ice cream, soy yogurt, soy milk, soy hot dogs. Other treats include rice pudding, banana muffins, spinach pies, oat nut burgers, falafel, corn fritters, pumpkin casserole and scrambled tofu.
It really is a matter of planning your meals to exclude animal products altogether while ensuring you get proper nutrition, including proteins, fats minerals, and vitamins, from the alternative foods.
