Just what does being a vegetarian mean?
Vegetarianism is the habit of consuming a diet containing mainly or wholly of food that originates from plant sources (such as grains, nuts, fruit and vegetables). A vegetarian can hence broadly be described as a person who does not consume meat, fish, poultry or any slaughterhouse by-product such as gelatin – particularly for moral, religious, political or health reasons. Environmentalism and vegetarianism are also often practised together.
With that in mind, vegetarians are sometimes sub-categorised by the kind of ingredients they are or are not ready to eat. Naturally, vegetarian diet plans will vary greatly and there are lots of different kinds of vegetarians.
Semi-vegetarians
Semi-vegetarian diet plans consist largely of vegetarian foods, but might include fish or poultry, or some other meats on an intermittent basis.
In this case, the vegetarians involved will likely define “meat” only as mammalian flesh. A pescetarian diet, for instance, is said to incorporate fish, but not meat – so there’s plainly believed to be a distinction between the two.
The common use correlation and uncertainty between such diets and true vegetarianism has encouraged vegetarian communities (for example, the Vegetarian Society) to announce that diets containing these food types aren’t in actuality vegetarian, by reason of fish and birds being animals.
Ovo-vegetarians
In this instance, the eating regimen includes eggs, but excludes dairy products.
Ethical reasons for excluding dairy products correspond with issues with the industrial practices. By way of example, the practice of trying to keep a cow always pregnant to enable her to lactate and the slaughter of unwanted male calves. Additional concerns are the common practice of splitting up the mother from her calf and denying the calf its natural source of milk.
This contrasts with the industrial practices for egg-laying hens, which produce eggs for human ingestion without having to be fertilized. However, ovo-vegetarians typically prefer free-range eggs, specifically those made by uncaged hens.
Individuals that practice ovo vegetarianism are called ovo-vegetarians or “eggetarians.”
Lacto-vegetarian
A lacto vegetarian (occasionally termed as a lactarian) dietary regimen consists of dairy products (for instance milk, cheese, yogurt, butter, cream etc), but excludes eggs. Lacto-vegetarians also refrain from cheeses that include animal rennet and yoghurts which contain gelatin.
The reasoning behind and exercise of lacto-vegetarianism by a large amount of people arises from ancient India and was initially founded on faith. Even now, lacto-vegetarian diet plans are typically popular with quite a few followers of Eastern religious ways of life such as Hinduism, Sikhism, Jainism, and Buddhism. The key tenet behind a lacto-vegetarian diet is the law of ahimsa, or non-violence.
Ovo-lacto vegetarian
An ovo-lacto vegetarian (or lacto-ovo vegetarian) is a vegetarian who does not ingest animal flesh of any type, but is able to eat dairy and egg items. This way of vegetarianism, as with the rest, is frequently inspired by moral issues. Having said that, the inclusion of dairy and egg products is acceptable on the basis that they don’t require the slaughter of the animals (though see the points of ovo-vegetarians and lacto-vegetarians respectively relating to the treatment of dairy cows and hens).
In the Western world, ovo-lacto vegetarians are the most usual variety of vegetarian. Typically, whenever someone uses the word “vegetarian”, an ovo-lacto vegetarian is assumed.
Vegan
Veganism is the individual behavior of wiping out the utilisation and consumption of animal products. A vegan eating plan thus excludes all animal products, including eggs, dairy and honey.
Additionally, veganism is apt also to exclude animal products even where these don’t require the loss of life of the animal (for example wool). In comparison, the majority of vegetarians simply do not wear clothes made of leather, fur, or any type of animal product which necessitated the destruction of the animal.
Ethical vegans refuse the commodity status of animals and the usage of animal products for any purpose, while dietary vegans or strict vegetarians remove them from their diet only.
The expression “vegan” was created in England in 1944 by Donald Watson, co-founder of the British Vegan Society, to signify “non-dairy vegetarian“; the society also opposed the use of eggs as food. It extended its definition in 1951 to mean “the doctrine that man should live without exploiting animals,” and in 1960 H. Jay Dinshah started the American Vegan Society, linking veganism to the Jainist concept of ahimsa, the avoidance of violence against living things.
Veganism is a small, but increasing, movement. In 2007, 2% of the British population termed themselves vegans.
The Vegetarian Society
The Vegetarian Society is an educational charity “working to support, represent and increase the number of vegetarians in the UK”. Established in 1847, it is the oldest vegetarian organisation on the earth.
Diet and supplementation
If you are a vegetarian or vegan, you’ll probably recognise how difficult it can be to make certain that you’re getting all of the vitamins, minerals and nutrients you need daily.
Plant-based eating regimes lead to certain health challenges should be borne in mind. One example is, they often have a notably low intake of protein (not surprisingly), vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, iron, zinc and omega-3 fatty acids. There are also particular nutrients (most notably B12) which are observed chiefly in animal-based products or don’t seem to be assimilated as effectively in their plant form.
Step one
The 1st step is to positively design a nutritious and well-balanced diet regime, which recognises both the benefits and the challenges of a vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. For anyone who is finding it too hard to keep up the necessary amount of calories and/or protein (for instance, you may not like beans!), you could think about dietary health supplements.
Meal replacement powders and protein powders are great ways to enhance the nutritional content of a vegetarian or vegan diet and ensure that you’re getting all of the protein, healthy calories, vitamins and minerals that you require on a daily basis.
Try our terrific dairy and gluten free meal replacement, MEALtime Protein Drink. MEALtime is a soya-based protein drink liquid meal high in quality protein, complex carbohydrates and nutrients. This protein drink powder (with added psyllium husks for colon detoxification and cleansing), is the ideal solution for vegetarians and vegans aiming to maintain optimum nutrient intake and high energy levels. Best of all, it is dairy and gluten free, which makes it suitable for people who have delicate stomachs and people who suffer from celiac disease and dairy allergies.
The 2nd step
The second step is to check your weight. One common concern is that, oftentimes, vegetarians and vegans don’t take in enough calories or protein to keep up their weight. Again, if your are finding it an effort to fulfill these requirements through food, dietary supplementation (through meal replacements, protein powders or vitamin supplements) can offer a fast and convenient method to top-up on nutrients.
The third step
The third step is to start exercising regularly.
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