Information About Vegetarians and Vegans

 There are a few terms, concerning vegetarians and vegans that you may not be all that familiar with.  You may have read about vegetarians, semi vegetarians, ovo lacto vegetarians, and vegans, and wondered what the differences are.

The term vegetarian is a general term covering people who do not eat meat, poultry or seafood.  Although this overall term includes vegans, and other types of vegetarians, it is usually applied to those who are less strict than vegans.

Semi-vegetarian is a term that is used by people who, strictly speaking, are not vegetarians, as they may eat meat occasionally.  It may also apply to those who do not consume red meat, but do eat poultry and fish.

Ovo vegetarians are similar to vegans, but not as strict because they do eat eggs.   They believe that the free range, or organic variety, do not involve the cruelty associated with eggs from battery hens.

Lacto vegetarians are almost as strict as vegans except that they do consume milk.

Vegan is the term used to describe the strictest vegetarians.  Vegans totally exclude all animal by products from their diets.  There are some vegans who go even further and exclude honey and yeast, and may also avoid clothing, made from animal products, such as leather, and even silk.

There is much to consider in deciding what type of vegetarian to become.  As we have shown there are choices, and we hope that the information we have provided will assist you in deciding what is right for you.