The lifestyle of a vegetarian is not always an easy one to choose. Vegetarians must give up eating any types of meat, fish or shellfish. Some vegetarians also eliminate eggs from their diets. There are others who also eliminate eating any dairy products; these are lacto-vegetarians. Ovo-vegetarians do eat eggs, but do not eat any animal by-products such as gelatin.

Even though vegetarians do not eat meat or fish, most of them will still wear and use products from animals such as leather or wool.

There is a lot of misunderstanding when it comes to being a vegan or a vegetarian. A vegan changes his entire lifestyle by eliminating any animal products. This would include food, clothing and all animal by-products. Vegans avoid eating meats, fish, shellfish, milk, honey, eggs, or any other product derived from animals or fish. Vegans are totally against animal testing and will never wear clothing or use products made of fur, leather or wool. They will never use make-up or shampoos that have been tested on animals. Even medicines that use animal products are not taken by vegans.

The vegan lifestyle is a completely compassionate philosophy and there are no exceptions to these rules according to http://slowfoodnetwork.com/. The vegetarian lifestyle is a lot more relaxed in this concept, however, animals are still the main reason for this choice of eating.

There are a few vegetarians that will not eat meat or poultry, but still consume fish. This practice is called pescetarianism.

There are many health benefits of eating vegetarian or vegan diets. These diets are very high in fiber and low in saturated fats and carbs. This alone gives vegans and vegetarians great advantages over their meat-eating counterparts. This lifestyle also allows a much lower risk in heart disease or cancers. The average lifespan of a vegetarian is also longer than those who eat meats.

Studies have shown that when a person practices a basic vegan or vegetarian lifestyle religiously, it will have other healthy habits because they will not have unhealthy habits. These would include smoking, drinking, not exercising enough. Vegans and vegetarians tend to be happier and healthier than they ever were before. There were also studies done that have showed vegetarians and vegans having a higher than average income with a higher level of education. Good health and happy living contribute greatly to making a person’s life complete. Additionally, vegans and vegetarians appear to need less medicines and can live to be more active even in old age.