Are Vegetarian or Vegan Diets Healthier?
A healthy diet depends more on what is eaten than what is not eaten. Simply eliminating meat (or all animal products) from the diet does not necessarily make it healthier. For example, a diet consisting of plenty of whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and a good source of calcium can be healthy whether the protein sources are from lean meats, eggs, and (non- & low-fat) dairy products, or from non-animal protein sources such as beans, seeds, or soy-based meat substitutes. There are several different types of vegetarian diets, depending on whether dairy and/or eggs are used as protein sources. An ovo-vegetarian diet includes eggs, but no dairy products, while a lacto-vegetarian diet contains dairy products, but no eggs. A lacto-ovo vegetarian diet includes dairy products and eggs. In contrast, a vegan diet consists only of foods derived from plant sources and excludes all dairy products and eggs. People who only eat fish or poultry may refer to themselves as vegetarian; however, they actua
