Don't mind me, I'm just one of those weirdo vegetarians...

Recently a Shine article about veganism was featured on the Yahoo! homepage. It was a good article, outlining the various foods that vegans don't eat, besides the obvious meat and dairy. But then I started to read the comments, and the amounts of-dare I say it?- ignorance shocked me.

"But if vegan mothers breastfeed, that makes them hypocrites!"
"But harvesting milk/eggs/honey doesn't hurt the animal, so what's the point?"
"Vegans are so puny and shriveled without protein!"
and even the utterly ridiculous "Hey vegans! I LOVE MEAT! haha"

I realize, of course, that this ignorance isn't entirely due to a lack of intrest, but rather a lack of widely available information. There are books, yes- The Omnivore's Dilemma and Eating Animals, but with a job to work and a family to take care of and a house to maintain, who has time to sit down and read a book about an issue they're not particularly concerned with?
I, as a 15 year old with nothing better to do, felt that I may as well take so time out of my "busy schedule" (busy being codeword for utterly non-existent) to address this issue, seeing as it's rather close to home.

First off, a look at the various types of diets.

Vegetarianism
No vegetarian will ever eat meat or fish. That means no beef or chicken broth, no bacon, no gravy, no fish tacos, no chicken salad, nothing. Anything with a central nervous system is off limits. But beyond that, what else you eat is determind by what type of vegetarian you are.

Ovo Vegetarianism
Ovo vegetarians will consume eggs, but not dairy; A popular choice for those with lactose intolerance.


Lacto Vegetarianism
Dairy will be consumed, but no eggs.

Lacto-Ovo Vegetarianism
You guessed it: Both eggs and dairy are eaten.

Keep in mind that there is room for improvisation within these categories. Some will use eggs only for cooking and baking; some need their ice cream fix, but omit all other dairy. Some eat cheese omelets, but have never purchased milk. My family, for instance, buys cheese and yogurt, uses eggs for cooking and baking, and consumes ice cream with alarming speed, but we don't drink milk, and we buy sour cream and cream cheese substitues. It all depends on your preferences, really.
Note that some vegetarians will also refrain from eating gelatin, as it's a direct by-product of animal slaughter.

Pescetarianism
Pescetarianism is not a form of vegetarianism. All it means is that you omit all types of meat but that of fish and shellfish from your diet. Generally speaking, this is a diet chosen by those who wish to avoid the risks associated with red meat.

Veganism
Vegans do not consume meat of any kind. Anything that had a mother is not considered acceptable. Furthermore, they avoid dairy, eggs, gelatin, leather, and honey, as well as anything else containing animal by-products, including wool and rennet (a dye often used to give cheddar that distinctive orange color).
They also avoid the dye carmine (sometimes listed as cochineal), as it's produced by drying Cochineal beetles and crushing them to a fine powder.

-I would like to point out that I am not a vegan, nor do I know any vegans, so all of the information listed here is ony what I have gathered from reading.-

Now to address the various myths and misunderstandings surrounding vegetarianism, veganism, and the reasons for these diets:

"If vegans breastfeed, that makes them hypocrites!"
Not quite.
Let's say the mother in question is an ethical vegan. This means she doesn't consume animal products because she doesn't feel that it is right for animals to have to suffer so much for her enjoyment. In breastfeeding her child, she is not suffering. She is consenting to feed her own child, and that consent is what separates her from the factory farmed animals of the world.
Let's say she's even a step past ethical veganism, and refuses to eat animal products because she simply believes that humans shouldn't be eating the spoils of animal life. Like my mother, she believes that cow's milk is for baby cows, and that sheep's milk is for baby sheep. Therefore, human milk is for baby humans.
She is not forcing her child to eat the very animal products that she shuns. Babies are made for breastmilk; they're what it's for.

"Vegetarians don't get enough protein!"
Myth. Protein is composed of eight essential amino acids. Dairy and eggs can provide these essential acids, and there are seven known vegetable sources with significant amounts of all eight acids: Buckwheat, lupin, quinoa, soy, hempseed, chia seed, and amaranth. While it is true that the average person does not consume significant amounts of these foods daily, it is also true that mixing and matching your amino acids is an acceptable substitute. Therefore, whole grain pita and hummus can provide you with virtually the same benefits as a steak, in terms of protein.

"Harvesting honey/milk/eggs doesn't hurt the animals...what's the point in abstaining?"
Actually, it does.
Let's start with milk. In order for a cow to produce milk, it has to have had a calf. But if a cow has a calf drinking its milk, how is any milk supposed to be harvested and sold? Simple: Take the calf away, stick it in a veal crate, and milk the mother mercilessly. When her milk production slows down, get her pregnant again, and repeat the process.
This is obviously not how nature intended, and the cow suffers. An average domestic cow's lifespan is generally 20 years, but a milking cow on a factory farm can often expect to live only half that long. They'e literally milked to death.

Then we have honey. Bees were not made to produce excessive amounts of honey. Honey is made by bees, for bees. Nature did not intend for us to smoke bees out so that we could harvest what is rightfully theirs. It is not natural, and therefore seen as unacceptable.

And last, but certainly not least, eggs. The chicken industry is arguably one of the most horrendous.
A laying chicken is stuffed in a cage. A very small cage. 9 inches by 9 inches, smaller than your average piece of printer paper.
These cages are often stacked 10 cages high. The cages are made of wire, which cuts through the birds' feet. They can't turn around, they can't spread their wings...and they're never taken out of these cages. Their beaks are removed, usually without anaesthesia.
These chickens are stuck indoors, and the light is manipulated in such a way as to make the chickens lay more eggs. In a natural setting, chickens only lay eggs in the warmer months. By controlling the light and temperature of these rooms, chickens are confused into believing that it's warm out, and therefore they can be made to lay eggs even in the dead of winter. Nevermind the stress this would put on such an animal.
Then there is the matter of male chicks. They can't lay eggs, and they haven't been bred to be a significant source of meat, so what happens to them?
They're thrown in wood chippers, electrocuted, or gassed to death.

"Plants and yeast are alive...so why do you eat those?"
No nervous system. They're alive, yes, but they don't have emotions. They don't experience family bonds, and they don't feel pain.

"Humans are made to eat meat!"
I, personally, feel that that's up for debate. We have canine teeth, yes, but the rest of our teeth are square, like those of herbivores. We're the only animals who can't stomach raw meat (although it is true that you can train yourself to withstand it). We can't hunt our food without weapons. And it's been proven that humans can thrive on a diet entirely without meat.


Just because we, as vegetarians and vegans, care about animal welfare, does not mean we ignore the plight of fellow human beings. Just because we choose not to eat meat, does not mean that we condemn you for not making the same choice. The only thing that ever bothers me, personally, is when someone justifies their meat-eaing by laboring under the delusion that animals are treated humanely during their life, and that they enjoy a quick and painless death, which is a blatant untruth. All decisions should be educated ones, including the decision to eat, or not eat, meat.
I will not preach to you about the horrors of the meat industry, if you don't preach to me about the supposed evils of a vegetarian diet.
Live and let live.

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