"Vegan" redirects here. For other uses, see Vegan (disambiguation).

Simple example of possible vegan lunch or dinner option: pumpkin seed-

crusted lentil patties with roasted garlic mashed potatoes and salad.

Veganism is a philosophy and lifestyle whose adherents seek to exclude

the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose.[1][2] Vegans
endeavor not to use or consume animal products of any kind.[3] The most
common reasons for becoming a vegan are human health, ethical
commitment or moral conviction concerning animal rights or welfare, the
environment, and spiritual or religious concerns.[2][4][5] Of particular concern
to many vegans are the practices involved in factory farming and animal
testing, and the intensive use of land and other resources for animal
farming.

Properly planned vegan diets are healthful and have been found to satisfy
nutritional needs, and offer protection against heart disease, cancer, and
other diseases.[6][7] Various polls have reported vegans to be between
0.2%[4] and 1.3%[8] of the U.S. population, and ranging from 0.25%[5] 0.4%[9]
to 2%[10] of the UK population.

Contents

[hide]

• 1 History
• 2 Definition
• 3 Animal products
• 4 Demographics
• 5 Ethics
o 5.1 Philosophical foundations
o 5.2 Advocacy organizations
o 5.3 Criticisms
o 5.4 Debate over animals killed in crop
harvesting
• 6 Health
o 6.1 Dietetic association positions
o 6.2 Nutritional benefits
 6.2.1 Mental health benefits
o 6.3 Nutritional concerns
 6.3.1 Specific nutrients
 6.3.1.1 Vitamin B12
 6.3.1.2 Iron
 6.3.1.3 Calcium, vitamin D
  6.3.1.4 Iodine
 6.3.1.5 Choline
 6.3.2 Pregnancies and children
 6.3.3 Eating disorders
• 7 Resources and the environment
• 8 Similar diets and lifestyles
• 9 Cuisine
• 10 See also
• 11 Notes
• 12 References

• 13 External links

[edit] History

The Vegan Society was founded in 1944 by Donald Watson and Elsie
Shrigley in order to organize vegetarians who did not consume dairy or
other animal products.[11] The first vegan society in the United States was
founded in California in 1948 by Dr. Catherine Nimmo and Rubin
Abramowitz[12] and was subsequently incorporated into the American
Vegan Society after its founding in 1960 by Jay Dinshah.[13] In 1984, a
"breakaway" group from the Vegan Society, the Movement for
Compassionate Living, was founded by former Vegan Society secretary
Kathleen Jannaway to promote sustainable living and self-sufficiency in
addition to veganism.[14] Today, there are many vegan societies worldwide,
including national societies in Australia, India, New Zealand, and South
Africa.[nb 1] In 1993, the advocacy organization which would become Vegan
Outreach was founded by Matt Ball and Jack Norris.[15]

In 1994, the annual World Vegan Day was established on November 1 by

the then President and Chair of the Vegan Society, Louise Wallis.[16]

[edit] Definition

Donald Watson, creator of the term vegan, and founder of the Vegan
Society.

The word "vegan" was coined in 1944 by Donald Watson, founder of the
Vegan Society, who combined the first three and last two letters of
vegetarian to form "vegan," which he saw as "the beginning and end of
vegetarian."[11][17] "Vegan" is pronounced /ˈviːɡən/.[18] Some people
pronounce "vegan" as /ˈvɛdʒən/,[19] but Watson and the North American
Vegetarian Society consider the latter pronunciation to be incorrect.[20]
In 1951, the Vegan Society formally defined veganism as "the doctrine
that man should live without exploiting animals.” According to this
understanding, veganism is not itself a set of actions or practices but
instead “a principle, from which certain practices logically flow.”[21]

The Vegan Society has also used other definitions, which put more
emphasis on veganism as a practice or lifestyle:

[T]he word "veganism" denotes a philosophy and way of living which

seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practical — all forms of
exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other
purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-
free alternatives for the benefit of humans, animals and the environment.
In dietary terms it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products
derived wholly or partly from animals.[1]

Other vegan societies use similar definitions.[22][23][24] In addition, the words

“vegan” and “veganism” are often used to refer to a plant-based diet
alone, without any connection to ethical or social motivations. Activists
commonly argue for different interpretations of the terms, and an agreed-
upon definition is hard to come by.

[edit] Animal products

Main article: Animal product

An animal product is any material derived from animals.[2] Notable animal

products include meat, poultry, seafood, eggs, dairy products, honey, fur,
leather, wool, and silk.[3] Common animal products also include gelatin,
lanolin, rennet, whey, casein, beeswax, isinglass, carmine, and shellac.[3]

Animal products such as ground bone and powdered fish organs may be
used in the production of a product although they may not appear as an
ingredient in the final product.[25][26][27] Many of these ingredients are
obscure,[28][29] may also have non-animal sources,[30] and may not even be
identified.[25] Although the organization Vegan Outreach has the opinion
that "it can be prohibitively expensive and time-consuming to shun every
minor or hidden animal-derived ingredient",[31][32] the Vegan Society will
not certify a product as vegan unless its production does not involve, or
have involved, the use of any animal product, by-product or derivative.[33]

Different groups disagree about some of the items to be excluded. Neither

the Vegan Society nor the American Vegan Society consider the use of
honey or other insect products to be suitable for vegans.[34][35] On the other
hand, both Vegan Action and Vegan Outreach question the ethical basis of
such a position[nb 2] and regard the consumption of honey as a matter of
"personal choice."[36][37]

[edit] Demographics

Data regarding the number of vegans is available in some countries.

United States
United States Representative Dennis Kucinich and his wife Elizabeth. The
Kuciniches like other notable persons, are known in part for their veganism
and support of animal welfare.[38][39]

A 2002 Time/CNN poll found that 4% of American adults identify as

vegetarians, and 5% of vegetarians identify as vegans, which implies that
0.2% of American adults are vegans.[4][nb 3] In 2008, Harris Interactive
conducted a survey for Vegetarian Times, which indicated that
approximately 0.5% of Americans identify as vegan.[40] Harris Interactive
also conducted surveys for the Vegetarian Resource Group in both 2006
and 2009. The survey listed specific foods and asked respondents to
indicate which items they never eat, rather than asking respondents to
self-identify as vegetarian or vegan. In 2006, 1.4% of respondents
reported never eating meat, poultry, fish, seafood, dairy products, or eggs
and were thus essentially vegan in their eating habits.[8] In 2009, 1.3% of
respondents reported never eating these products, including 0.8% of
respondents who also avoided honey.[41] The 2006 survey found that about
1.4% of men and 1.3% of women have vegan diets.[8] According to an
Aramark survey, one of every four college students in the U.S. is seeking
vegan options on campus.[42]

United Kingdom

In 2002, the UK Food Standards Agency carried out a National Diet and
Nutrition Survey, which reported that 5% of respondents self-identified as
vegetarian or vegan. Though 29% of that 5% said they avoided "all animal
products", only 5% reported avoiding dairy products.[5] Based on these
figures, approximately 0.25% of the UK population follow a vegan diet.[nb 4]
In 2005, The Times estimated there were 250,000 vegans in Britain, which
suggests around 0.4% of the UK population is vegan.[9][nb 5] A 2007 survey
for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of UK attitudes
and behaviour towards the environment found that 2.24% of the
population identified as vegan.[10] In the same study, vegetarians who did
not eat chicken or fish made up 2.7% of the population. The DEFRA study
indicated that slightly more men than women are vegan, that more
vegans live in towns or cities than the country, and that people aged 16–
29 were vegan more often than any other age group.

The Netherlands
The Netherlands Association for Veganism estimates there to be
approximately 16,000 vegans in the Netherlands, or around 0.1% of the
Dutch population.[43]

Sweden

Various polls and research conducted during the 1990s put the overall
percentage of Swedish residents being vegan at between 0.27% and 1.6%.
[44]
A study of the eating patterns of 2,538 Swedish children of ages 4, 8
and 11 by the Swedish National Food Administration found that about 1%
of the children were vegetarian, less than 1% were lacto-vegetarians, but
found no children to be vegans.[45] A 1996 study of over 67,000 Swedish
students between the ages of 16 and 20 found 0.1% to be vegan,[46] and
found a particularly high concentration of vegans in Umeå where 3.3% of
the students were vegan.[47]

Norway

A 1996 study of 952 15-year old students in Bergen found 0.2% of females
to be vegan, but found no male participants to be vegan.[46]

Germany

The German Federal Study on Food-Consumption reported 0.1% of female

and 0.05% of male participants to be vegan.[48]

[edit] Ethics

See also: Animal rights, Ethics of eating meat, and Factory farming

The central ethical question related to veganism is whether it is right for

humans to use and kill animals. This question is essentially the same as
the fundamental question of animal rights, so it has been animal rights
ethicists who have articulated the philosophical foundations for veganism.
The philosophical discussion also therefore reflects the division of
viewpoints within animal rights theory between a rights-based approach,
taken by both Tom Regan and Gary Francione, and a utilitarian one,
promoted by Peter Singer. Still others understand veganism as a principle
of non-exploitation and rejection of speciesism, and their theory is often
adapted from anti-oppression movements such as feminism and anti-
racism. Vegan advocacy organizations generally adhere to some form of
an animal rights viewpoint and oppose practices which violate these
rights.

[edit] Philosophical foundations

A cow restrained for slaughter. Some ethicists consider the slaughter of
animals to be an infringement upon the animals' rights.[49]

Tom Regan, professor emeritus of philosophy at North Carolina State

University, argues that animals are entities which possess "inherent
value"[50] and therefore have "basic moral rights," and that the principal
moral right they possess is "the right to respectful treatment."[51] Regan
additionally argues that animals have a "basic moral right not to be
harmed," which can be overridden only when the individual's right not to
be harmed is "morally outweighed" by "other valid moral principles."[52][53]
From this "rights view," Regan argues that "animal agriculture, as we
know it, is unjust" even when animals are raised "humanely."[49][54] Regan
argues against various justifications for eating meat including that "animal
flesh is tasty," that it is "habit" for "individuals and as a culture", that it is
"convenient," that "meat is nutritious," that there is an obligation to the
economic interests of farmers or to the economic interests of a country, or
that "farm animals are legal property," and finds that all fail to treat
animals with the respect due to them by their basic rights.[55] Regan
therefore argues that "those who support current animal agriculture by
purchasing meat have a moral obligation to stop doing so" and that "the
individual has a duty to lead a vegetarian way of life."[56]

Gary L. Francione, professor of Law at Rutgers School of Law-Newark,

argues that animals are sentient, and that this is sufficient to grant them
moral consideration.[57] Francione argues that "all sentient beings should
have at least one right—the right not to be treated as property" and that
there is "no moral justification for using nonhumans for our purposes."[57]
Francione further argues that adopting veganism should be regarded as
the "baseline" action taken by people concerned with animal rights.[57]

Peter Singer, professor of bioethics at Princeton, argues that there is "no

moral justification" for refusing to take sentient animal suffering into
consideration in ethical decisions.[58] Singer argues that an animal's
interests warrant equal consideration with the interests of humans, and
that not doing so is "speciesist".[58] Based upon his evaluation of these
interests, Singer argues that "our use of animals for food becomes
questionable—especially when animal flesh is a luxury rather than a
necessity."[59] Singer does not contend that killing animals is always wrong,
but that from a practical standpoint it is "better to reject altogether the
killing of animals for food, unless one must do so to survive."[60] Singer
therefore advocates both veganism and improved conditions for farm
animals as practical means to reduce animal suffering.[61][62][63]

Gandhi abjured cow milk, saying that: "[S]ince I had come to know that
the cow and the buffalo were subjected to the process of phooka, I had
conceived a strong disgust for milk."[64]

[edit] Advocacy organizations

Vegan advocacy organizations generally regard animals to have some

form of rights, and therefore consider it unethical to use animals in ways
that infringe those rights.[65][66][67][68] The Vegan Society, for example,
maintains that "animals have the right not to be farmed,"[65] Farm
Sanctuary opposes the slaughter, consumption and commodification of
farm animals, and believes that the words 'humane' and 'slaughter' are
inconsistent and that slaughter is inherently violent.[69] Vegan Action
asserts that "animals are not ours to use,"[66] PETA states that "animals are
not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment,"[67] and
Mercy for Animals writes that "non-human animals are irreplaceable
individuals with morally significant interests and hence rights."[68]

Advocacy organizations regard practices such as factory farming,[70][71][72]

animal testing,[3][73] and displaying animals for entertainment in circuses,[74]
rodeos,[75] and zoos[76] as cruel to animals.

[edit] Criticisms

William Jarvis, writing for the Nutrition & Health Forum newsletter, attacks
"ideologic vegetarians," whom he claims believe that "all life is sacred"
and that "all forms of life have equal value," saying that these beliefs "can
lead to absurdities such as allowing mosquitoes to spread malaria, or
vipers to run loose on one's premises."[77] However, the ideas that all life is
sacred or that all forms of life have equal value are not universal among
vegans, many of whom do not grant moral standing to insects, for
example. As the advocacy organization Vegan Action notes, "[m]any
vegans, however, are not opposed to using insect products, because they
do not believe insects are conscious of pain."[78] A similar view is
expressed by Gary Varner, a philosophy professor at Texas A&M
University.[79] "The case for thinking that all vertebrates can feel pain is
thus very strong, while the case for thinking that invertebrates can feel
pain is extremely weak by comparison (with the possible exception of
cephalopods like octopus and squid)."[80] Varner and vegans who share his
view do not feel obliged to respect the rights of mosquitoes, as they do
not believe mosquitoes can suffer. Vegans and vegetarians also typically
do not deny the moral right of self-defence.[81]

[edit] Debate over animals killed in crop harvesting

Steven Davis, a professor of animal science at Oregon State University,

has presented an argument against veganism, one that has been
discussed in cover stories in Time magazine, The New York Times
Magazine and elsewhere.[82] Davis argues that the least harm principle, a
moral concept endorsed by Tom Regan, does not require giving up all
meat, because a plant-based diet would not kill fewer animals than one
containing beef from grass-fed ruminants. Davis notes that cultivating the
crops and plants that make up a meat-free diet also kills animals: When a
tractor traverses a field to plow, disc, cultivate, apply fertilizer or pesticide,
or to harvest, some field animals are accidentally destroyed. Based on a
study finding that wood mouse populations dropped from 25 per hectare
to 5 per hectare after harvest (attributed to migration and mortality) Davis
estimates that 10 animals per hectare are killed from crop farming every
year. If all 120,000,000 acres (490,000 km2) of cropland in the continental
United States were used for a vegan diet then approximately 500 million
animals would die each year. But if half of the cropland were converted to
ruminant pastureland, by contrast, then Davis estimates that only 900,000
animals would die each year (assuming people switched from the 8 billion
poultry killed each year to beef, lamb, and dairy products).[83] In this way,
Davis concludes, a diet containing some meat would kill fewer animals
than an all plant diet.

Davis's analysis has itself been criticized, by Gaverick Matheny, a Ph.D.

candidate in agricultural economics at the University of Maryland, College
Park, and by Andy Lamey, a Ph.D. student at the University of Western
Australia. Matheny argues that Davis miscalculates the number of animal
deaths based on land area rather than per consumer, and incorrectly
equates "the harm done to animals … to the number of animals killed."
Matheny argues that per-consumer, a vegan diet would kill fewer wild
animals than a diet adhering to Davis's model, and that vegetarianism
"involves better treatment of animals, and likely allows a greater number
of animals with lives worth living to exist."[84]

Lamey characterizes Davis's argument as "thought-provoking," but asserts

that Davis's calculation of harvesting-related deaths is flawed because it is
based upon two studies; one includes deaths from predation, which is
"morally unobjectionable" for Regan, and the other examines production
of a nonstandard crop, which Lamey argues has "little relevance" to the
deaths associated with typical crop production. Lamey also argues, like
Matheny, that accidental deaths are ethically distinct from intentional
ones, and that if Davis includes accidental animal deaths in the moral cost
of veganism he must also evaluate the increased human deaths
associated with his proposed diet, which Lamey argues leaves "Davis,
rather than Regan, with the less plausible argument." [85]

[edit] Health

See also: Vegetarian nutrition

[edit] Dietetic association positions

The American Dietetic Association annually publishes its position on vegan

and vegetarian diets:
Appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or
vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provide health
benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. Well-planned
vegetarian diets are appropriate for individuals during all stages of the life
cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence,
and for athletes.[86]

In 2003, the Dietitians of Canada joined with the ADA to release a position
paper to the same effect.[87] Similarly, the British Nutrition Foundation
considers "well balanced" vegetarian diets to be nutritionally adequate,[88]
and the Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute considers "well planned"
vegetarian diets to be "nutritionally balanced for both adults and children".
[89]

In contrast, both the Swiss Federal Nutrition Commission and the German
Society for Nutrition recommend against a vegan diet, particularly for
children, the pregnant and the elderly.[90][91]

[edit] Nutritional benefits

A vegan version of the nutritional food pyramid which normally includes

meat and animal products. Click to enlarge.

Doctors Dean Ornish, T. Colin Campbell, John A. McDougall and Caldwell

Esselstyn claim that high animal fat and protein diets, such as the
standard American diet, are detrimental to health.[92][93] They also state
that a lifestyle change incorporating a low fat vegetarian or vegan diet
could not only prevent various degenerative diseases, such as coronary
artery disease, but reverse them.[94][95][96][97]

According to the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada,

diets that avoid meat tend to have lower levels of saturated fat,
cholesterol, and animal protein, and higher levels of carbohydrates, fiber,
magnesium, potassium, folate, and antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E,
and phytochemicals.[6] People who avoid meat are reported to have lower
body mass index than those following the average Canadian diet; from
this follows lower death rates from ischemic heart disease; lower blood
cholesterol levels; lower blood pressure; and lower rates of hypertension,
type 2 diabetes, and prostate and colon cancer.[6]

A 1999 meta-study of five studies comparing vegetarian and non-

vegetarian mortality rates in western countries found the mortality rate
due to ischemic heart disease 26% lower among vegans compared to
regular meat eaters, but 34% lower among ovolactovegetarians and
among those who ate fish but no other meat. The lower rate of protection
for vegans compared to lacto-ovo vegetarians is believed to be linked to
higher levels of homocysteine, which is caused by insufficient vitamin B12,
and it is believed that vegans who get sufficient B12 should show even
lower risk of ischemic heart disease than lacto-ovo vegetarians. No
significant difference in mortality was found from other causes. The
mortality rates over all were 0.82 for fish eaters,[verification needed] 0.84 for some
omnivores and vegetarians, and 1.00 for vegans and omnivores.[98] A 2003
review of three studies comparing mortality rates among British
vegetarians and non-vegetarians found only a nonsignificant reduction in
mortality from ischemic heart disease, but noted that the findings were
compatible with the significant reduction found in the 1999 review.[99]

A 2006 study found that in people with type 2 diabetes a low-fat vegan
diet reduced weight, total cholesterol, and LDL cholesterol and did so to a
greater extent than the diet prescribed by the American Diabetes
Association.[100]

[edit] Mental health benefits

A 2010 study compared a group of vegetarian and meat-eating Seventh

Day Adventists, the two subgroups having relatively consistent lifestyle
characteristics in other areas, in which vegetarians scored lower on
depression tests and had better mood profiles.[101]

[edit] Nutritional concerns

Various fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains; some basic ingredients of a

vegan diet.

[edit] Specific nutrients

The American Dietetic Association considers "appropriately planned"

vegan diets "nutritionally adequate",[6] but poorly planned vegan diets can
be deficient in nutrients such as vitamin B12,[102] iron,[103][104] vitamin D,[105]
calcium,[105][106] iodine[107] and omega-3 fatty acids.[108] These deficiencies
have potentially serious consequences, including anemia,[109] rickets[110]
and cretinism[111] in children, and osteomalacia[110] and hypothyroidism[111]
in adults.

[edit] Vitamin B12

Deficiencies in Vitamin B12, a bacterial product that cannot be reliably

found in plant foods,[109][112][113] can have serious health consequences,
including megaloblastic anemia and neurodegenerative disease (including
subacute combined degeneration of the cord).[114] Although clinical B12
deficiency is rare in vegans,[109] if a person has not eaten more than the
daily needed amount of B12 over a long period before becoming a vegan
then they may not have built up any significant store of the vitamin.[115] In
a 2002 laboratory study, more of the strict vegan participants' B12 and iron
levels were compromised than those of lacto- or lacto-ovo-vegetarian
participants.[116]

The Vegan Society and Vegan Outreach, among others, recommend that
vegans either consistently eat foods fortified with B12 or take a B12
supplement.[117][118][119] Tempeh, seaweed, spirulina, organic produce, soil
on unwashed vegetables, and intestinal bacteria have not been shown to
be reliable sources of B12 for the dietary needs of vegans.[109][120][121]
[edit] Iron

Iron deficiency may lead to iron deficiency anaemia. Iron is less well
absorbed from vegetarian diets (approximately ten percent absorption
from vegetarian diets, versus approximately 18 percent absorption from
an omnivorous diet); vegetarians who exclude all animal products may
need almost twice as much dietary iron each day than non-vegetarians.
On the other hand, the iron status of omnivores and vegans appears to be
similar, and body absorption processes may adjust to low intakes over
time by enhancing absorption efficiency.[122] Molasses is a high-iron food
source and many vegans take it in spoonfuls as an iron supplement.[103][123]

[edit] Calcium, vitamin D

It is recommended that vegans eat three servings per day of a high

calcium food, such as fortified soy milk, almonds, hazelnuts, and take a
calcium supplement as necessary.[6][105] The EPIC-Oxford study showed that
vegans have an increased risk of bone fractures over both meat eaters
and vegetarians, likely due to lower dietary calcium intake, but that
vegans consuming more than the UK's estimated average requirements
for calcium of 525 mg/day had risk of bone fractures similar to other
groups.[106][124] A study of bone density found that the density of bones of
vegans is 94% that of omnivores, but that this difference was "clinically
insignificant".[125] Another study by the same researchers examined over
100 vegan post-menopausal women and found that “…although vegans
have much lower intakes of dietary calcium and protein than omnivores,
veganism does not have (an) adverse effect on bone mineral density
(BMD) and does not alter body composition.”[126]

The authors of The China Study argue that osteoporosis is linked to the
consumption of animal protein because animal protein, unlike plant
protein, increases the acidity of blood and tissues which is then
neutralized by calcium pulled from the bones.[127] The authors add that "in
our rural China Study, where the animal to plant ratio [for protein] was
about 10%, the fracture rate is only one-fifth that of the U.S.," where
consumption of animal products including dairy, is higher.[128]

For light-skinned people, adequate amounts of vitamin D may also be

obtained by spending 15 to 30 minutes in the sunlight every few days.
Dark-skinned people need significantly more sunlight to obtain the same
amount of vitamin D, and sunlight exposure may be difficult for vegans in
areas with low levels of sunlight during winter; in these cases
supplementation is recommended.[110][112][129]

[edit] Iodine

Iodine supplementation may be necessary for vegans in countries where

salt is not typically iodized, where it is iodized at low levels, or where, as in
Britain or Ireland, animal products are used for iodine delivery.[107][117]
Iodine can be obtained from most vegan multivitamins or from regular
consumption of seaweeds, such as kelp.[107][117]

[edit] Choline
Vegans may be at risk of choline deficiency and may benefit from choline
supplements.[130] Choline has many functions in the body, and choline
deficiency may cause a number of health concerns.[131] The Institute of
Medicine has set the Adequate Intake of choline at 425 mg (milligrams)
per day for women and 550 mg/day for men,[132][133] though dietary intake
requirements for choline are not yet fully understood.[133][134]

[edit] Pregnancies and children

The American Dietetic Association considers well-planned vegan diets

"appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy and
lactation,"[6] but recommends that vegan mothers supplement for iron,
vitamin D, and vitamin B12.[135][136] Vitamin B12 deficiency in lactating
vegetarian mothers has been linked to deficiencies and neurological
disorders in their children.[137][138] Some research suggests that the
essential omega-3 fatty acid α-linolenic acid and its derivatives should also
be supplemented in pregnant and lactating vegan mothers, since they are
very low in most vegan diets, and the metabolically related
docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is essential to the developing visual system.
[139]
Pregnant vegans may need to supplement choline (see section on
choline, above). A maternal vegan diet has also been associated with low
birth weight,[140] and a five times lower likelihood of having twins than
those who eat animal products,[141] though the article cited concludes that
the consumption of dairy products by non-vegans increases the likelihood
of conceiving twins, especially in areas where growth hormone is fed to
dairy cattle.

Several cases of severe infant or child malnutrition and some infant

fatalities have been associated with poorly planned, restrictive vegan
diets, often insufficient in calories.[142][143][144][145][146] These incidents have
provoked some to criticize vegan diets for children.[147][148] Parents involved
in these cases were convicted on charges ranging from assault to murder.
Dr. Amy Lanou, an expert witness for the prosecution in one of the cases,
asserted that the child in that particular case "was not killed by a vegan
diet" but that "the real problem was that he was not given enough food of
any sort."[149]

[edit] Eating disorders

The American Dietetic Association indicates that vegetarian diets may be

more common among adolescents with eating disorders, but that the
evidence suggests that the adoption of a vegetarian diet does not lead to
eating disorders, rather that "vegetarian diets may be selected to
camouflage an existing eating disorder."[6] Other studies and statements
by dietitians and counselors support this conclusion.[150][151][152]

[edit] Resources and the environment

Cattle - especially when kept on enormous feedlots such as this one - have
been shown as a contributing factor in the rise in greenhouse gas
emissions.
Main article: Environmental vegetarianism
People who adopt veganism for environmental reasons do so on the basis that a
strictly vegetarian diet consumes fewer resources and causes less environmental
damage than an animal-based diet.[153][154][155] Animal agriculture is linked to climate
change, water pollution, land degradation, and a decline in biodiversity.[155][156][157]
Additionally, an animal-based diet uses more land,[157][158] water,[159] and energy than a
strictly vegetarian diet.[157][160][161]

The predictable increase in animal product proportions on the plates of

people living in developing countries will bring new challenges to global
agriculture. Source: FAO.

The Livestock, Environment And Development Initiative, a joint effort of

the World Bank, The European Union, The US Agency for International
Development, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and
others, released a report in November 2006 linking animal agriculture to
environmental damage. The report, Livestock's Long Shadow [162]
concludes that the livestock sector emerges as one of the top two or three
most significant contributors to our most serious environmental problems,
at every scale from local to global. It is one of the largest sources of
greenhouse gases - responsible for 18% of the world’s greenhouse gas
emissions as measured in CO2 equivalents. It produces 65% of human-
related nitrous oxide (which has 296 times the global warming potential of
CO2) and 37% of all human-induced methane (which is 23 times as
warming as CO2). Those numbers are confirmed in a 2007 article in the
British medical journal The Lancet, which concludes that reducing
consumption of animal products should be a top priority, especially in
developed countries where such a measure would also entail substantial
health benefits.[163]

However, recent analysis by Goodland and Anhang, co-authors of

“Livestock and Climate Change”[164] in the November/December 2009
issue of World Watch magazine found that livestock and their byproducts
actually account for at least 32.6 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year, or
51 percent of annual worldwide GHG emissions.[164] The data presented in
this study is the subject of an organised educational initiative, called
51percent, which was presented at the United Nations Climate Change
Conference in Copenhagen (COP 15).[165]

A 2006 study by Gidon Eshel and Pamela Martin, assistant professors of

geophysics at the University of Chicago, found that a person switching
from the average American diet to a vegan diet would reduce CO2
emissions by 1,485 kg per year.[166]

The International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis argues that while
most meat production in industrialized countries uses inefficient grain
feeding methods through intensive farming, meat production is not
invariably a poor use of land, especially in countries like China and Brazil.
Since a proportion of all grain crops produced are not suitable for human
consumption, they can be fed to animals to turn into meat, thus improving
efficiency.[167][168] Further, greenhouse gas emissions are not limited to
animal husbandry, but also to several plant based sources such as rice
cultivation.[169][170]
In the developing world, notably Asia and Africa, fossil fuels are seldom
used to transport feed for farm animals. Sheep or goats, for example,
require no fuel, since they graze on farmlands, while bales of hay for
bovines are still transported mainly using bullock carts or similar devices.
Few of the meat processing techniques that occur in developed countries
takes place in the majority of developing countries. Animals are also often
herded to the place of slaughter (with the exception of poultry) resulting in
a very low use of fossil fuels.[171] In fact farm animals in developing world
are used for multiple purposes from providing draught power, to
transportation while also serving as meat once it reaches the end of its
economic life.

A 2007 study which simulated various diets' land use for the geography of
New York State concluded that although vegetarian diets used the
smallest amount of land per capita, a low fat diet which included some
meat and dairy (less than 2 oz of meat/eggs per day—significantly less
than consumed by the average American) could support slightly more
people on the same available land than could be fed on some high fat
vegetarian diets, since animal food crops can be grown on lower quality
land than crops for human consumption.[172][173]

A 2010 report from United Nations Environment Program's (UNEP)

international panel of sustainable resource management global shift
towards a vegan diet is critical for mitigating global issues of hunger, fuel
poverty and the worst impacts of climate change. The panel stated It says:
"Impacts from agriculture are expected to increase substantially due to
population growth increasing consumption of animal products. Unlike fossil
fuels, it is difficult to look for alternatives: people have to eat. A
substantial reduction of impacts would only be possible with a substantial
worldwide diet change, away from animal products."[174][175]

[edit] Similar diets and lifestyles

Sample of vegan Buddhist cuisine from a Zen temple in Japan.

See also: Vegetarianism and religion

Diets such as raw veganism and fruitarianism are related to veganism, but
have significant differences from standard veganism. There are also
numerous religious groups that regularly or occasionally practice a similar
diet, including adherents to some Buddhist traditions,[176] Brahmins,
Hindus,[177] Jains,[178] Eastern Orthodox Christians,[179][180] Rastafari,[181] and
Seventh-day Adventists.[182] Some small[183][184][185][186] Sikh[187] sects have
lacto-vegetarian lifestyles.

People who adhere to veganism for ethical reasons are often involved in
other social change efforts like anti-racism, feminism, or LGBT work. As
well, there is a growing tradition of vegans who understand their work as
rooted in nonviolence in general.[188]

[edit] Cuisine

A vegan raspberry and pear tart.

See also: Vegetarian cuisine
Also see the Wikibooks Cookbook articles on vegan cuisine and
vegan substitutions and its listing of vegan recipes.

The cuisines of most nations contain dishes suitable for a vegan diet,
including ingredients such as tofu, tempeh and the wheat gluten-based
product seitan in East Asian diets.[189][190][191][192] Many recipes that
traditionally contain animal products can be adapted by substituting plant-
based ingredients. For example, almond milk, grain milk, soy milk or other
plant milk can be used to replace cow's milk[192][193] and eggs can be
replaced by applesauce or commercial starch-based substitute products,
depending upon the recipe.[192][193][194] Additionally, artificial "meat"
products ("analogs" or "mock meats") made from non-animal derived
ingredients such as soy or gluten including imitation sausages, ground
beef, burgers, and chicken nuggets are widely available.[192][195]