Types of Vegetarians

Omnivores or those just starting out in this life style get confused about the different types of vegetarians. We are categorized and labeled by our food choices. Sometimes our choices are grouped under the title "veg*n" which is a shorter way to type "vegetarian and/or vegan". That seems to throw people off too. It's just a short cut, nothing censored. To help clear things up, I'll give you the run down from "light" to "hard core" types of vegetarians out there.

Flexitarian ~ This group are people that choose to eat vegetarian most of the time but still have no issues eating meat when options are limited. I find that most of this group do it for health or monetary reasons rather then ethical. Or they are easing their way into the vegetarian life style.

Pescetarians ~ A pescetarian eats fish and other sea food, but no other meat product. Again, usually motivated by health reasons rather then ethical. These also usually fit into the next group...

Lacto-Ovo vegetarians ~ Vegetarians that consume diary products (milk, cheese, yogurt, etc) and eggs. This is the most common vegetarian group and what most people consider when they encounter a vegetarian. On the same note there are just lacto vegetarians or ovo vegetarians. Usually ovo vegetarians are lactose intolerant.

There is debate on whether one can eat eggs and still be considered a true vegetarian. It really depends on how you think of it. Some consider eggs a diary type product, other's consider it meat. In a sense, when you eat an egg you are eating a chicken's ovulation.

Small science lesson: Like a human woman, a hen will ovulate. Unlike the human woman, that egg will not be absorbed by her body when not fertilized. An egg will be laid whether it's fertilized or not. So while the egg is technically a meat product, an unfertilized egg (like the ones in your grocery store) would not be capable of life even if they were left alone. It is a mass of useless tissue. It's that reason that many vegetarians will still eat eggs.

Vegan ~ Vegans will not consume any animal product, whether is it a part of the animal itself or something it produced. No meat, diary, eggs, honey. If it came from an animal or it is made with something that came from an animal. it is a no go.

There are also vegans that take it further and refuse to own, use or wear animal products, like leather, fur, snake skin or feathers and as well as anything that uses animal products, for example milk or honey in facial masks and other beauty products. Some even refuse to spend money where animals are used as entertainment, like zoos and the circus.

Raw vegans ~ The hard core group. They are similar to plain vegans but their diet consists of unprocessed vegan foods that have not been heated above 115 F (46 C). They believe that foods cooked above this temperature have lost a significant amount of their nutritional value and are harmful to the body.

Tammi Cornett is a self proclaimed domestic eco-goddess. She is dangerously optimistic and loves her life with her wonderful husband and three young boys. Wisdom of a Goddess