Vegans are not vegetarians and vegetarians are not vegans

By Gloria Stovall

More often than not, when I go out to eat and inform the waitress/waiter that I am a vegan, I am usually given the options of dishes that include cheese, eggs, seafood and sometimes poultry.  When this happens, I try not to lose my patience; and politely reiterate that I am a vegan, not a vegetarian, which means that I do not consume anything that comes from an animal, including honey.  When I explain this to the server I am often given a look of confusion, astonishment, and embarrassment followed by the offering of the house salad, which yes…contains cheese, so I either have to reiterate again that vegans do not eat anything that comes from animals, request for the cheese to be removed from the house salad, or politely ask for a plate of steamed vegetables without butter, or hummus with fresh vegetables or any other appetizer or entree that can be made without animal products. 

I have been a vegan for over 13 years; but the fiasco of going out to eat is still a living nightmare, although not nearly as bad 10 years ago; but even so, I still dread dining outside of my comfy home unless the restaurant is solely vegan-friendly.  The fact of the matter is vegans are not vegetarians and vegetarians are not vegans as the two are entirely different with little-to-no similarities, although many believe otherwise.  I have actually known people who have identified themselves as both a vegan and vegetarian; and when I stressed that was literally impossible, I was told I did not know what I was talking about.  The point I am trying to convey is vegans are completely different from vegetarians and vice versa; and one cannot be both, whatsoever. 

Vegans do not consume anything that comes from an animal, which means a vegan DOES NOT consume eggs, cheese, milk, butter, honey, chicken, turkey, fish, pork, lamb, duck, veal, beef, seafood or anything else that comes from an animal.  There are absolutely NO exceptions or different versions of being a vegan.  You either are a vegan or not.  On the other hand, there are different “levels” of vegetarians and I will briefly summarize each type below.

The lacto-ovo vegetarian consumes dairy and egg products but do not eat fish, meat and poultry. 

The lacto vegetarian eats dairy products but does not eat meat, eggs and poultry.  

An ovo vegetarian does not eat dairy, fish, meat and poultry, but they do eat eggs. 

The pescatarian consumes fish, egg and dairy products but they do not eat meat and poultry. 

The flexitarian diet is mostly vegetarian but can include fish, meat and poultry. 

Now you can clearly decipher the significant difference between vegans and vegetarians; and hopefully make the lovely decision to go vegan once and for all, as it will be one of the wisest decisions you will ever make in your life.   Thank you so much for following my vegan blog and I welcome any comments or suggestions you may have for future topics. 

Have a blessed week!