Many people adhere to this dietary model driven by ideological considerations, others only because they consider it a particularly effective and healthy diet.
The vegetarian diet has very ancient roots and, as we have said, the reasons that push a person to adopt it can be numerous (religious, ethical, economic, ecological, health-conscious, etc.).
In this article we will focus above all on the health aspect, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of vegetarian diets and proposing some examples of a properly balanced vegetarian menu.
Let's start by specifying the various types of vegetarian diet.
(molds and bacteria) and food derived from animals, such as eggs, milk, cheese and honey. Instead, it excludes the consumption of meat and fishery products (including molluscs and crustaceans).
Attention! It should be remembered that some cheeses are obtained with the addition of rennet of animal origin (enzymes from the stomach of calves); as such, they should be excluded from any vegetarian diet.
Many dairy companies have adapted to the needs of vegetarians by replacing rennet of animal origin with a vegetable one.
Lacto-vegetarian diet
The lacto-vegetarian diet also excludes eggs, but milk and derivatives are allowed; consumption of honey is at the discretion.
Ovo-vegetarian diet
The ovo-vegetarian diet also excludes milk and derivatives but not eggs; consumption of honey is at the discretion.
Vegan diet
The vegan diet forgoes all products that involve animal involvement, including eggs and derivatives, such as dairy products and honey. It represents the vegetarian diet "in the strict sense".
Remember that the vegan philosophy does not allow any animal involvement for the benefit of the human being. This also excludes the use of wool and silk for clothes, drugs obtained through animal testing, and certain fertilizers used in agriculture ( especially blood, bone and horn meal, and fish meal).
The use of manure is controversial, since its suitability depends on its origin (that deriving from farms is to be excluded), just as some vegans do not allow biological control in cultivation (which is based on the biological antagonism of some organisms, on traps entomological etc.).
Raw food diet
It is a vegan diet based only on the consumption of raw fruit and vegetables or processed at temperatures no higher than 40 ° C.
Fruitist diet
It is a vegan diet that only allows the consumption of fruits: fleshy (apple, pear, orange, pepper, tomato, aubergine, courgette, melon, watermelon, pumpkin, etc.), oil seeds (walnuts, hazelnuts, pine nuts, pistachios, almonds etc. ) and sprouted seeds (alpha alpha, soy, carrot, barley, peanut etc.).
Eco-vegan diet
It is a vegan diet similar to the traditional one, but which requires the consumption of only plant foods from organic or bio-dynamic crops.
. As we will see later, this is a "questionable" statement. It can certainly have a positive metabolic impact and, in some ways, favor the maintenance of health. Let's see how.
