Vegan refers to a person whose lifestyle excludes animal products such as eggs, meat and dairy products. Veganism is a lifestyle that has many believers. These are people who do not use or eat products that are derived from animals. Vegans always make an effort not to consume or use animal products of any kind. Most vegans also exclude processed foods that are made using animal products.

These include foods, some wines and refined white sugar. Vegans also distance themselves from all products that have been tested on animals and also non food products derived from animals such as fur, leather and wool. A vegan diet consists of grains, legumes, beans, fruits and vegetables.

There are also vegan version of familiar foods such as vegan mayonnaise, vegan meats, cheese and ice cream. Even though it is not yet clear whether honey can be included into a vegan diet, it is good to avoid this kind of food if you are preparing a meal of a vegan.

There is a big difference between a vegan and a vegetarian. A vegan excludes any kind of animal product from his or her diet. A vegan will also not wear leather or any product made from animals such as silk and wool. Vegans believe that animals should not be exploited by man and when animals are commercialized it is inhumane and lack of respect for life.

On the other hand a vegetarian are people who do not eat meat, poultry or fish but can eat dairy products such as milk or yogurt, cheese and eggs. Being a vegetarian is not a lifestyle since there are various reasons behind being a vegetarian. For example we have vegetarians who do not eat meat due to health problems. In fact there are different categories of vegetarians.

We have lacto vegetarians; they exclude eggs but eat dairy products. Ovo vegetarian eat eggs but not dairy products and there are lacto ovo vegetarians who can eat both dairy products and eggs. Therefore being a vegetarian is based on personal beliefs and being a vegan a lifestyle.