What's the difference?

Question

I guess I'm confused but what are the differences between being a vegetarian or a vegan? I only eat fish and small amounts of poultry. Someone said I was a vegetarian-is that true?

sorry if i offended anyone-some of you seem kind of ticked off. i was just wonder because it confuses me because some ppl i know eat eggs and still are vegatarians and so on...its been buggin' me only because i find the words used pretty much the same, i wasn't sure if vegan was slang or something. im an animal lover, don't wear leather-my doc told me i should eat eggs every once in awhile tho so thats why i even eat that.

Answer 1

-Vegetarians eat no meat (including fish and poultry)

-vegans avoid eating and using all animal products (meat,dairy, eggs, leather, etc)

Rather then saying you're vegetarian, I'd say you "eat a mostly vegetarian diet"
Don't let people make you feel bad though, cutting down on the animal products you use is a step in the right direction!

Answer 2

a vegan eats no animal products, no meat or gelatin, no eggs, no dairy, no honey, no using leather or wool period. A vegetarian just doesnt eat animals. Im sorry but people who say you are a vegetarian do not understand the definition of vegetarian, which is very simple, they dont eat animals, fish and certainly poultry is an animal. You are an omnivore than does not eat much red meat, thats all.

Answer 3

If U eat fish and Poultry U aren't a vegetarian at all and
for sure U can't be a Vegan either! Some might call U a semi-vegetarian or semi-veggie!
Vegetarians eat absolutely no meat but they do eat eggs,
cheese, milk. As long as it doesn't have to be killed to be eaten and it not be meat of any kind! Fish and Poultry are animals! U don't have to kill one to eat eggs. Cows don't have to be killed to get milk!
Vegans are more into Well being of animals.. they can't stand for any animals to be misstreated. They don't even agree with taking milk from cows for humans to use. Vegans don't eat any milk products, Vegans never eat eggs, cheese, and no honey either as that is from bees.
Also of course absolutely no meats of any kind! Vegans
won't use animal fertizliers in their gardens either! Vegans won't wear clothing made from animals, Vegans
won't even use soap that has been made from animal fat!
In short Vegans won't use anything of animals for food or
cleaning!

Answer 4

Hello,
There is so much misinformation going around now about vegetarians eating dead animals. This information is comming from bunk websites, written by people who have no idea what they are talking about. This misinformation is causing a lot of problems for actual vegetarians. If the only dead animal you eat is fish, there is apparently a new word popping up in the last couple years of pescavore, piscatarian, pescatarian... whathave you.
I personally do not see the need for a name if you are a person who eats an omnivorious diet, but hey, if it makes you feel good.

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But if you choose to use such a name, it is still NOT a type of vegetarian. Certain groups may have chosen to lump it into vegetarianism because they cannot understand people who don't eat steak, but those are not the people who know anything. All credible vegetarian societies, since vegetarianism began and had a name, understand that a vegetarian eats no animals, be they fish, bird, swine or cow. Some people have tried to get around this as of late by saying fish isn't meat, but the point is, fish is animal, and vegetarians do not, under any circumstances, eat animals.

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WHY IT MATTERS:
You may wonder why this matters. People say that labels don't, matter, or *I don't need a label* or *I don't care about labels.* Well if you don't need them, and don't care about them, then please, do not misuse them or take those that don't belong to you.

The whole point of having a label within society is not so *people can belong, * but it is so that people can turn many words into one word.

I should be able to go anywhere in the world, say "vegetarian" (in respective languages,) and it should be understood that I want no dead animals in my food. Now, thanks to them, I could have a dead-carcass put on my plate. Those who eat fish may not understand how greatly we believe in not eating the carcasses of dead animals, so they may not realize it is a big deal that they put us in those situations. But they should trust that it does matter, and that we do care.

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I believe in the lifestyle I have chosen, and I have worked very hard to make this my way of life. The fish-eaters are ruining and tainting the very word.

The label is not so important when you eat dead animals because most any restaurant has food that quite obviously is edible for fish-eaters. There is no need for a label. Just order fish. There is no need to explain your diet because no one questions why one is eating fish. It is normal within our society to eat dead animals so they are not going to stick out.

Many fish-eaters call themselves vegetarians simply because they are misinformed. There are a lot of bunk websites out there. Others do it because *people wont understand what pescatarian means.* Well many people didn't understand what vegetarian meant when it first came out. It took many vegetarians to make that happen. NOW, people are again starting to not know what vegetarian means.

It means, "one who believes in vegetables/vegetation."

Now, many think it means,
"one who believes in vegetables as a side-dish to big dead fish, or perhaps even other animals if you happen to feel like it that day."

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***** I know this is more than you asked for, but hopefully it will help you sift through all the "yes you can" and "no you can't" answer you seem to be getting.

Kudos on cutting out so much meat from you diet, but alas, chickens and fishies are animals, and therefore not eaten by vegetarians.

:)

EDIT- Don't worry; you had a perfectly valid quesiton. And no, "vegan" is not slang.

As a vegetarian you can eat milk and eggs.
As a vegan you cannot, and you cannot wear any animal products or use animal products.

Answer 5

No, you are not a vegetarian. If you ate only fish and seafood, you would be pescatarian. If you eat poultry, that is meat. Vegetarians do not eat flesh in any form, but often will consume dairy products. Vegans do not eat or use anything that comes from an animal source.

Answer 6

UMM how could u be a vegetarian if you eat meat ..even small amounts , it doesn't matter you are not a vegetarian if you eat meat even fish. A vegan doesnt eat meat of anything from animals such as dairy products!

Answer 7

No, you are not a vegetarian.

You are still an omnivore; just one who doesn't eat red meat.

A vegetarian doesn't eat any animal.

A vegan eats no animal by-products (milk, eggs, honey, etc)

Answer 8

technically, no you're not a vegetarian or a vegan. vegans are the ones that don't consume or use any products that contain any sort of animal by product (soaps, lotion, leather, etc). vegetarians typically will consume eggs, milk, cheese and those sorts of thing but don't eat any actual meat at all.

don't worry about labels. just tell people that you don't eat red meat b/c you don't like it, not for any animal rights reason and to mind their own businees. that's what i did and i'm happy and healthy.

there are different kinds of vegetarians that if you are interested in labels you could be considered a Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian meaning that you eat eggs and fish. but don't really stress about it.

Answer 9

a vegan does not eat meat or dairy or anything that comes from a animal
a vegetarian does not eat meat but can eat dairy

Answer 10

If you eat meat, you are not a vegetarian. Vegans eat no animal products. Most people are omnivores.....eating both meat and plant products.