veganism

veganism

 [ve´gan-izm, vej´ah-nizm]

adherence to a strictly vegetable diet, with exclusion of all food of animal origin.

Miller-Keane Encyclopedia and Dictionary of Medicine, Nursing, and Allied Health, Seventh Edition. © 2003 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier, Inc. All rights reserved.

veganism

The consumption of a vegetarian diet completely devoid of animal proteins—i.e., meat, fish, dairy products and eggs.

Pros
Vegetarians tend to have lower BMIs, risk of obesity, cholesterol, homocysteine, blood pressure, occurrence of type-2 diabetes, half the risk of emergency appendectomy, and a lower risk of choking on foods that commonly obstruct the upper airway (e.g., fish, meat, poultry and bones).
 
Cons
Veganism may be associated with deficiencies in vitamin B12, as well as vitamin B6, riboflavin, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, zinc, iron, iodine and trace minerals, especially in periods of growth (e.g., during childhood, pregnancy or lactation). The high-fibre vegan diet reduces absorption of essential cations by chelating calcium, zinc, iron and trace minerals.

Segen's Medical Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.

Patient discussion about veganism

Q. Is raw vegan diet good for health? If not, why? Hi I am fond of raw vegan diet. Is raw vegan diet good for health? If not, why?

A. Undoubtedly raw vegan diet promises light weight and healthy bones. Interestingly, individuals’ consuming raw vegan diet has had a low bone mass. People who consumed raw vegan diet have a low body fat, lighter bones, higher levels of vitamin D and reduced levels of inflammatory makers. The underlying risk is that they are more prone to osteoporosis and osteopenia (severe bone loss).

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