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We’ve all experienced it.

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We invite a friend to dinner, only to learn that she is the dreaded V-word.

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We have a vague sense of what it means, but we’re left with so many questions?

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Is it healthier?

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Will you sit on my leather couch?

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Can we still go to Taco Bell?

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In a world of health magazines and Planet Fitness commercials,

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many people want to learn more about nutrition and which diets are the healthiest.

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Wherever you go, no one can escape the growing vegan phenomenon,

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so we thought it would be fun to explore it further in this episode

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of The Infographics Show; Vegans vs Meat-eaters.

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A vegan is someone who follows a diet that contains no animal meat, fish, eggs,

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dairy products, or any other food that comes from animals.

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They differ from vegetarians, who generally still eat dairy and eggs

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as part of their diets.

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Vegans also typically abstain from using any other products that come from animals,

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such as honey and leather jackets.

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Back in 2008, vegans only accounted for around 0.5% of the US population,

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or about 1 million people.

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As of polls taken in 2014, vegans now make up roughly 2.5% of the population.

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At least in the United States, women seem to be far bigger fans of veganism,

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making up around 79% of vegans.

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The number of meat eaters obviously far outweighs

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the number of vegans throughout the world,

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with the highest concentration of vegans being in Israel

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at only around 5% of their population.

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By not consuming any animal products,

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vegans follow a dietary path similar to an herbivore.

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Herbivores are animals that feed exclusively on plants,

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such as cows, giraffes, and adorable deer.

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Meat-eaters are typically omnivores,

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which means that they eat both plants and animals.

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The term comes from the latin words Omni,meaning “all or everything,”

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and the word Vorare, which means “to devour.”

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So basically omnivores are down to eat whatever.

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Most meat-eaters don’t solely eat just meat, like a carnivore would do.

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That is, unless you’re Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec.

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Then it’s beautiful bacon and sizzling steaks all day!

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So humans are widely thought of as natural omnivores,

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but some believe that humans are at their optimal health

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when following the dietary habits of an herbivore.

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People often cite potential health benefits and ethical dilemmas

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as the main reasons to go on a vegan diet.

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We won’t get into the ethics today,

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but we are curious about the health differences

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between vegans and their meat-eating friends.

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People on a vegan diet tend to be leaner.

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In a cross-sectional study of nearly 40,000 adults,

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meat-eaters had the highest mean body-mass-index, or BMI.

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Vegetarians were in the middle and vegans had the lowest.

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Based on several studies from Finland, some scientists have suggested that

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vegan diets may be helpful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

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Vegans also appear to have lower rates of hypertension

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than both meat-eaters and vegetarians.

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Vegans also typically have lower cardiometabolic risks

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for conditions like heart disease or strokes.

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The problem, however, doesn't seem to be with meat itself,

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but rather with the quality of meat.

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Recent findings have found that coronary heart disease problems

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do not seem to be linked with red meat and saturated fats like previously thought,

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but rather with processed meats.

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Based on a study of nearly 1.25 million people consumption of processed meats,

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not simply red meat, was associated with higher rates of coronary heart disease.

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From an evolutionary standpoint,

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meat-eating omnivores also seem to be the reason

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behind the growth of our larger, more intelligent brains.

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This is the result of the higher protein content associated with meat consumption.

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The American Dietetic Association, or ADA, states that

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the protein from plants can easily meet and exceed protein requirements,

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and that being an omnivore merely increases the amount of protein sources

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a person can have by including animal meat.

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Obviously, protein is important to both bone health and muscle mass.

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One study even found that women who ate meat

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had higher amounts of muscle mass than their vegetarian counterparts,

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even if the protein intake was the same.

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While there certainly may be some health advantages in going vegan,

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there seems to be some common deficiencies in the diet.

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One of these deficiencies is with the vitamin B-12.

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The ADA states that there are no natural plant foods

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that contain any significant amount of the vitamin.

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Vegans can still get it, but they need to take a vitamin or consume fortified foods

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like soy milk and certain breakfast cereals.

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Omega-3 fatty acids are also very difficult to come by on a vegan diet,

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but this can be overcome through the consumption of algae supplements.

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With vegans requiring supplementation to meet their nutritional needs,

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it supports the claim that veganism is unnatural,

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but that doesn’t necessarily mean it's unhealthy.

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At this point, some of you may be wondering which diet leads to longer life spans.

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For that information, we turn to Okinawa.

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The traditional Okinawan diet is typically regarded as the best for health and longevity,

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with the Okinawan islands having the greatest concentration of centenarians in the world.

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An archipelago hundreds of miles off the coast of Japan,

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Okinawa has about 740 centenarians out of its population of 1.3 million people.

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While their diets have been changing recently due to globalization

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and factors like fast food chains,

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the traditional Okinawan diet is made up of large amounts of plant-based carbohydrates

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Although they are primarily vegans,

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traditional Okinawans still eat meat on special occasions,

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usually pork, as well as small amounts of fish on a weekly basis.

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This doesn’t prove that small amounts of animal products are vital to good health,

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but it does hint that the optimal human diet

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can be achieved without going completely vegan.

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That said, many health organizations, including the ADA,

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state that well-planned vegan diets are healthy and nutritionally adequate,

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and may provide health benefits

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in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.

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It seems like no matter what your dietary preferences are,

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a healthy lifestyle can be achieved on or off a vegan diet.

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Are you or would you ever consider becoming a vegan?

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Why or why not?

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Let us know down in the comments below.

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And if you like our videos and want to help us continue to make more of them,

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please head on over to our Patreon and show us some love.

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