with the lengthy intestines found in herbivores (plant-
eating animals). Like the stomachs of other carnivores
(meat-eating animals) and omnivores, the human
stomach secretes pepsin, an enzyme necessary for
digesting the proteins found in meat rather than
plant matter. The human mouth contains pointed
teeth (canines and incisors) adapted for tearing meat
as well as teeth with flat crowns (molars) for chewing
plant matter. In addition to the anatomical evidence,
anthropologists have not discovered any primitive
societies in the past or present whose members main-
tained good health and consumed a vegan diet.
The earliest motivation for what would now be
called veganism is religious faith and practice. Thebook of Daniel in the Old Testament, for example,
written some time between the sixth and second cen-
turiesBC, describes Daniel and his three companions
summoned to the court of King Nebuchadnezzar of
Babylon as refusing the rich food and drink offered
them by the king. In Daniel 1:12, the Hebrew youths
tell the master of the palace, ‘‘Please test your servants
for ten days. Let us be given vegetables to eat and
waterto drink.’’ At the end of the trial period, the
four youths are found to be in better health than those
who had eaten the ‘‘royal rations’’ (Daniel 1:15). Dur-
ing this same time period, the followers of the philos-
opher and mathematician Pythagoras (c. 582–507BC)
in ancient Greece practiced an ascetic lifestyle thatKEY TERMS
Ahimsa—A Sanskrit word for non-killing and non-
harming, adopted by the American Vegan Society as
its official watchword. The AVS notes that the six
letters in ahimsa stand for the basic principles of
veganism: Abstinence from animal products; Harm-
lessness with reverence for life; Integrity of thought,
word, and deed; Mastery over oneself; Service to
humanity, nature, and creation; and Advancement
of understanding and truth.
Glycerin—A sweet syrupy alcohol obtained from ani-
mal fats. It is often used in cough syrups and other liquid
medications to give them a smooth texture.
Lactovegetarian—A vegetarian who uses milk and
cheese in addition to plant-based foods.
Lanolin—A greasy substance extracted from wool,
often used in hand creams and other cosmetics.
Omnivore—An animal whose teeth and digestive
tract are adapted to consume either plant or animal
matter. The term does not mean, however, that a
given species consumes equal amounts of plant
and animal products. Omnivores include bears,
squirrels, opossums, rats, pigs, foxes, chickens,
crows, monkeys, most dogs, and humans.
Ovolactovegetarian—A vegetarian who consumes
eggs and dairy products as well as plant-based
foods. The official diet recommended to Seventh-
day Adventists is ovolactovegetarian.
Ovovegetarian—A vegetarian who eats eggs in addi-
tion to plant-based foods.
Pepsin—A protease enzyme in the gastric juices of
carnivorous and omnivorous animals that breaks
down the proteins found in meat. Its existence inhumans is considered evidence that humans evolved
as omnivores.
Quinoa—A species of goosefoot that originated in
the high Andes and is raised as a food crop for its
edible seeds, which have an unusually high protein
content (12–18 percent). Quinoa is considered a
pseudo-cereal rather than a true cereal grain because
it is not a grass.
Rennet—An enzyme used to coagulate milk, derived
from the mucous membranes lining the stomachs of
unweaned calves.
Tempeh—A food product made from whole fer-
mented soybeans that originated in Indonesia. It
can be used as a meat substitute in vegan dishes or
sliced and cooked in hot vegetable oil.
Textured vegetable protein (TVP)—A meat substi-
tute made from defatted soybean flour formed into a
dough and cooked by steam while being forced
through an extruder. It resembles ground beef in
texture and can replace it in most recipes. TVP is
also known as textured soy protein or TSP.
Tofu—Bean curd; a soft food made by coagulating soy
milk with an enzyme, calcium sulfate, or an organic
acid, and pressing the resulting curds into blocks or
chunks. Tofu is frequently used in vegetarian or vegan
dishes as a meat or cheese substitute.
Vegan—A vegetarian who excludes all animal prod-
ucts from the diet, including those that can be obtained
without killing the animal.Vegans are also known as
strict vegetarians or pure vegetarians.
Whey—The watery part of milk, separated out dur-
ing the process of making cheese.Veganism