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Vegetarianism

as a term, only came into general use after the formation of the Vegetarian Society at Ramsgate in England in 1847. However, the phenomenon, that is to say the existence of significant numbers of people who as a matter of principle did not eat animal flesh, dates back to classical times or beyond. The Greek philosopher Pythagoras (6th century bc), best known for his theorem in geometry, gave his name to a diet which precludes meat, although it is not certain to what extent he followed this himself (e.g. whether he ate fish). An account of his teaching was published by Antonio Cocchi and translated into English by Dodsley (1745), serving to transmit a version of his doctrines to modern generations.

An account of what Pythagoras actually ate (honey for breakfast, millet or barley bread for dinner, and raw or boiled vegetables) is provided in one of the earliest books recommending vegetarianism, On Abstinence from Animal Food by the Greek author Porphyry (3rd century ad). This remains one of the most persuasive documents of its kind, and includes in moderate language and elegant prose most of what are now regarded as the main arguments for not eating meat.

Vegetarianism has not been confined to the western world, indeed it is more widespread in Asia where it is strongly linked to the main religions (see Hinduism and food; Buddhism and food; Jains and food).

The list of famous people who have been vegetarians (of one kind or another—see below) is a long one, including Voltaire, Shelley, Tolstoy, Wagner, Bernard Shaw, Gandhi. (The list stops here because if it went on it would juxtapose Hitler with Gandhi.)

The principal categories of vegetarians are:

• plain vegetarians, following the simple rule that they do not eat fish, flesh, or fowl (but there are gradations, e.g. some would eat fish);
• vegans, who abstain from all food of animal origin, which means no milk or eggs, for example;
• ovolactarians, like vegans, but including eggs and milk in their diet;
• lactarians, ditto but without eggs;
• herbivores, eating only plants;
• fruitarians, eating only fruits;
• granivores, eating only seeds and grain.

The nutritional adequacy of a vegetarian diet (of any of the above categories) has been called in question. It seems to be generally agreed that risks centre on protein (and especially the composition of the mixture of amino acids which result from the breakdown of protein taken at a meal) and vitamins, above all vitamin B12. A vegetarian risks having too little of certain amino acids, unless taking special precautions. These precautions consist mainly in taking foods in certain combinations (e.g. rice and beans) which provide corresponding combinations of complementary amino acids. The difficulty is never insuperable, but it is greater for those who practise the more extreme forms of vegetarianism. As for vitamin B12, which is crucial to well-being, it has traditionally been derived from animals (in the form of liver, eggs, milk, and cheese), but it has become possible to produce it synthetically, using no animal sources. Much fine print has been devoted to this whole area of study, but the general conclusion is that vegetarians and vegans can obtain all they need so long as they are willing to follow certain rules which people who have a more varied diet do not need to observe.

For their part, vegetarians and vegans can point to the health risks associated with heavy consumption of red meat and animal fats.

The proportion of the population in western countries which has adopted some kind of vegetarian-style diet, or which professes to be moving in that direction, has been increasing towards the end of the 20th century. However, this is a fluid situation, and any attempt to produce reliable statistics is hampered by potential confusion over terminology, especially when one considers groups such as those who no longer eat red meat but do eat everything else.

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