We've all experienced it. We invite a friend to dinner, only to learn that she is the dreaded "V-word." We have a vague sense of what it means, but we're left with so many questions. Is it healthier? Will you sit on my leather couch? Can we still go to Taco Bell?
我們都曾有過經驗。我們邀請一位朋友來晚餐，結果卻發現她是可怕的「素開頭」那種人。我們大概知道那是什麼意思，但心中又有很多疑問。那樣比較健康嗎？妳會坐在我的皮製沙發上嗎？我們還能去塔可鐘速食店嗎？
In a world of health magazines and Planet Fitness commercials, many people wanna learn more about nutrition and which diets are the healthiest. Wherever you go, no one can escape the growing vegan phenomenon, so we thought it would be fun to explore it further in this episode of The Infographic Show: Vegans vs. Meat Eaters.
在一個健康雜誌和健身廣告充斥的世界，許多人都想知道更多營養資訊，還有哪種飲食方式是最健康的。無論你去到哪裡，沒有人能夠躲過日益增長的純素風潮，因此我們覺得在這集《資訊圖表報你知》中更深入了解這主題會很有趣：純素主義者和肉食主義者大對抗。
A vegan is someone who follows a diet that contains no animal meat, fish, eggs, dairy products, or any other food that comes from animals. They differ from vegetarians, who generally still eat dairy and eggs as part of their diets. Vegans also typically abstain from using any other products that come from animals, such as honey and leather jackets.
純素主義者遵循的飲食方式不含動物的肉、魚、蛋、乳製品，或其它任何源自動物的食物。他們和素食主義者不同，素食主義者還是會吃乳製品和蛋作為部份食物。純素主義者通常還會避免使用其它任何來自動物的產品，例如蜂蜜和皮夾克。
Back in 2008, vegans only accounted for around 0.5 percent of the U.S. population, or about one million people. As of polls taken in 2014, vegans now make up roughly 2.5 percent of the population. At least in the United States, women seem to be far bigger fans of veganism, making up around 79 percent of vegans. The number of meat eaters obviously far outweighs the number of vegans throughout the world, with the highest concentration of vegans being in Israel at only around five percent of their population.
2008 年時，純素主義者只占美國人口約百分之零點五的比例，也就是約一百萬人。2014 年進行的民調顯示，純素主義者現在構成人口數的約百分之二點五。至少在美國的情況，女性似乎是純素主義的較大擁護者，組成純素人口比例的百分之七十九。肉食主義者的數量在全世界顯然遠超過純素主義者，密度最高的以色列，純素主義者只占他們人口數約百分之五而已。
By not consuming any animal products, vegans follow a dietary path similar to an herbivore. Herbivores are animals that feed exclusively on plants, such as cows, giraffes, and adorable deer. Meat eaters are typically omnivores, which means that they eat both plants and animals. The term comes from the Latin words "omni," meaning "all or everything," and the word "vorare," which means "to devour." So, basically, omnivores are down to eat whatever. Most meat eaters don't solely eat just meat, like a carnivore would do—that is, unless you're Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec; then it's beautiful bacon and seasoning steaks all day.
藉由不吃任何動物產品，純素主義者採用一種近似草食動物的飲食方式。草食動物是單靠植物為食的動物，例如牛、長頸鹿還有可愛的鹿們。肉食主義者通常是雜食動物，表示他們吃植物也吃動物。這個名稱源於拉丁字 omni，代表「所有或一切事物」，以及 vorare 這個字，代表「吃」。所以，基本上雜食性動物是什麼都願意吃的。大部分的肉食主義者不會只吃肉，像肉食性動物會做的那樣－－也就是說，除非你是《公園與遊憩》影集裡的 Ron Swanson；那樣的話就能整天吃超棒的培根和調味牛排了。
So humans are widely thought of as natural omnivores, but some believe that humans are at their optimal health when following the dietary habits of an herbivore. People often cite potential health benefits and ethical dilemmas as the main reasons to go on a vegan diet. We won't get into the ethics today, but we are curious about the health differences between vegans and their meat-eating friends.
所以人類普遍被視為天生的雜食動物，但有些人相信當人類遵照草食動物的飲食習慣，我們會處在最理想的健康狀態。人們常常舉出可能的健康益處和道德困境來當吃純素的主要理由。我們今天不會探討道德層面，不過我們對純素主義者和他們的吃肉好朋友間的健康差異很感興趣。
People on a vegan diet tend to be leaner. In a cross-sectional study of nearly 40,000 adults, meat eaters had the highest mean body mass index, or BMI. Vegetarians were in the middle, and vegans had the lowest. Based on several studies from Finland, some scientists have suggested that vegan diets may be helpful in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis. Vegans also appear to have lower rates of hypertension than both meat eaters and vegetarians. Vegans also typically have lower cardiometabolic risks for conditions like heart disease or strokes. The problem, however, doesn't seem to be with meat itself, but rather with the quality of meat.
吃純素的人通常會比較精瘦。在一項對近四萬名成人進行的橫斷面研究中，肉食主義者的平均身體質量指數最高，身體質量指數又稱 BMI。素食者居中，純素者最低。根據芬蘭的幾項研究，一些科學家提出純素飲食可能對類風濕性關節炎的治療有幫助。純素者得到高血壓的比例似乎也比肉食主義者和素食者低。純素者一般得到像心臟病或中風那些疾病的心血管代謝風險也比較低。然而，問題似乎和肉類本身無關，而是牽涉到肉類的品質。
Recent findings have found that coronary heart disease problems do not seem to be linked with red meat and saturated fats like previously thought, but rather with processed meats. Based on a study of nearly 1.25 million people, consumption of processed meats, not simply red meat, was associated with higher rates of coronary heart disease.
近期的研究結果發現冠狀動脈心臟病的問題似乎不像從前認為那樣和紅肉及飽和脂肪有關，而是和加工肉品有關才對。根據一項對將近一百二十五萬人進行的研究，加工肉品的食用，不單是紅肉，和較高的冠狀動脈心臟病比例有關。
From an evolutionary standpoint, meat-eating omnivores also seem to be the reason behind the growth of our larger, more intelligent brains. This is the result of the higher protein content associated with meat consumption. The American Dietetic Association, or ADA, states that the protein from plants can easily meet and exceed protein requirements, and that being an omnivore merely increases the amount of protein sources a person can have by including animal meat. Obviously, protein is important to both bone health and muscle mass. One study even found that women who ate meat had higher amounts of muscle mass than their vegetarian counterparts, even if their protein intake was the same.
從演化的角度來看，吃肉的雜食動物似乎也是我們發展出更大、更聰明的腦袋背後的原因。這是食用肉類得到較高蛋白質含量的結果。美國飲食協會，又稱 ADA，聲明來自植物的蛋白質可以輕易滿足和超出蛋白質需求，變雜食動物純粹只是增加人的蛋白質來源量，藉由將肉類納入飲食中。很顯然，蛋白質對骨骼健康和肌肉質量來說都很重要。一項研究甚至發現，吃肉的女性的肌肉質量比吃素的女性來得高，即使她們攝取的蛋白質量是相同的。
While there certainly may be some health advantages in going vegan, there seems to be some common deficiencies in the diet. One of these deficiencies is with the vitamin B-12. The ADA states that there are no natural plant foods that contain any significant amount of the vitamin. Vegans can still get it, but they need to take a vitamin or consume fortified foods like soy milk and certain breakfast cereals. Omega-3 fatty acids are also very difficult to come by on a vegan diet, but this can be overcome through the consumption of algae supplements. With vegans requiring supplementation to meet their nutritional needs, it supports the claim that veganism is unnatural, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's unhealthy.
儘管吃純素一定可能有一些健康優勢，純素飲食似乎有一些常見的營養缺乏。其中一項不足的營養是維他命 B-12。美國飲食協會表示沒有任何天然植物食物含有大量的維他命 B-12。純素者還是能獲得這種營養，但他們需要吃維他命或強化食品，像豆漿和特定的早餐穀片。純素飲食也很難獲得 Omega-3 脂肪酸，但這可以透過吃藻類補給品來克服。由於純素者需要補給才能滿足營養需求，這支持了聲稱純素主義不自然的主張，但那不一定代表吃純素不健康。
At this point, some of you may be wondering which diet leads to longer life spans. For that information, we turn to Okinawa. The traditional Okinawan diet is typically regarded as the best for health and longevity, with the Okinawan islands having the greatest concentration of centenarians in the world. An archipelago hundreds of miles off the coast of Japan, Okinawa has about 740 centenarians out of its population of 1.3 million people. While their diets have been changing recently due to globalization and factors like fast food chains, the traditional Okinawan diet is made up of large amounts of plant-based carbohydrates. Although they are primarily vegans, traditional Okinawans still eat meat on special occasions, usually pork, as well as small amounts of fish on a weekly basis.
現在，你們有些人可能會好奇到底哪種飲食能讓人活比較久。要了解那資訊，我們來看看沖繩。傳統沖繩飲食通常被視為對健康和長壽最棒的一種，因為沖繩島嶼的人瑞全世界最密集。距離日本海岸數百英里遠的群島，沖繩島一百三十萬的人口就有約七百四十名人瑞。儘管他們的飲食近來因全球化和像速食連鎖店之類的因素而有改變，傳統的沖繩飲食卻是由大量以植物為主的碳水化合物所組成。雖然他們主要是純素者，傳統的沖繩人在特殊場合還是會吃肉，通常是吃豬肉，還有每週吃少量的魚。
This doesn't prove that small amounts of animal products are vital to good health, but it does hint that the optimal human diet can be achieved without going completely vegan. That said, many health organizations, including the ADA, state that well-planned vegan diets are healthy and nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. It seems like no matter what your dietary preferences are, a healthy lifestyle can be achieved on or off a vegan diet.
這並不能證實食用少量動物產品是健康的關鍵，但這確實暗示人類最理想的飲食可以不用透過吃純素來達成。話又說回來，許多健康機構，包含美國飲食協會，表示規劃完善的純素飲食既健康又能滿足營養，且或許能提供預防和治療特定疾病的健康益處。看來似乎不管你的飲食偏好是哪種，健康的生活方式都能透過吃純素或不吃純素來達到。
Are you or would you ever consider becoming a vegan? Why or why not? Let us know down in the comments below.
你吃純素，或者你會考慮變成一個純素主義者嗎？會或不會的原因是什麼？在下方留言區讓我們知道。
- 「來自、產自」- Come From
Vegans also typically abstain from using any other products that come from animals, such as honey and leather jackets.
純素主義者通常還會避免使用其它任何來自動物的產品，例如蜂蜜和皮夾克。 - 「例如」- Such As
Vegans also typically abstain from using any other products that come from animals, such as honey and leather jackets.
純素主義者通常還會避免使用其它任何來自動物的產品，例如蜂蜜和皮夾克。 - 「(數量、比例上)占」- Account For
Back in 2008, vegans only accounted for around 0.5 percent of the U.S. population, or about one million people.
2008 年時，純素主義者只占美國人口約百分之零點五的比例，也就是約一百萬人。 - 「組成、構成」- Make Up
As of polls taken in 2014, vegans now make up roughly 2.5 percent of the population.
2014 年進行的民調顯示，純素主義者現在構成人口數的約百分之二點五。 - 「得到、獲得」- Come By
Omega-3 fatty acids are also very difficult to come by on a vegan diet, but this can be overcome through the consumption of algae supplements.
純素飲食也很難獲得 Omega-3 脂肪酸，但這可以透過吃藻類補給品來克服。 - 「此時、現在」- At This Point
At this point, some of you may be wondering which diet leads to longer life spans.
現在，你們有些人可能會好奇到底哪種飲食能讓人活比較久。 - 「由於、因為」- Due To
While their diets have been changing recently due to globalization and factors like fast food chains, the traditional Okinawan diet is made up of large amounts of plant-based carbohydrates.
儘管他們的飲食近來因全球化和像速食連鎖店之類的因素而有改變，傳統的沖繩飲食卻是由大量以植物為主的碳水化合物所組成。 - 「和、以及」- As Well As
Although they are primarily vegans, traditional Okinawans still eat meat on special occasions, usually pork, as well as small amounts of fish on a weekly basis.
雖然他們主要是純素者，傳統的沖繩人在特殊場合還是會吃肉，通常是吃豬肉，還有每週吃少量的魚。
