Consumer demand for plant-based foods is increasing though the reasons may vary. Plant foods are sole sources of dietary fiber, vitamin C, and flavonoids and good sources of vitamin B1, folic acid, potassium, and magnesium. They are low in saturated fat, and do not contain cholesterol and vitamin B12. Plant foods are associated with better body weight and healthy blood lipid profile.

PURPOSE: Orthorexic eating behaviour, restrained eating, and veganism/vegetarianism are food selection strategies sharing several characteristics. Since there are no studies investigating their interrelationships, aim of the present study was to analyse orthorexic and restrained eating behaviour in (1) a sample of vegans and vegetarians and (2) a sample of individuals on a diet to lose weight.

Vegetarian diets contain many beneficial properties as well as carry a risk of inadequate intakes of several nutrients important to bone health. The aim of the study was to evaluate serum levels of bone metabolism markers and to analyze the relationships between biochemical bone markers and anthropometric parameters in children on vegetarian and omnivorous diets. The study included 70 prepubertal children on a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet and 60 omnivorous children. Body composition, bone mineral content (BMC), and bone mineral density (BMD) were assessed by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry.