Health and medicine

Animal-free medications and contraceptives

Prescription and over the counter medicines which do not contain animal ingredients

Contraceptives which do not contain animal ingredients

The above are lists of products which we have been informed do not contain animal ingredients.  They are not a fully comprehensive guide and there may be other medicines and products that do not contain animal ingredients.  Please note that pharmaceutical companies regularly change the contents of their products and so it is best to check with the company to ensure that they are still free from animal ingredients.  

The website www.medicines.org.uk contains information on medicines prescribed in the UK, including ingredients lists.  Alternatively, your local pharmacist may be able to advise you if specific medications contain animal ingredients.

Medicines will almost certainly have been tested on animals.  Currently animal tests are generally required to provide information about the safety of medicinal products before they can be licenced for use.  This is likely to remain the case until alternative testing methods have been sufficiently developed.

Please note that we do not advise you to stop taking medication or prescribed drugs for vegan reasons without consulting your GP.

Dietitians

If you wish to seek advice from a health professional about your diet, it is advisable to speak to a Registered Dietitian.  Your GP may be able to refer you to a dietitian.

The website Dietitians Unlimited, run by a sub-group of the British Dietetic Association, has details of freelance Registered Dietitians who specialise in vegetarian diets.  In the search form on their website, select "vegetarian diets" from the drop down list for "search by specialist area". 

Vitamin and mineral supplements

Our multivitamins and minerals page has a list of companies which sell vegan vitamin and mineral supplements. 

Vegans in hospitals and care homes

Our vegans in hospitals and care homes page has advice on how to prepare for a hospital visit, as well as details of some animal-free nutritional products and anaesthetics.  

Alternative healthcare

Your GP may be able to refer you to an alternative healthcare practitioner.  Your GP will be able to find a list of practitioners in the NHS Directory of Complementary and Alternative Practitioners.  This site also provides information for the public about complementary medicine on the NHS.

Vaccines

Unfortunately, animals will have been involved in the production of vaccines at some stage.  Most vaccines are cultured in fertilised chicken eggs and the few which use alternative methods are typically cultured in cells of mammalian origin.  In the case of the HINI (swine flu) vaccine, the main vaccine used in the UK (Pandemrix) is produced using eggs, while the non-egg version used in the UK (Celvapan, intended solely for egg allergy sufferers) is produced using cell lines from cells originally taken from a monkey (Vero cells).  All vaccines will have been tested on animals during their development to provide the legally required safety information, and some vaccines use animal tests to provide safety information for individual batches. 

Diabetes

Diabetes and the vegan diet (pdf)

An article by Sanrda Hood, Dietitian

Dietary recommendations for people with diabetes

"Summary: Soya is a good source of protein and can reduce cholesterol levels.  Other claimed effects, both positive and negative, remain controversial and unproven.  We all know that diet and lifestyle impact on our health and that it is unlikely that any one food is the panacea of all health and disease.   A balanced vegan diet, with or without soya, will always be preferable to one based on animal foods for a multitude of reasons – nutritional, ethical and ecological."  Read the full article