If you want to lose weight fast, going vegan is the most effective way to do it, according to a  new study.

People on a vegetarian diet, and especially those following a vegan one, saw better results over the short term than dieters on other weight-reducing plans, a Taiwanese research team finds.

Vegetarians generally don't eat meat, but may consume eggs and dairy products. Vegans don't eat any animal products.

Researchers reviewed studies involving 12 weight-reducing plans and found that a vegan diet showed better results faster than the others, enabling people to quickly lose an average of 4 1/2 pounds.

The trials involved 1,151 dieters who followed a specific eating regimen. The studies included the Atkins diet, and ones recommended by the American Diabetes Association and the U.S. National Cholesterol Education Program.

This was the first trial to combine the findings from various independent projects to compare results of vegetarian and vegan diets against other eating plans, the researchers said of the study, which appears in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

The study did not determine which dieters were able to lose weight in the long term and keep it off.