Diets based on biblical principles, such as the Daniel diet, have become popular in recent years. Among certain populations, however, the Leviticus diet has never gone out of fashion -- many practitioners of orthodox Judaism still follow the tenets set forth in the Old Testament book of Leviticus. The Leviticus diet forbids eating of certain meats, fish and fowl, dividing these foods into clean and unclean categories. Good health rather than weight loss is the focus of the Leviticus diet.
Meats
Meats on the Leviticus diet are divided into clean and unclean categories based on whether the animal has cloven, or divided, hooves and whether it chews the cud. You can eat meat from cows, which have a divided hoof and chew the cud, but not horses, which chew the cud but do not have a divided hoof. Meats from sheep, goats, deer and buffalo may be eaten; meat from pigs may not. Camels and rabbits are also on the forbidden food list. You cannot touch an unclean animal, whether alive or dead, and must avoid the organs and milk of unclean animals.
Fish
Although many consider fish a healthy addition to your diet, not all fish are in the clean category. You can eat all fish that have both scales and fins. You cannot eat catfish, which don't have scales, or any type of shellfish, including shrimp, lobster, clams or crabs, which have neither scales nor fins.
Fowl
You can eat most fowl, including chicken, duck, geese and turkey. Some groups do not eat turkey, since it was unknown at the time Leviticus was written and isn't specifically mentioned in the book, according to the Judaism 101 website. You may eat the eggs of approved fowl but not the eggs of unclean birds. You cannot eat birds of prey such as eagles, buzzards, vultures, owls, seagulls, falcons and hawks.
Insects, Rodents and Creeping Things
These might not make your dining list of preferences even without the express instructions in Leviticus to avoid them. Rodents and reptiles make the unclean list. Creeping insects are all forbidden, although flying insects with jointed legs such as grasshoppers, crickets and locusts are allowed. Leviticus specifically mentions creeping things that walk on all fours; since most insects have six legs, this may refer to the way the insects move rather than the number of legs they have, the Enduring Word website explains.
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