Do vegans live as long as vegetarians?

Hey I've just transitioned myself onto a vegan diet after being vegetarian becaause of ethical purposes...except I've researched the mortality rates of vegans and the mortality rates on 2 websites and the vegans are up there with the non-vegetarians as...

far as the mortality rates are concerned. A few dieticians say that the vegan diet is healthy if well-planned and done properly but some have said that vegans usuallty lack iodine and b12. Also can you also reccomend a good vegan b12 supplement?

As you said - the vegan diet is healthy if done properly.

You can live just as long as, or longer than, a vegetarian, but you have to do your homework and make sure you're are getting all your necessary nutrients.

In the studies I've read there is little difference in life expectancy between near-vegetarians, vegetarians, and vegans but vegans did fare slightly worse than
pescitarians, occasional meat eaters and lacto-ovo vegetarians.

Vegetarians, vegans and occasional meat eaters all had longer life expectancy than than people eating meat heavy diets. If you have a link to the study you read I'd like to look it over.

Iodine level in vegetables is tied to the iodine levels in soil. My guess is that organic vegetables would be richer in this than those grown with chemical fertilizer lacking iodine. In any case most people get their iodine from iodized salt.

I've read so many conflicting things about B12 I don't know what to think. I often have a cup of miso soup with breakfast; some things I read say this is a good source of B12 but others say it is in a form that is unusable by our bodies. Probably the only safe thing to do is to get a blood test if you are a long term strict vegan. I'm not 100% vegan so I don't worry about it.