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A Tibetan Buddhist monk who has been described as ‘the happiest man in the world’ has said that adopting a vegan diet is his secret to lasting happiness.

Matthieu Ricard, who lives on a monastery in Nepal, was given the moniker by scientists after he took part in a 12-year study into meditation and compassion at the University of Wisconsin.

To reach the conclusion that Ricard is the world’s happiest man, neuroscientist Richard Davidson monitored the monk, attaching him to 256 sensors as he meditated.

Davidson discovered that Ricard’s brain produced a level of gamma waves - which are linked to consciousness, attention, learning and memory - that had never before been reported in scientific studies.

Now the happy monk claims that eating with a clear conscience is his top tip to achieving a peaceful life.

“I am extremely concerned by the fate of the 8 million other species who share this world with us, and who, like us, wish to avoid suffering and live out their lives,”Ricard told animal rights organisation Peta.

“True happiness can only be attained when we avoid causing pain to others,” he concluded.

11 everyday foods that are accidentally vegan 12 show all 11 everyday foods that are accidentally vegan 1/12 Click through the gallery to see the vegan foods you are probably eating already ... Unsplash 2/12 Skittles Until fairly recently, skittles were vegan in the US but not in the UK - this was because they contained E120 cochineal, which is produced from scale insects. As of 2015, the company decided to remarket their sweets as vegan-friendly to appeal to a wider audience of sweet lovers. 3/12 Pringles The Original and Paprika flavours of the crisps are vegan, as well as the BBQ and Smokey Bacon varieties. 4/12 McCoy’s crisps Salt & Malt Vinegar, Ultimate Sea Salt & Black Pepper, Ultimate Sizzling BBQ Chicken, Ultimate Chargrilled Steak & Peri Peri: there are plenty of cruelty-free McCoy’s crisp flavours for vegans to choose from. 5/12 Lindt Excellence Cocoa lovers will be happy to hear that Lindt’s 70% Cocoa Excellence Bar is both delicious and 100% vegan. 6/12 Ritz crackers This cracker may pride itself on buttery flavour, but Ritz’s famous crackers contain no dairy or animal products. 7/12 McVitie’s biscuits Ginger Nuts, Fruit Shortcake, Fig Rolls, Hobnobs, Chocolate Chip Hobnobs… the list of vegan biscuits goes on. Somebody put the kettle on! 8/12 Fox’s Party Rings Fox’s recently reformulated their Party Rings recipe to eliminate the animal products and animal-derived colourants, making them suitable for a vegan diet. 9/12 Peanut butter Quality peanut butter is made wholly from crushed peanuts, and shouldn’t have dairy products added into the mix. Check the ingredients list on the packaging if you’re unsure. 10/12 Pot Noodle Vegan students, rejoice! Beef & Tomato, Bombay Bad Boy, Sweet & Sour, Brazilian BBQ Steak, Chilli Beef, Chinese Chow Mein, Piri Piri Chicken and Sticky Rib Pot Noodle flavours are all complementary to a vegan diet. 11/12 Oreo cookies Who’d have guessed that Oreos are accidentally vegan? Dip them in a glass of almond milk and you won’t even notice the difference. 12/12 Propercorn Vegan’s don’t have to give up eating popcorn in the cinema either. The Smooth Peanut & Almond, Lightly Sea Salted, Fiery Worcester Sauce & Sun-Dried Tomato, Sweet & Salty flavours of Propercorn are all guilt-free. 1/12 Click through the gallery to see the vegan foods you are probably eating already ... Unsplash 2/12 Skittles Until fairly recently, skittles were vegan in the US but not in the UK - this was because they contained E120 cochineal, which is produced from scale insects. As of 2015, the company decided to remarket their sweets as vegan-friendly to appeal to a wider audience of sweet lovers. 3/12 Pringles The Original and Paprika flavours of the crisps are vegan, as well as the BBQ and Smokey Bacon varieties. 4/12 McCoy’s crisps Salt & Malt Vinegar, Ultimate Sea Salt & Black Pepper, Ultimate Sizzling BBQ Chicken, Ultimate Chargrilled Steak & Peri Peri: there are plenty of cruelty-free McCoy’s crisp flavours for vegans to choose from. 5/12 Lindt Excellence Cocoa lovers will be happy to hear that Lindt’s 70% Cocoa Excellence Bar is both delicious and 100% vegan. 6/12 Ritz crackers This cracker may pride itself on buttery flavour, but Ritz’s famous crackers contain no dairy or animal products. 7/12 McVitie’s biscuits Ginger Nuts, Fruit Shortcake, Fig Rolls, Hobnobs, Chocolate Chip Hobnobs… the list of vegan biscuits goes on. Somebody put the kettle on! 8/12 Fox’s Party Rings Fox’s recently reformulated their Party Rings recipe to eliminate the animal products and animal-derived colourants, making them suitable for a vegan diet. 9/12 Peanut butter Quality peanut butter is made wholly from crushed peanuts, and shouldn’t have dairy products added into the mix. Check the ingredients list on the packaging if you’re unsure. 10/12 Pot Noodle Vegan students, rejoice! Beef & Tomato, Bombay Bad Boy, Sweet & Sour, Brazilian BBQ Steak, Chilli Beef, Chinese Chow Mein, Piri Piri Chicken and Sticky Rib Pot Noodle flavours are all complementary to a vegan diet. 11/12 Oreo cookies Who’d have guessed that Oreos are accidentally vegan? Dip them in a glass of almond milk and you won’t even notice the difference. 12/12 Propercorn Vegan’s don’t have to give up eating popcorn in the cinema either. The Smooth Peanut & Almond, Lightly Sea Salted, Fiery Worcester Sauce & Sun-Dried Tomato, Sweet & Salty flavours of Propercorn are all guilt-free.

When quizzed on ways people can achieve total happiness, Richard also told Business Insider last year that benevolence and altruism are equally important. The reason, he says, is that thinking about yourself is exhausting and ultimately leads to unhappiness.

"It's not the moral ground," Ricard says. "It's simply that me, me, me all day long is very stuffy. And it's quite miserable, because you instrumentalise the whole world as a threat, or as a potential sort of interest [to yourself]."

He also believes that meditating on happy thoughts, which the monk can do for days at a time, can also lead others onto the path of enlightenment.

“With mental training, we can always bring [our level of happiness] to a different level,” he told Business Insider.

“It's like running. If I train, I might run a marathon. I might not become an Olympic champion, but there is a huge difference between training and not training. So why should that not apply to the mind?”

Speaking to GQ, he also said that comparing yourself to the lives of your peers will fill you with an unhappy jealousy. "Comparison is the killer of happiness," he said.