Primary and secondary foods

Holistic nutrition as a concept seeks to create a general awareness around everything that in one way or another contributes to the well-being and harmony of our body. Based on this premise, the distinction between primary and secondary foods is in line with the fundamentals and basic principles of this lifestyle.

More and more studies are demonstrating the close interrelationship between mental and spiritual well-being with food and a healthy lifestyle.

In this guide we will go into the basic principles and characteristics that distinguish primary and secondary foods, providing a general notion of them and the importance for our body to establish a correct balance of these.

What are primary and secondary foods?

The distinction between primary and secondary foods is part of an integral vision of human wellbeing and health, and has become so important that a large number of schools of nutrition now include these concepts in the subjects they teach.

The idea lies in the difference between food and meal, food being a more specific element, while nourishment has a more general spectrum that encompasses not only what we ingest, but also what in one way or another nourishes us.

Primary foods

Primary foods allude to everything that impacts us in a positive way from a spiritual and mental well-being point of view. Without the presence of these, a person cannot be considered to be healthy or to have a healthy lifestyle.

Among the most well-known primary foods are: Social relationships, since they are determinant in the well-being and formation of the individual, provide emotional support, counteract stress, help to socialize allowing to relax the body and mind, among others.

Another food of great importance within this group would be the work or profession, where it has been demonstrated the great benefits for the mental health of the individual to be able to maintain a job or profession that they are passionate about and that is in line with their interests. Work is also one of the greatest sources of stress and exhaustion, so it will be decisive for the health of the person that this is aligned to their interests and personal goals.

Physical activity is another food of great relevance, as well as the previous ones, it is a factor that allows stress control, releases tension and improves the mood. Physical activity shows a great relationship with health, preventing the onset of various diseases and significantly improving our physical condition.

There are many other primary foods, these are just some of them for illustrative purposes, but anything that improves your spiritual quality and contributes to a better mental well-being could be considered a primary food.

Secondary foods

Secondary foods are classically known as food. We generally group them into macronutrients and micronutrients. Macronutrients being those distinguished between carbohydrates, proteins and fats. While micronutrients are grouped into vitamins, minerals, among others.

To efficiently manage the principles of holistic nutrition, it is important that we know how to integrate and balance correctly these two types of food, as we do with the meal plans when balancing nutrients. In this way we will be able to maintain a healthy lifestyle attending to the satisfaction of all the needs that our organism presents, not only those that are corporal but also those that satisfy our spiritual and mental side.