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Food is food. Right?!

Writer's picture: LauraLaura



Do you see any food in this photo? Unless you consider flowers to be edible, I'm guessing you would say NO to that question. Keep reading to learn how this image represents primary food.


One intriguing key component of the Institute for Integrative Health approach to wellness is the idea of primary and secondary foods. Let me explain.


Primary foods are all the things that fuel you off the plate, the parts of your life that nourish you on a deeper level.




Secondary foods are the physical foods on your plate that you eat on a daily basis.


Your secondary food intake might be "perfect", but if your primary food is out of balance, your life will be missing the vitality you need in order to thrive and live your best life.


Think about it this way .... someone could have perfect nutrition and diet, but still be very unhappy and unhealthy. Similarly, someone might have a less-than-perfect diet but still experience good health and wellness.


IIN identifies 12 areas as primary food:

  • spirituality

  • creativity

  • finances

  • career

  • education

  • health

  • physical activity

  • home cooking

  • home environment

  • relationships

  • social life

  • joy


Considering our primary foods helps us realize that our health is impacted by way more than the food we eat and helps us see health more holistically. This can prompt us to begin to tease out the root causes of what is impacting our health instead of just focusing on symptoms.


When I become a fully certified IIN Integrative Nutrition Coach, I will be able to help you identify which primary foods my clients can target for improvement.


The photo here represents a primary food (creativity) that I find important to my health and happiness, but one that I sometimes forget to nurture. In August, I signed up for a beginners watercolor painting class, realizing that it had been quite some time since I explored my creative side. This photo shows my attempt at painting the flowers in the vase.


What about you? Can you identify some areas where you feel satisfied and fulfilled? What about areas that could benefit from more focus and attention? Leave a comment to share what thoughts are brought to light from this pondering.



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