Nutritionism

paradigm that assumes that it is the scientifically identified nutrients in foods that determine the value of individual food stuffs in the diet

Food contains nutrients. The diet of a person is made of different kinds of food. Nutritionism is the idea that only the nutritients found in different foods determines their value for the diet. The value of a diet can be calculated by adding up the values of all nutritients of the individual food items. According to nutritionism, people only eat to stay healthy. In general, the term has a negative connotation.