What is the difference between autotrophic and heterotrophic nutrition?

see full answer

Your Exam Success, Personally Taken Care Of

1:1 expert mentors customize learning to your strength and weaknesses – so you score higher in school , IIT JEE and NEET entrance exams.

An Intiative by Sri Chaitanya

(Unlock A.I Detailed Solution for FREE)

JEE

NEET

Foundation JEE

Foundation NEET

CBSE

Detailed Solution

Nutrition is the process by which living beings obtain and use food for growth, energy, and survival. There are two major modes:

Autotrophic nutrition: Organisms prepare their own food using simple raw materials like carbon dioxide, water, and sunlight or chemicals. Green plants and some bacteria follow this.
Heterotrophic nutrition: Organisms cannot make food on their own and depend on plants or other organisms for nutrition. Animals, fungi, and most bacteria follow this.

Key differences in table

Feature	Autotrophic Nutrition	Heterotrophic Nutrition
Food production	Self-made	Depends on others
Main process	Photosynthesis or chemosynthesis	Ingestion, absorption
Examples	Plants, algae, cyanobacteria	Humans, animals, fungi
Energy source	Sunlight or chemical energy	Carbohydrates, proteins, fats from food