No matter who is in the White House, an enormous Food/Industrial Complex controls what we eat. Christina Pirello, chef, teacher, award-winning television host, and vocal advocate for healthy living is fed up (pun intended) and she tells all in "I'm Mad As Hell, and I'm Not Going to Eat It Anymore: Taking Control of Your Health and Your Life -- One Vegan Recipe At A Time" (Perigree Books trade paperback, 368 pages, $20.00).



In her most ambitious and passionate book to date, Pirello takes on the food establishment, big pharma, marketers, the government, and nongovernmental health agencies in a sweeping and well-argued indictment of the roles these organizations play in the demise of our collective health, our health care system, and our planet.Not limiting herself to a diatribe similar to the one in the movie "Network" Pirello writes how --despite the propaganda from the government and the food/industrial complex -- you can take responsibility for your own health and well-being even in the face of overwhelming odds. Step by step, Pirello guides you to an understanding of the causes of this country's major health problems and offers solutions that show how to create change, whether you are taking the first tentative steps toward healthier eating or are ready for a full- on commitment to embracing a completely plant-based diet and vegan lifestyle.If you're concerned about "Frankenfood" -- genetically modified organisms (GMO) -- and who isn't? -- Pirello writes on Page 107 onward how industrial giants like Monsanto are pushing foods created by their mad scientists that never occurred in Mother Nature's garden, with the help of the U.S. government. On pages 109-10, she writes that in one week the Obama administration deregulated sugar beets and alfalfa "two very important crops that can affect our future." Deregulation of alfalfa "the nation's fourth largest crop and a prodigious pollinator" could spell disaster for natural crops, she writes.What about labeling? Won't labels protect us? Not if crafty olive oil producers/distributors like Bertolli, Pompeian, Carapelli and Mazola -- to name just a few -- have their way. Pirello writes (Page 154) that research conducted by the University of California-Davis and published in August 2010 showed that brands like those noted -- and others -- have sold tons of cheap olive oil "under the veil of extra-virgin olive oil, which we know provides high levels of healthful fats, antioxidants, and low acidity levels...all the components of healthy oil. Problem is that what you are buying for that low price is just fat, just cheap oil."Armed with the information and advice that Pirello has presented in her accessible signature style, which has already garnered tens of thousands of loyal fans for her books, shows, and articles, anyone will be able to take those first critical steps on the way to total health and wellness.As practical as it is inspirational, this book also features cooking techniques, advice for stocking a pantry, and more than 125 vegan recipes, including "makeovers" of family favorites.Pirello would be the first to admit that it's a daunting task to go against such powerful forces, but she believes it can be done, one household at a time. It takes a household to rage against the food/industrial complex and she lays out strategies that any household can use to accomplish this goal.While reading this book, I came across a story in my old (I reported there from 1976-1990) newspaper, the Los Angeles Times, that tells how the students in the Los Angeles Unified School District -- one of the nation's largest and in a state that is legendary for embracing healthy food choices -- have rejected healthy school lunch fare designed to reduce obesity and diabetes.I'm quoting at length from the excellent Dec. 17, 2011 story (link: http://articles.latimes.com/2011/dec/17/local/la-me-food-lausd-20111218 ) by staff writer Teresa Watanabe:It's lunchtime at Van Nuys High School and students stream into the cafeteria to check out the day's fare: black bean burgers, tostada salad, fresh pears and other items on a new healthful menu introduced this year by the Los Angeles Unified School District.But Iraides Renteria and Mayra Gutierrez don't even bother to line up. Iraides said the school food previously made her throw up, and Mayra calls it "nasty, rotty stuff." So what do they eat? The juniors pull three bags of Flamin' Hot Cheetos and soda from their backpacks."This is our daily lunch," Iraides says. "We're eating more junk food now than last year."For many students, L.A. Unified's trailblazing introduction of healthful school lunches has been a flop. Earlier this year, the district got rid of chocolate and strawberry milk, chicken nuggets, corn dogs, nachos and other food high in fat, sugar and sodium. Instead, district chefs concocted such healthful alternatives as vegetarian curries and tamales, quinoa salads and pad Thai noodles.There's just one problem: Many of the meals are being rejected en masse. Participation in the school lunch program has dropped by thousands of students. Principals report massive waste, with unopened milk cartons and uneaten entrees being thrown away. Students are ditching lunch, and some say they're suffering from headaches, stomach pains and even anemia. At many campuses, an underground market for chips, candy, fast-food burgers and other taboo fare is thriving.Acknowledging the complaints, L.A. Unified's food services director, Dennis Barrett, announced this month that the menu would be revised. Hamburgers will be offered daily. Some of the more exotic dishes are out, including the beef jambalaya, vegetable curry, pad Thai, lentil and brown rice cutlets, and quinoa and black-eyed pea salads. And the Caribbean meatball sauce will be changed to the more familiar teriyaki flavor.The district is even bringing back pizza — albeit with a whole wheat crust, low-fat cheese and low-sodium sauce, according to food services deputy director David Binkle."We're trying to put healthier foods in place and make food [that] kids like, and that's a challenge," Binkle said. "But we want to be responsive and listen and learn."The new menu, introduced this fall, was hailed as a revolutionary step by the nation's second-largest school district to combat the growing epidemic of youth obesity, diabetes and other health problems. It was the latest healthful food initiative by the district, which banned sodas on campus in 2004, nixed the sale of junk food during the school day and called for more produce and less salt and fat to be served.This year, L.A. Unified, which serves 650,000 meals daily, has received awards for improving its school lunches, including one last week from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and another from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine.The new menus are in line with the federal government's updated dietary guidelines, which recommend, for instance, that fruits and vegetables make up half the plate. L.A. Unified has virtually eliminated canned and frozen fruits and vegetables, boosting spending on fresh produce from $2 million in 2006 to $20 million in 2010.For months before introducing the new fare, the district held community taste tests and collected 300,000 comments — 75% of which were positive, Binkle said.But Barrett said the debut was a "disaster." Participation plunged by more than 13%, he said. About two-fifths of the loss was tied to 99 schools that temporarily resumed requiring lunch tickets; typically, a drop-off is expected when this occurs. In the last month or so, the overall program has begun to recover; participation is down by about 5% or 6%, Barrett said.Students have embraced about half of the new fare, according to Binkle; the salads and vegetarian tamales in particular have been popular.But some students said they still are not eating — including those who liked the food at the taste tests.At Van Nuys High School, complaints about the food were so widespread that Principal Judith Vanderbok wrote to Barrett with the plea: "Please help! Bring back better food!"Among other complaints, Vanderbok said salads dated Oct. 7 were served Oct. 17. (Binkle said the dates indicate when the food is at its highest quality, not when it goes bad. They have been removed to avoid misinterpretation.) On campus, even adults — including a Junior ROTC officer and an art teacher — have been found selling black market candy, chips and instant noodles to hungry students, she said."I compare it to Prohibition," Vanderbok said.Van Nuys history teacher Doug Kayne turned the discontent into a class assignment, asking his 11th-grade U.S. history students to write five letters about the food to the mayor, the media and First LadyMichelle Obama. In class recently, students complained about mold on noodles, undercooked meat and hard rice.At Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights, Frida Duarte, 16, said her burger was "pretty good" and her friends liked the hot chicken wings. The rest? "Like dog food," said Christian Campus, 14, adding that he and his football teammates eat the lunches only to sustain them through practice.Even at Johnny L. Cochran Jr. Middle School in Los Angeles, where, according to Barrett, students reportedly loved the food, Principal Scott Schmerelson indicated dissatisfaction. He said students were rejecting the plain milk, jambalaya, Caribbean meatballs and other new dishes."It's not going over well; I have a lot of waste," Schmerelson said. "They don't want the weird things. They want down-home comfort food."Binkle said the district will continue to make adjustments. But he added that a return to chocolate milk, nachos and deep-fried corn dogs wasn't likely."We're going to stay the course on healthy food," he said. * * *Is there any hope in a situation like this, when students want their "down-home comfort food"? She's pushing that gigantic boulder up the hill, but Christina Pirello may surprise you with recipes that are at once healthy and tasty. Read "I'm Mad As Hell and I'm Not Going to Eat It Anymore" and you may be surprised and delighted with what's cooking in Christina's kitchen.is the Emmy Award-winning host of Christina Cooks, one of public television's longest-running shows dedicated to healthful vegetarian cooking. A teacher and advocate for healthy living, she is the author of several cooking and health books. She is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post, Examiner.com, One Green Planet, and VegNews. She is also founder of the Christina Pirello Health Education Initiative, a nonprofit organization dedicated to changing America's relationship with food through community outreach, media programs, and "Grow Up Healthy," a six-part in-school program designed to teach children to make healthier choices. Visit her websites atchristinacooks.com and christinapirello.org