Christina's blog

My reason to get out of bed every day is to make a difference.

My mother raised us with the mantra: “If you’re not serving someone or something somehow today, don’t bother going out of the house.” She embedded the idea of making a difference in my DNA.

I confess that it took being diagnosed with terminal cancer for me to discover my mission. Once I had regained my wellness with food, I knew that I had found the purpose of my life: to help guide others to wellness and robust vitality by helping them understand the impact of food on their health.

(From Christina: I read this in The Guardian and my mind was a little more than blown. This article is long but you will relish every word. And as the author states at the very end (spoiler alert…this is the end of the piece), “…the war on vegans is the act of a doomed majority fighting to defend its harmful way of life. Vegans might well be vociferous and annoying, holier-than-thou, self-satisfied and evangelical. But as their numbers grow beyond the margins, perhaps the worst thing they could be is right.”)

My husband was reading the New York Times and sent me an opinion piece by a cardiologist from Tufts University and a former Secretary of Agriculture.

The piece hit the nail squarely on the head and rather than put my spin on it, here is the piece, in its entirety. It will make you sit up and pay attention. It will help us to ask all the right questions. It will force us to push our leaders toward actually serving the common good. Read on.

Our Food Is Killing Too Many of Us

Improving American nutrition would make the biggest impact on our health care.

The “war on cancer” drags on with no end in sight with 1.7 million Americans diagnosed with cancer last year alone.

I don’t know about you, but with stats looking a lot like they did in 1971 when this “war” was declared, I’d say we are losing the battle.

But there’s hope and it lies in prevention.

Leading experts say that up to 90% of various cancers are caused by environmental factors and lifestyle behaviors.

After a six-year hiatus, I’m coming back home to national public television. Taking the time to travel, teach and write a new cookbook, I think it’s time to come back with a fresh take on my very cool message of wellness and healthy eating. Heaven knows we need to be strong and empowered now more than ever before.

It’s a simple thought that came to me while I sat in a lecture at a conference. The lecturer was a mentor of mine, Bill Tara, a brilliant man who’s forgotten more about the natural order of the planet than most of us will ever know.

He was talking about how easily we could slow climate change through living sustainably.

He said the words as I thought them: “The world won’t change unless we change. We have to stop killing animals.”

So what does that mean?

It means what it says.

Those of you familiar with me know that I rarely (okay, never) talk about fashion; not trends or styles. Heck, most of my clothes consist of workout gear, kitchen clothes (complete with food stains), aprons and the rare “cool” outfit (that I bought in Italy) for going out to the occasional dinner. But I do watch and read news and what I have seen is alarming when it comes to fashion. It got me to thinking about it at this time of year when we pack away the coats and sweaters and dust off the sandals and sunglasses.

I grew up in a wild, passionate Italian and Irish family. Food was the glue that bonded us and quality of ingredients reigned supreme. My Irish father worked as a butcher (with an artist’s soul) to support the family, juggling positions at three different shops to make ends meet. He worked two jobs during the week and one on weekends. He was rarely home and when he was, he was napping, eating, fixing something around the house, drawing charcoal portraits or enjoying his children.

I have practiced a balanced vegan lifestyle for over 35 years. Lately, several young vegan influencers (whatever that means to you), are bailing on the lifestyle because they lost their vitality and wellness.

Wait…what?

You guys know that I have strong feelings about genetically modified organisms, better known to us as GMO's. But sometimes I wonder if my trepidation is founded in real science.