The Whole Truth: The Hidden Agendas Behind Decades of Health Misinformation--And What to Do about It

What we eat is a leading factor in our health and quality of life. Research has proven that a plant-based diet can prevent and sometimes reverse chronic diseases like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.

Yet this message has been ignored, distorted, or suppressed by people and organizations with a vested interest in the status quo.

In a compelling new analysis, Dr. T. Colin Campbell, coauthor of The China Study and author of the New York Times bestselling follow-up, Whole, brings to light a series of first-hand experiences that starkly demonstrate how corporate influence in academia, government and the media determines--and sometimes actively suppresses--public access to nutrition research.

Providing an eye-opening look behind the scenes of nutrition policy, Dr. Campbell recounts the story of his life and research, and then tells eight riveting stories in The Whole Truth about instances in which vital information was misrepresented or concealed, including:

• A national nutrition "supreme court" quietly organized by industry-affiliated scientists to control public messaging--and the attempt to expel Dr. Campbell from his own professional society when he challenged it.
• Manipulation of the U.S. Dietary Guidelines to permit consumption of animal protein at levels posing a higher risk of deadly chronic diseases.
• A research paper on the impact of nutrition on immunity--vital information for the COVID-19 pandemic--that was rejected from academic journals without professional review.
• An infant-feeding scandal in which a heavily marketed commercial product displaced breastfeeding--leading to widespread infant malnutrition and deaths around the world.

Coauthor Nelson Campbell, a filmmaker, health advocate, and Dr. Campbell's son, broadens the lens in the book's third part, examining why the plant-based movement has stalled and how it can be renewed through more effective messaging and a grassroots strategy to empower people everywhere to participate in building a healthier world. His suggested approach is provocative, inspiring and hopeful. Together, he and his father have authored a book that will infuse new energy into the plant-based movement.

Author: T. Colin Campbell,Nelson Campbell
Publisher: Benbella Books
Published: 06/02/2026
Pages: 208
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.05lbs
Size: 9.14h x 5.99w x 1.19d
ISBN: 9781637747551


Review Citation(s):
Library Journal 04/10/2026 pg. 1

About the Author
T. Colin Campbell, PhD, has been dedicated to the science of human health for more than 60 years. His primary focus is on the association between diet and disease, particularly cancer. Known for the China Study--one of the most comprehensive studies of health and nutrition ever conducted, and recognized by the New York Times as the "grand prix of human epidemiology"--Dr. Campbell's profound impact also extends to education, public policy, and laboratory research. Dr. Campbell is the Jacob Gould Schurman Professor Emeritus of Nutritional Biochemistry at Cornell University. He has received more than 70 grant years of peer-reviewed research funding and authored more than 350 research papers. The China Study was the culmination of a 20-year partnership of Cornell University, Oxford University, and the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine

On the heels of writing and directing the 2015 documentary film PlantPure Nation, Nelson Campbell founded the nonprofit PlantPure Communities (PPC) in early 2016. Released in theaters in over one-hundred cities, the PlantPure Nation film (now on Amazon Prime and Apple TV) highlights the dramatic healing power of a plant-based diet and examines the political and economic factors that have suppressed information about these healing benefits, while making connections to public policy, medical practice, food deserts, and farming. In addition to his work in the nonprofit sector, Nelson founded the PlantPure foods and education business. PlantPure has been working on a strategy in western North Carolina to partner with local communities to share the healing benefits of plant-based nutrition. This strategy also includes a commitment to waive 100 percent of its profit margin on sales of certain of its products in under-resourced communities.

Most recently, Nelson has launched a Substack publication at NelsonCampbell.com, where he writes about many of the same issues shares in The Whole Truth. Finally, Nelson has also had extensive experience in public speaking, mostly focused on issues surrounding plant-based nutrition, but also touching on public policy, economics, and social concerns. Prior to his involvement with PlantPure Nation, Nelson worked for twenty-five years as a business entrepreneur. He graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor's degree in Political Science and a master's degree in Economics.