Recently, I bought my mom—a lifelong vegetable avoider—a juicer. “Now you can drink your veggies!” I offered while pouring us both a cocktail of carrots, beets, spinach and celery. One hour later my skin was glowing, as luminous as if I’d been lit by a team of lighting pros. Hmm, what did that juice do? I considered buying a juicer, but how would I carry home 50 pounds of carrots each week without a car or a muscular man—or any man, for that matter?

Seeking answers, I book an appointment with Joey Shulman, a Toronto-based holistic nutritionist and author of
The Natural Makeover Diet. “Dr. Joey,” a former model, is slim and gorgeous. Her
complexion is flawless and her skin is glowing. I’m thinking that whatever she does, I must do it too. I also hope that this doesn’t involve long-distance running.

“Your face glowed because you got a massive concentration of vitamins, antioxidants and hydrators,” she explains. Beta carotene in carrots helps cell formation, beets are a blood tonic, spinach is high in antioxidants and celery is hydrating. “You need to juice two to four times a week to see continuous benefits,” she adds. I nod slowly, thinking that there’s no way I can commit to that kind of routine. “Is there a natural miracle pill for skin?” I ask tentatively. “Fish-oil capsules come close because oily fish like salmon is high in DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid that is the ticket for skin,” says Shulman. Great! I don’t need to juice daily or eat salmon for breakfast.

Besides fish oils, she recommends eating foods that are rich in
vitamin C
to help collagen formation and keep skin plump and drinking green or white tea for its free-radical-fighting antioxidants. On her no-no list: pro-inflammatory white sugar and trans fatty acids. “Anything that irritates your body will show up on your face,” she cautions. As will stress, which increases cortisol levels and weakens the immune system. I feel the furrows deepen in my forehead and wonder if there’s a natural, needleless version of Botox— with a catchy name like, say, Notox.

Click here to read more on the beauty-from-within industry…

On my way home, I pick up fishoil capsules and white tea and do a little research. I learn that the beauty-from- within industry—everything from supplements to beauty drinks to antioxidant-infused cookies—has gone mainstream. Case in point: Makeup artist
Carmindy of
What Not to Wear endorses Nestlé’s Glowelle, a drink with
green and white tea, grapeseed and vitamins.

One week later, my skin looks smoother and more hydrated—and not just my face but my whole body. But then I do the math: Shulman takes two to three fish-oil capsules a day. If 120 capsules cost around $50, that’s up to $36 a month. Clearly, natural beauty comes with a price!

That night in bed, I listen to
Hypnox, an audio CD created as a natural option to Botox. The calming voice of certified hypnotherapist Joan Krygsman guides me from progressive muscle relaxation to post-hypnotic suggestions that teach me to relax and retrain five facial-muscle groups. “The tight muscles gradually…relaxing… the lines slowly dissolving away….” I fall asleep. I dream that Carmindy is doing my makeup. My skin is positively glowing.

Read more:

The secret to looking younger

Goodbye fine lines! How to treat wrinkles

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