Dr Fredric Brandt — of Botox fame — says that just by eliminating sugar from your diet, you can look ten years younger in ten days.

And it isn’t just by losing weight : “In a nutshell, sugar hastens the degradation of elastin and collagen, both key skin proteins. In other words, it actively ages you,” he claims.

In a new book, 10 Minutes/Ten Years: Your Definitive Guide to a Better and Youthful Appearance, Brandt says he saw a remarkable change in his own skin when he dropped sugar from his diet. He lost 20lb in weight, but also gained a new “glow, radiance and elasticity” in his face. Within a year, his body had changed as well.

“I’m really lean and have the body of a teenager, although I’m in my 40s. … Believe me, it’s cheaper than a facelift.”

He continues, “The sugar triggers a process in the body called glycation. This is where the sugar molecules bind to your protein fibres — those wonderfully springy and resilient collagen and elastin fibres — which are the building blocks of skin.”

However, just by overheating starchy foods or grilling them, the sugar content mutates producing Advanced Glycation End products, AGEs, which do immense harm to the skin.

This is quite a complex book, so if you’re really interested in its message, we suggest you read it in detail.

There’s more good news about berries, dark-colored berries especially. Berries contain antioxidants and vitamins that have been shown to inhibit the development of cancer of the esophagus, colon and oral cavity in animals. Now researchers want to see if they have the same effect in humans.

Berries contain phenolic compounds with high-antioxidant potential. Phenols called anthocyanins give berries their color. Dark berries, such as black raspberries and blackberries have a higher content of these anthocyanins.

Scientists at Ohio State University are conducting the research. This food-based approach to cancer prevention has many advantages, including the absence of toxicity of berries to humans.

Participants in the study are patients with early stage colon cancer will consume the equivalent of 2½ cups of black raspberries per day for 2 to 4 weeks. The patients have all undergone colonscopy prior to the study and tissue samples of their tumors taken. Following the study, physicians will again remove tumor tissue for study to see if the berry treatment had any effect on cell growth and tumor development.

OSU Studies Berries in Colon Cancer Prevention

If you are one of the more than two million people in the US today who suffer from gout, you probably aren’t comforted by knowing you have what has been termed “the disease of kings”. Gout can be extremely painful and limiting to the sufferer.

Gout occurs when there is an accumulation of sodium urate crystals in the joints which form as a result of an abnormally high level of uric acid in the blood. Sixty percent of those who suffer a first attack of gout may expect it to recur, often within one year. Untreated, gout can lead to permanent joint damage and chronic pain.

The Gout & Uric Acid Education Society have a website dedicated to education for gout sufferers on the disease itself, treatments and lifestyle changes to assist the gout sufferer with regaining quality of life.

Gout is the most common form of inflammatory arthritis in men over 40 and women past menopause.

For information and education about gout, visit the Gout & Uric Acid Education Society.

According to a CDC report, Americans are still not eating recommended amounts of fruit and vegetables and no state has reached national target consumption rates.

The report found that seniors, however, eat more fruit and vegetables than do 18 to 24 year olds. College graduates were more likely to eat more of both fruit and vegetables than those with less education and people earning more than 50K per year had higher fruit and vegetable consumption than those earning less.

A diet high in fruit and vegetables has been linked to a lower incidence of chronic disease. Fruit and vegetables also help keep weight down because they have fewer calories by volume than processed foods.

To protect your health and help maintain a healthy weight, the CDC recommends that adults consume 2 cups of fruit per day and a 1 cup serving of vegetables three times a day. The government calls this the “5 a Day” plan.

More information can be found at:

5 A Day
CDC website