Anti-aging is the buzzword in beauty and cosmetic circles nowadays. It seems that more and more Americans — regardless of gender — desire to look young forever. In fact, a number are willing to spend tons of money in unguents, laser treatments, injections, and invasive procedures just to maintain their youth and beauty.But for those who do not have money to spend on their looks, do not fret. There are quite a number of ways to maintain your beauty and youth without spending too much. With the oil scenario and the mortgage problems, paying for Botox injection or anti-aging sessions in a clinic or beauty salon is out of the question for many people.Fortunately, Mother Nature has given us fruits and vegetables that will help avert the aging process. Simply following basic beauty routine, exercising regularly, taking care of the skin, and including the foods below in your daily diet will surely help you look younger without denting your budget.1. ChocolateMany people shy away from chocolate because they are perceived as fattening and bad for the health. In reality, chocolate contains flavanols, which is good for the heart. If you want to get the goodness of chocolate without gaining pounds, you should choose the dark variety. Make sure that your choco bar or drink contains at least 70% cacao. Aside from maintaining the health of the blood vessels, chocolate also prevents you from getting type 2 diabetes, dementia and kidney diseases.2. YogurtIn the 70s, experts have found that a huge concentration of centenarians in Europe can be found in Soviet Georgia. The reason behind the long and healthy life of the people of this country was yogurt. Research show that yogurt keeps intestines healthy and efficient. Plus, this food item is also rich in calcium, which is important for stronger bones.3. NutsA study done by a certain religious denomination in the US shows that individuals who eat nuts live about 2 ½ years longer, on the average, than those who do not eat nuts at all. Uncooked nuts actually contain vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals. These nutrients are essential in maintaining levels of good cholesterol and preventing cardio-related diseases. For people who are allergic to nuts, you can get the same benefits from olive oil.4. FishFish is a healthy choice for protein. It is abundant in omega 3 fatty acids that inhibit the build up of cholesterol in the arteries and blood vessels. In fact, researchers have concluded that the healthy hearts of the Inuits in Alaska is mainly due to huge amounts of fish they eat everyday.5. BlueberriesClinical studies conducted on animals have shown that blueberries are effective in dealing with age-related inflammatory and memory problems. It seems that compounds found in blueberries, as well as in other types of berries, avert oxidative damage that is linked in motor and cognitive deficiencies.6. WineDrinking a glass or two of red wine has been known to help in keeping the heart healthy. Aside from the heart, however, red wine has also been found to minimize the risk of getting diabetes and memory loss. The compound that makes this beverage a must-have is resveratrol, which slows down degeneration and aging on the cellular level.As mentioned earlier, it is also important to take care of the skin to look beautiful and young, particularly in the area surrounding the eyes. In order to minimize the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles, dark circles and eye bags, you can use a natural-based eye creams such as Eyevive. Visit http://www.eyevive.com/ for more details about this product.

I receive a ton of questions about all of these new “energy” drinks that have hit the market over the last few years. They seem to be all the rage, especially with the youth, and they promise you the world with outrageous claims of all of the super energy that you are going to have, and how you’ll be crushing the competition in your sport, and so on.

So a couple questions arise:

Are these “energy” drinks really any good for you? Do they actually increase your energy? Do they really have some sort of magical energy formula? Will they help you lose weight?

First of all, let’s look at what most of these energy drinks are usually made of. Most of them are simply carbonated water loaded with gut-fattening high fructose corn syrup, caffeine, the amino acid taurine, and a few random B-vitamins thrown in for show to trick you into thinking there’s something healthy about these concoctions.

Let’s start with the high fructose corn syrup. Well, here we’ve got empty calories that will go straight to your belly fat, and that are actually even WORSE for you than plain old refined sugar.

Ok, so you say that they have low-sugar or sugar-free varieties as an alternative to the HFCS-laden energy drinks. Yes, but now you have the problem of the harmful chemicals in the artificial sweeteners.

Another problem with artificial sweeteners is that there are some researchers that believe artificial sweetener use leads people to inadvertently consume more calories and gain more weight in the long run. I won’t go into the details on that because that would fill up an entire discussion by itself. Just trust me that artificial sweeteners and artificial chemicals in food in general, are all bad news for your body!

What about the caffeine? Well, first of all, caffeine in itself doesn’t provide “energy”. Technically, the only substances that actually provide energy are calories (from carbs, protein, and fat).

However, caffeine can be an aid for livening or waking some people up, by means of stimulating the central nervous system. Keep in mind though, if you’re a regular coffee drinker, you’re probably addicted to caffeine and probably wouldn’t receive too much benefit from the caffeine in an energy drink anyway.

Besides, instead of caffeine added to some carbonated drink, I’d rather get my caffeine from a natural source like green, white, or oolong teas, which actually provide healthful antioxidants too!

Now what about that so called magical blend of taurine and B-vitamins that they load into these energy drinks? Well, big deal…you can get taurine in almost any protein source. And the vast majority of those B-vitamins are simply coming right out into the toilet in your pee. Vitamins are best obtained naturally from real food sources, not artificially added to some carbonated drink. Your body just doesn’t use fake sources of vitamins as readily as natural sources from real food.

So as you can see, in my opinion, I give all of these energy drinks a big time THUMBS DOWN! You’re better off mixing up your own homemade energy drink with some iced unsweetened green, white, and oolong teas, a little bit of 100% pure berry or pomegranate juice, and maybe a touch of a non-denatured whey protein.

Well, I hope this article cleared up some of the confusion about these energy drinks that are being so heavily marketed these days, and will help you make more informed decisions for your health.

Over the recent years the health industry of “super fruit” juices has skyrocketed! You may have heard of companies like MonaVie Acai juice that launched in 2005 with a network marketing business opportunity and the Acai berry that was featured by Oprah and other media sources. These health juice companies have found a super fruit such as Acai berry from the Amazon and bottled it into their own formula to sell. There has been similar success with other super fruits such as Noni, and Aloe Vera. The newest player of the bunch is a company called eXfuze. The company launched their product in September 2008.

This new “juggernaut” relates itself to doing what the mulit-vitamin did in the vitamin industry by creating a “one-size-fits all” approach. They created the first multi-botanical nutrition supplement using seven of the best super fruits combined into one.Do you struggle to find time to eat healthy? This is the question this product answers. With less time and more stress of everyday life and not to mention less nutrition from fruits and vegetables then in the past, this product serves the purpose of being a quick health supplement that offers amazing benefits.

These seven super fruits are:

1. Gac -from Southeast Asia2. Acai -from South America3. Goji -from Himalayan Mountains in Tibet and Mongolia4. Noni -from Pacific Rim and South Indies 5. Fucoidan -from brown seaweed and algea 6. Mangosteen -from Thailand 7. Seabuckthorn -from Central and Southeast Asia

Seven+ also has:

1. Pomegranate2. Aloe Vera3. Blue Aguave Nector4. Wild Blue Berries5. Concord Grapes6. Structured Water (Higher ph/ Alkaline)

Almost sounds too good to be true doesn’t it? I found some of the benefits touted by the company to be amazing.

You should try the eXfuze seven day challenge to see which of the following benefit’s you may receive:

• Cleanses and “detoxes” the body* • Offers increased energy and stamina* • Aids cellular regeneration* • Fights damaging free-radicals* • Promotes quicker healing* • Supports the immune system* • Possesses anti-inflammatory benefits*• Contains fatty acids called Omega 6 and Omega 9. Research shows that these two fatty acids help maintain healthy cholesterol levels* • Contains Xanthones which may help reverse the signs of aging* • Supports blood glucose control* • Contains vital amino acids along with trace minerals, which aid in muscle regeneration and contractions* • Promotes healthy joint mobility and function* • Aids appetite control* • Improves mental focus and clarity* • May help regulate emotions and calm nerves*• Enhances gastrointestinal health* • Supports the cardiovascular system and good circulation*

*These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

Seven Plus contains:

• Vitamins A,B complex, C & E • Antioxidants • Phytochemicals • Xanthones • Magnesium • Calcium • Iron • Iodine• Zinc • Trace Minerals • Beta Carotene • Amino Acids • Lycopene • Omegas 3,6,7,9 • Folic Acid

Now the next question I get allot is, ok but what is the ORAC value of brand X drink? So I did some research on the ORAC value of the popular drinks and here is what I found here:

• EXFUZE ORAC = 50,000 per bottle!!!!!!• Young Berry Juice ORAC = 32,750 • Mona Vie Juice ORAC = 18,500 per bottle • Xango Juice ORAC = 13,750 per bottle • EB Tahitian Noni Juice ORAC = 12,500 per bottle • Himalayan Goji Juice ORAC = 10,000 per bottle • Silver Sea ORAC = 2,000 per bottle

The ORAC value of eXfuze is 50,000 per liter bottle. Thats pretty impressive isn’t it. eXfuze accomplishes this by being a mulit botanical therefore providing a full spectrum of nutrition. The name eXfuze originated from the process of creating Seven+. The “eX” represents the extracts that are taken from each botanical, ensuring that only the most nutrition-rich parts are used. “Fuze” designates the “fuzing” of all of the ingredients into a formula that is nutrition dense and second to none.

Another point that sold me was that there is no bezoate as a preservative, no sugar added, no sodium. This translates into using a natural vegetable preservative that is cold pressed to give you the highest amount of nutrition.

What Does It Cost?

Seven Plus costs $45 dollars per bottle retail. If you are able to sign up as a preferred customer, or sign up as a distributor you can get wholesale pricing for $30 a bottle. I will be writing a separate article about becoming a distributor as well.

How Long Does It Last?

The company recommends a daily serving of ¾ to one ounce a day. Which means one bottle will last you roughly a month. If you are familiar with other companies you will realize how much cheaper eXfuze’s seven plus is considering most recommend 2-4 ounces daily, and cost upwards of $180 a month! With the additional super fruits and lower cost it was truly a win-win situation that I could not pass up.

What Does All This Mean?

After all these facts what does it mean for you? Well after I looked over the product and even though many people are skeptical about MLM companies I believe it is superior to anything else on the market. When you really understand how these MLM companies work there isn’t a thing to worry about. Give the seven day challenge a try and see what it will do for you!