Los Angeles, CA (Nov 20 2006) - Natalie Cole today disclosed to reporters her secret to staying thin. The daughter of legendary singer, Nat King Cole said she used a juicer to keep fit and slim.

According to StarPulse.com, she said, "I was drinking 12 ounces a day, which is pretty powerful. I had to cut back a little but it keeps my weight down. It's great for your liver, it's great for energy, it's great for blood pressure… I was just amazed at the difference it made in just a week."

Instead of reaching for snacks, Natalie Cole reach for her juicers to keep her fit and healthy. Now, how about you?

This is a cool apple juice recipe for your kids during Halloween.

Make some red apple juice. Put them in your muffin tins*.

Put it in a fridge for a while until it's slightly frozen. Then put blackcurrant or grapes to the centre of each tins.  Put it back into your freezer and let it become solid.

When dinner is ready, use these "eyes" as your ice cubes. Be wary … A creepy red eyes is looking at youuu …. 

* or use ice cube trays if yours can create rounded ice

Tired? Had a stressful day?

Have a cup of fresh carrot juice. This tasty vegetable is a guilt free snack that will energize you because it releases energy gradually.

Because they are high in beta carotene, carrots  will preserve the health of your eyes. To prevent cataracts and enjoy great eyesights, make carrots your friend. 

Other benefits of carrot are healthier looking hair, nails and skin. You could also use raw, grated carrots to wound or cuts since they'll help make it heal faster.

If you're an outdoor enthusiast, drink the juice regularly. It'll help fight the effect of UV lights to your eyes and skins.

For those who're looking to eat less, drink a glass of carrot juice 5-10 minutes before eating. Nutritious, the juice will help fill you up so that there's less room for foods. 

Tips:

1. Organic or not, scrub your carrot thoroughly before use. Unfortunately, carrots are among vegetables that have the highest level of pesticides residue.
2. Too much carrot will make your skin to yellow temporarily. It's a harmless but enough to make most people rush to the doctor's office. Don't worry, cut down the amount of carrots you take and it'll disappear. 

Beet what? Some say.

Well, it's not your fault. Western medicine has not make much use of this uninteresting looking vegetable, so it's not surprising that not many people wonder why some of our juicer recipes contain this little purple plant.

It was only after it was called "superfood" that sees this plant sales soar crazily. But frankly, how good are beetroots?

What's in it for you?
First and foremost it contains ingredients that would keep your heart, muscles and nerve in good order.

Secondly, there has also been evidence that beetroot help boost the life of cancer sufferers. In fact, it has been used traditionally to treat leukemia patients.  

It is also good for boosting your body's immunity since the plant stabilizes your body's pH and increases your body's intake of oxygen.

The cool part is beetroot has no side effect* (apart from making your urine or faeces red). Low in fat, nutritious and has few calories. What else could you ask for?

Sure, it's not a superfood as claimed by many but coupled with carrot, celery or other fruits, beetroot sure is an energizer. 

If you need thorough information about beetroot, check out this beetroot page 

* If you got arthritis or kidney stones don't take beetroot leaves. 

We'd like to think of Fit For Life as a book that'll make you re-think about the way you eat.

Not only it slams milk and breakfast as unhealthy, there's also the largely unheard of eating cycle (e.g don't eat meat at night)

Correct, they are not full time researchers and some of their claims are "not scientifically proven". However, we suggest that you read the book and follow through their plans. After that, make up your mind.

A lot of materials in the book are controversial. However, some of the advice has solid basis behind it. For example the advice of eating fruits on empty stomach is the correct way of taking your fruits. We can at least confirmed to you that it's a valid, yet mostly unheard of advice. Even your MD might not know that!

There are many positive reviews from people who follow through the advice of the authors but there have also been many skeptics. Ah! That's the price of challenging generally accepted ideas.

Some of the plans may make you change your diet drastically. Our advise is to do it slowly, take your time.

We read then book 3 times. 50% of the suggestions we take it to our heart. 10% of it made us think (like why some religion has a certain way of slaughtering animals) and the rest we just plain ignore (ah! old habits are hard to die ..).

Currently sold at Amazon for around $8. At the price of a lunch at McDonald, this book is worth every penny. In fact, for some people it could be a lifesaver.

+ Fit For Life
[ratings]

[eminimalls] 

Okay, this is for your kids .. Not only will they get what kids naturally love, you're also assured that their ice creams are healthy and nourishing.

Pour your juice into ice-cream moulds ( or just use leftover yoghurt pots with some wooden skewers) and put it in your freezer.

To make it more colorful, use 3 different juices with different colors (like orange, watermelon and kiwi fruit). However, for this type of ice-cream you need to pour it layer by layer - after the previous layer is thoroughly freezed.

 If you want to lose weight, eat apples. This fruit is a delicious dietary fiber and helps aid digestion and promote weight loss.

If you want to prevent heart problems or stroke, apples will also help.  In fact, two apples a day can reduce your bad cholesterol by up to 10 percent.

Although they have fewer vitamins than many other fruits, they are excellent detoxifiers and protects the body from viruses.

Tips:

1. Always peel your apples. This fruit is heavily contaminated. If possible, buy organic.
2. When buying, squeeze gently to ensure they are firm. Don't buy ones that can be easily dented.
3. Keep them in cool, dry and dark place and check occasionally because one bad apple will taint the others.

I like pineapples but hate to waste my time and clutter my kitchen with sticky, messy skins just to peel one pineapple. Thus I almost avoid them anytime I can.

If you're a pineappleholic, there's actually a solution to this misery. Buy a pineapple slicer. 

One I would recommend is  Vacu Vin Pineapple Easy Slicer. It'll do the job in less than a minute, leaving you with neat rings quickly and easily.

All you need to do is cut off the top of the pineapple, select the right slicer size, insert that to the middle of your pineapple and twist it away.

This tool has received several prestigious design awards from all over the world, including Germany’s Award for Good Industrial Design, Holland’s ION’s Good Industrial Design award, and Japan’s MITI Award for Excellent Foreign Product.

For pineapple fans, this is a must. After all, it's only around $15.

+ Vacu Vin Pineapple Easy Slicer

[ratings] 

Want a healthier and better juice? Then, peel and get rid the seeds of your apples.

If you juice or eat a lot of apples, I would suggest this handy gadget. It will peel, slice and core you those apples. A time saver and help you prepare your fruit for juicing.

Made by a company called Back to Basics, this Apple and Pineapple Peeler comes with a 5  years warranty and is currently sold at around $20.

Note:  Even if you do not want to check this product out, remember you need to at least peel your apples before juicing. Apples are among the fruits most concentrated in toxins because the skin is heavily waxed. Those wax will trap pesticides, insecticides and other toxins used for nurturing the trees and fruits.

So remember, peel your apples! 
+ Apple and Pineapple Peeler

[ratings]

This is a great sweet juice for your breakfast and is refreshing enough to boost your morning.

What It'll Do For You:

It'll enhance your immune system with vitamin A and vitamin C. The minerals  in carrots will encourage healthy skin and bones.

This juices will also help relieve stress, fatigue and illness.

What's Needed:

• 5 Carrots
• 3 Oranges
• Root Ginger (tiny piece)
• ( and optional)
• Chilled or Sparkling Water
• Crushed Ice or Ice Cubes

How To Mix:

1. Remove the skins of the oranges and cut into wedges.
2. Scrub the carrots and cut both ends. Cut it into chunks.
3. Juice those oranges, carrots and ginger root.
4. It's ready! If it's too concentrated dilute it with water or those ice cubes.

Note: Eating an excessive amount of carrots may cause your skin to yellow temporarily. It's harmless of course.