People often comment on my clear, glowing skin and youthful appearance. Much of the reason why my skin looks the way it does is because of what I eat. All the food in the photo below has been grown from my “beauty garden.” I try to keep enough food cultivating so that I can get at least one meal a day with ingredients from my garden.

Truly, beauty starts from the inside and works its way out, and the experts agree. “It is nutrient-rich raw food that places a sparkle in the eye, luster in the hair, freshness in the skin and a herbal fragrance to the body,” says David Wolfe, author of Eating for Beauty. The author is an advocate for “food in the raw,” basically no cooking for very little heat (dehydration) to maintain the integrity and efficacy of the foods we eat. The idea is that the more we cook our food, the less “energy” we receive after we consume it.

(I can get with eating raw veggies, but these folks cray cray if they think I’m going to eat raw meat!! Except maybe salmon…)

I’m making this book part of my essential reading this year, and as I learn more, I’ll be sharing more. And to keep me accountable, I’m going to start a weekly discussion on the forum for anyone who’s interested in also reading it.

I do much of what the book recommends–reducing sugar and processed foods, eating lots of greens, fruits and nuts–but what will be interesting is learning about the whys and hows of the benefits, such as maintaining the right balance of alkaline and acid and discovering how certain foods detoxify the blood and how they can regulate moods and sleep patterns.

One thing the book discusses and I know I’m remiss is the importance of water intake. Sheesh…I know I don’t drink enough, but I’m going do what the book recommends on page 115 while doing a cleanse: my weight, divided by four, which is about 32 ounces. I’m going to fill up a container with that amount and slice up some lemons from our tree every morning for a week and report back on how I feel.

So what’s your take on the whole, “raw revolution?” For me, the proof is in the pictures. There’s definitely something to it.