THE fountain of youth may actually be located in your kitchen, not your plastic surgeon's office. "Through a three-tier approach involving diet, supplements, and creams, we can control the rate at which we age," says the famous dermatologist Dr Nicholas Perricone. "And we can delay the need for surgical procedures, including facelifts, by 15 to 20 years - if we even get them at all," he believes.

Here's a step-by-step guide to natural skin care using ingredients largely available in your own kitchen. The approach to this skincare was developed by Dr Nicholas Perricone, but adapted by Indian herbalists and naturupaths Isha Suri and Dr Nandita Sahay.

Seize The Diet

Try Perricone's three-day nutritional facelift to get omega-3 fatty acids vital for natural skin care:

For lunch and dinner, eat:

A green salad (making a dressing out of olive oil and lemon juice)

Two pieces of broiled salmon or another cold water fish such as tuna or mackerel

Strawberries, raspberries and/or blueberries for dessert.

Fatty fish are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, an important ingredient in natural skin care. A deficiency of omega-3s has been linked to a wide array of diseases as well as premature ageing of the skin. Blueberries, strawberries, cranberries and raspberries are all loaded with antioxidants which save cells from premature ageing.

For breakfast, choose a sensible meal that is low in carbohydrates and sugars. Also drink 8-10 glasses of water a day to keep skin hydrated and supple.

After three days, this natural skin care diet will make such a difference in your appearance that people will say, 'Wow!' "You will look as if someone turned a lamp on your skin. Your pores will be tighter. Your dark circles will have gone and you will look as though you just arrived after a two-week vacation!" says Suri.

Here's why: Inflammation is triggered by what we eat and sugar is the bad actor. Sugar, or anything that rapidly converts to sugar (carbohydrates such as white rice, white breads or pasta) can attach to collagen and cause stiffness of skin and very old looking skin. Collagen is a natural protein that forms connective tissues in the body.

Tone It Up

A facelift in a bottle. Sound too good to be true? It's not if you choose a natural skincare cream rich in DMAE (dimetheyaminoethanol). "If you apply it to your skin, it can enhance muscle tone - which stops sagging - and in just 30 minutes, your face is lifted," says Suri. Apply this natural skincare cream twice a day, once in the morning and once before bed. "The longer you use the cream, the more pronounced the difference," she says. "It also acts as a natural anti-inflammatory and protects the skin from the irritation that can cause wrinkles and age-related skin damage."

Also consider natural skincare creams with alpha lipoic acid. "It helps restore a healthy radiance to your skin. It also can tighten pores and diminish fine lines in just a few months." Another key ingredient in a natural skin care cream is vitamin C ester. "It is fat soluble and thus penetrates the skin at 10 times higher levels than vitamin C without ester," she says. "It will thicken skin, decrease fine lines and give a youthful look."

Aside from creams, a toner is an important aspect of natural skin care. Here's a recipe for your own natural skin toner.

Ingredients

1 teaspoon of rosemary, dried

1 teaspoon thyme, dried

1 bay leaf

1 cup white wine

Gently boil herbs with white wine for 10 minutes. Allow herbs to cool in white wine for one hour. Drain off herbs and discard. Keep the liquid and transfer the strained toner to a clean glass jar. Store in refrigerator for one week.

To use this natural skin care toner, dip a cotton ball in toner and dab on freshly washed skin before bed and in the morning. It's refreshing, and it has anti-inflammatory properties. The alphahydroxy oils in wine encourage good healthy cell growth. Use it for any skin type except on those parts of the skin that are dry and irritated.

Homemade Masks

Ingredients

1 tablespoon of buttermilk

1 egg yolk

1 teaspoon of honey

1 teaspoon of mayonnaise

Stir - but don't whip - ingredients in a bowl. Apply it to your face with a cotton ball, let it harden for 15 to 30 minutes, then rinse with cool water. You will see results immediately.

The natural skincare mask takes off the top layer of dead skin. The top layer has a crepe-like, wrinkled appearance, so you will look less aged and more youthful when it is removed.

Mask For Combination Skin

If you have combination skin - some parts dry and some oily - try this natural skin care mask recipe to remove dead cells on the surface of your skin.

Ingredients

1 cup of mashed, seedless grapes

1 tablespoon whole-wheat flour

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

Mix them together into a paste. Apply with a paintbrush and keep on for 20 minutes. Rinse with warm water followed by cool water. Your skin tone will look more and your complexion rosy and fresh.

Plus Plus

According to the Nicholas Perricone approach to anti-ageing skincare, you should take a multivitamin containing Vitamin C, as well as vitamin E every day . These vitamins are strong antioxidants and may help prevent damage done by free radicals. He also suggests 30 milligrams a day of the antioxidant coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10). "Levels in the body decline due to age as well as excessive sunlight exposure, but reintroducing CoQ10 can help slow or even reverse the ageing process," he says. By trying these natural skin care treatments, you can get fresh-looking, healthy skin without pain or discomfort.