Ponce de Leon in the Produce Aisle

I used to work in the entertainment business - on a soap opera to be exact. And nowhere is the quest for beauty and youth more of a priority than among those actors and actresses that are regularly inspected by the camera's unfriendly eye. The magic of lighting and makeup can only do so much.

Eventually, most of the divas (and aging hunks) turned to the help of a doctor's scalpel or shots of botox.

I'm a bit put-off by the idea myself. And, yet, I'm not unaffected by all those ads for Oil of Olay and shows like "Extreme Makeover." Heck, I'm vain too.

And, so, it was a wonderful relief to read an article in The Chicago Tribune which claims that I can age well by simply eating plenty of fruits and vegetables:

The fountain of youth didn't lie in a hot, alligator-filled lagoon just off the coast of northern Florida. It lies instead in food.

Or so say a growing number of anti-aging food advocates, including doctors, nutritionists and cooks. They tout the benefits of fruits like blueberries, pineapple, cherries, oranges and tomatoes as ambrosia not only of the gods but also of the young...Senior citizens and soon-to-be-seniors should be encouraged by medical advances and discoveries of plant chemicals called phytochemicals that appear to detoxify cells, blunting some of the effects of aging.

Even if a diet full of phytochemical-rich fruits and vegetables and other foods associated with long-term health doesn't necessarily guarantee a long life, it can be a delicious way to ward off some of the insults of time.

"It encompasses all of the different food groups," said chef and dietitian Cheryl Forberg, author of "Stop the Clock! Cooking," an anti-aging cookbook. "This isn't just for Boomers; there's something here for everybody."

So, next time you want to stop by the supermarket I suggest you bring your camera and autograph book. It's quite possible that you'll run into a youth-hungry celebrity in the produce aisle.