I am in Russia and I want to share some photos from Russia with you.

So cool here in Moscow- I can get raw milk right in the supermarket in this machine! No laws against it!

My favorite restaurant! Great white mushrooms! Oruk is the name. It means prunes!

This is the cozy interior of Oruk!

Went to a legends of hockey game last night! This is the Moscow run stadium! Nice hug?

Right at face off! Pretty arena inside too!

Self portrait at a Russian launch of a perfume- it was in a store with the unfortunate name of CUM! Central Universal Magazine(magazine means store!)

Perfume’s designer signing bottles….

More photos and blogs coming soon. Thanks for checking in everyone!

- Carol

Attention Interactive: Over 130,000 people voted on your website answering question: “On which subject should Carol’s next book be?” 58% voted it should be on the Raw Food. Has this influenced your decision to write another book on Raw Food?
Carol: You probably want me to say yes, because you run my website, but my motivation to write it comes from real life. People are constantly asking questions on this subject and there is a lot of confusion on this important subject. Over the years, I learned that there is a need for such a book on the market to educate people. Many of the questions come through my website which I take time to personally answer in Ask Carol a question, and some questions from my website have inspired certain chapters of the book.

Attention Interactive: Carol, will your book be available at bookstores around the country, or just online?
Carol: All my previous books have been available both online and in retail book stores and this one will be as well.

Attention Interactive: So, Carol….do you really eat 100% raw food 100% of the time?
Carol: I have my cheats. There is a chapter in my book about it.

Attention Interactive: Carol, your raw food passion extends into your skin care line and you have recently introduced it into retail stores. Can you elaborate on that?
Carol: My raw skin care line is only available in Duane Reade for now. If it does well, we will take it to other retail stores.

Attention Interactive: We heard it is hard to get shelf space for new products. How did you do it?
Carol: For my product, it was not hard to get shelf space. Duane Reade purchasing experts immediately recognized the uniqueness of it. For example, even though my skin care line has raw food ingredients, it does not have to be refrigerated. Beyond that, there are so many reasons that make my skin care line unique- so we had no problem putting it on retail shelves.

Attention Interactive: Carol, will you talk about your skin care line in your book?
Carol: Yes, as my skin care line is integral part of my raw food philosophy and another venue to reach out to people and improve their lives.

Constantly in search of new frontiers, Carol Alt is the ultimate chameleon. Since her days as the world’s most renowned Supermodel, Carol Alt has gone on to be author, actress and entrepreneur. Having had enormous success in all her endeavors such as being a USA Today Best-Selling Author for her books on Raw food; a multi- award winning actress; the face of her own line of cosmetics; having a number one hit in Europe in the music industry; providing voiceovers for such hits as “King of the Hill”; and as the host of various TV and radio morning shows and newscasts, including Fox’s “Good Day Live”.

Called “The Most Beautiful Woman in the World” by Playboy Magazine and “The Next Million Dollar Face” by Life Magazine, Carol has not disappointed. Gracing the covers of over 700 magazines, several posters, two workout videos and numerous calendars, she is a one-woman conglomerate! She has lost track of the number of advertising campaigns, commercials, interviews, hosting jobs and endorsement contracts that have created this enormously successful and lasting career.

New York, NY – December 28, 2010 — Supermodel Carol Alt just made Duane Reade a whole lot greener with her new skincare line. Carol Alt believes in a healthy Raw lifestyle, from the food she eats to the cosmetics she uses. Raw Essentials is the first raw anti-aging skincare line that is certified Raw. Carol made her all-natural skincare line with the latest organic ingredients, like green tea, blue chamomile, cucumber, lime, rose, tea tree oil, tangerine, lavender and calendula. Raw Essentials is never heated above 115°F, to preserve vitamins and nutrients that create glowing, healthy-looking skin. Raw Essentials is truly a breakthrough in anti-aging. Women are turning to this highly-covetable skincare line for wrinkle reduction without the use of harsh chemicals. The wildly popular skincare line will be available at Duane Reade stores in the New York Metropolitan area on November 13th.

Carol Alt is one of the most recognizable faces in the world, having graced more than 700 magazine covers and 65 films. She is the among the Top 5 Models of All Time, according to AskMen.com, alongside Christie Brinkley, Cindy Crawford, Gisele Bündchen and Kathy Ireland. You may know her from her iconic Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover, her recent Playboy spread or her appearances on The Celebrity Apprentice with Donald Trump and the Dancing With the Stars in Italy. Dubbed “The Face” by Life Magazine, Carol appeared in ads for everyone from Cover Girl to Diet Pepsi and Noxzema. Over the past decade Carol Alt has become an expert on Raw food and beauty. Carol created her own line of beauty products to incorporate her healthy raw lifestyle into skincare.

Raw Essentials is cruelty-free without petroleum, sulfates, detergents, parabens, artificial colors or fragrances. The Raw Essentials line includes facial cleanser, scrubs, eye creams, toners, facial moisturizers and body moisturizers. What is Raw Essentials missing? Silicone, petroleum, artificial fragrances, dyes, and other chemicals found in most beauty products. Raw Essentials is powerful, plant-based, raw skin care, using the power of nature to give you younger-looking skin. Get supermodel skin the natural way with Raw Essentials. To get glowing, healthy-looking skin like glamazon Carol Alt, look for Raw Essentials at Duane Reade.

For media inquiries and interviews with Carol Alt, contact Philip Masiello at Raw Essentials at 443.472.5994 or pmasiello@rawessentials.com.

About Duane Reade:
Founded in 1960, Duane Reade is the largest drug store chain in New York City. In keeping with company’s brand vision of New York Living Made Easy, Duane Reade provides New Yorkers with prescriptions, health products and services, beauty products and services, food and convenience items for daily life in the City… everything for “How I Feel”, “How I Look”, and “What I Need Now”. Duane Reade operates 250+ stores throughout the metropolitan New York City area and is part of the Walgreens family of companies.

Posted at fitnessmagazine.com

After coming in from a yoga class, Carol was nice enough to speak about her ‘raw’ lifestyle, her skincare line, and why both can help people look and feel their absolute best.

TheCelebrityCafe: First things first, why did you decide to turn to a raw lifestyle and when did you do so?

Carol Al: Well 15 years ago, I was feeling miserable, gaining weight, looking old—and my friends were like, well it happens, you’re getting older! But I was losing my career. Raw food has giving me an extra fifteen years plus that I wouldn’t have had.

I really decided to turn to raw food after doing a project [called] Supermodels In The Rainforest. I was the name on the project and I flew from Los Angeles to Venezuela, [but] I was so out of shape that they called my manager and said that I wasn’t in “bathing suit condition.” I flew back to Los Angeles really depressed and thinking my career was over.

At the shoot, I remember watching another girl on the set who was around 23—she was happy and jumping around and full of energy…I was tired and moody and I had no energy, and I could see that her energy was capturing the set. At 23 I didn’t need Tums or aspirin, or coffee to wake up and I was wondering what had happened to me from 23 to 33—I had so many health problems [at 33]. I just remember locking myself away and just thinking that there’s got to be something out there. This can’t me all there is to life—this is terrible!

Then one day my friend Steven Cantor called me and he started talking about his girlfriend and how one of her doctors put her on a raw diet. Steven gave me the number of this ‘natural’ doctor and I told Steven that I would call him—but I got to tell you, I almost didn’t!

But then I thought—‘You want something to change and this falls in your lap.’ I’m glad I didn’t pass it up. So I called the doctor and the first thing he asked me was what I ate. [I answered and] after he stopped laughing at me, he diagnosed my six top problems. [I asked] how do you know that, [and he said], “I can tell by what you eat!” [I found out that] everything I’m eating is a cause and effect on my body—cooked food is high in acidity and causes heartburn and canker sores. So the doctor told me to eat raw all weekend and back in the ‘90s, I couldn’t just look it up easily on the Internet. So I asked him, “How do I eat it?”

He gave me some raw things to eat and told me to eat as much as I wanted—I already started feeling amazing from the moment I started eating. It was a different world! From that day forward I haven’t gotten a sinus infection, haven’t needed coffee, and I don’t need Nyquil or aspirin. Food is the best drug you will have. I was in a really bad way before the raw food—my [gaining] weight was a side effect [of my unhealthy diet]. I haven’t had anything cooked in 15 years and it gave me my life back. It is seriously a miracle in my life and I need to tell other women about it!

TCC: Was it a difficult transition to eat only raw food, and do you have any advice for people, college students for example, who say that they may not have the time to switch to a raw food diet?

CA: No the transition was immediate, and not difficult. I immediately felt better. For every thing cooked that people eat, I have a healthy, raw alternative. I don’t want for anything—I make really diverse salads. Iceberg lettuce takes stuff out of our body, but I use arugula, etc., and I never get hungry. When I go out [to eat], I carry around cold-pressed olive oil [because the salad dressings are very unhealthy].

[For the people who don’t have time], make the time! Even if it’s an hour—you can order all this stuff on a website, and dehydrating takes seconds. Your health should be your number one priority. You can’t function if you’re not feeling good—you can’t do well in school. When you’re unhealthy, you [should] give up everything you have to get your health back! And I order online tons of stuff [so it’s easy]. Aimee’s Livin’ Magic has the most amazing onion bread! I’m leaving for Russia on Friday and I’m packing it [with me]!

Once you understand that bodies don’t function ultimately on cooked food, [eating raw] is a decision you have to make and should make for your health and for your future. I don’t want to lecture but it was an amazing miracle of my life; I had so many health issues, that I wouldn’t be alive today. I was in denial about my health issues, taking Tums, aspirin, taking so many allergy medications, so I’m a person who can speak from both sides [raw food and those that rely on medication]. I don’t want to ever go back there [to being unhealthy]. People are incredulous because they don’t know there’s an entire parallel universe of raw. People go back to what they’re used to, [but it’s easy if you make raw food a habit].

TCC: Why did you decide to make Raw Essentials and what makes it better than other skincare products?

CA: Once I went raw and I got amazing health benefits, I started looking at skincare because it’s something I do 24/7—I wash my hands, wash my body, soak in bath oils, rub moisturizer on my face. Skincare is almost as prevalent [for me] as drinking water and breathing air. [After beginning the raw diet], I had one lingering health issue that was basically irritated by chemicals in skincare. So I went online to find skincare that was chemical free, and I couldn’t find anything natural and organic that was actually natural and organic. It actually makes me angry—one or two natural ingredients [in a product] don’t make it natural and organic. And skincare doesn’t have any regulation out there, so anyone can say that they are organic.

[Because of this], I started making [skincare] in my own kitchen with raw ingredients—avocado, aloe, etc. I actually had to write a book about raw because people were really becoming conscious—Miramax came to me and said this is the book you have to write. I was put in a pin light…I was put under the microscope. Carol Alt was no longer just a supermodel or just an actress. Carol Alt stood for something. People came to me and asked me what is raw food and I couldn’t tell them what skincare I used [because] I was under contract from a skincare company.

[Instead of using the skincare line I was advertising], I was just mixing my own in my kitchens and my friends would show up at my door and ask for it. [At the time] I was under a 10 year contract [worth] millions of dollars and I went to them and said I can’t do this anymore because this is morally incorrect—I can’t [champion the raw life] and then promote a skincare line that is not raw. They were very kind and understood the dilemma, but ended up blocking me for two years.

When the dust settled there was no skincare line that I could honestly put my name to, [because nothing was raw]. So I basically became unemployable. Then my manager got a phone call out of the blue that said someone had a raw line and I couldn’t believe it. Ultimately it wasn’t raw [because the ingredients were heated in a beaker]. The man [who had the faux raw line] had no concept of what raw is and he didn’t understand that every ingredient down the line has to be extracted raw and maintained raw all the way down the line. People have to understand that and do it or I can’t work with them. I needed to have something that was honest, [so that’s why I started Raw Essentials]. I even had my first 11 products reverse formulated so I knew everything that was in them and so I felt comfortable putting my name on it.

TCC: If synthetic impurities within makeup can make you sick, why do you think companies put them in their products?

CA: Because it’s cheaper and more readily available. [If they have the choice] to find aloe vera in fields where they have to [be at the mercy] of weather as opposed to a rice base in abundance that some company out of New Jersey produces, [they are going to choose the latter] so they don’t have to wait.

I think it also has a lot to do with ignorance—people don’t really understand the impact of skincare on health. I remember reading an article about UVA/ UVB sun blocker getting into breast milk, parabens [used as preservatives in skincare products] causing cancer and mimicking hormones. Women are already taking in more estrogen than we need because stress creates a lot of hormones that we don’t need. There is no excuse for people to use skincare that does this to the body, so I created this skincare line so that people have something that’s healthy. And it works because it gives your skin what it needs to rejuvenate itself [raw minerals and vitamins]. [Raw Essentials] is cohesive and works in conjunction with the body; it works better and better the more you use it!

TCC: Your website talks about how parabens are most widely used as preservatives in cosmetic products. Without it, how are your products preserved?

CA: We have all natural preservatives: [we use] a Chinese preservative and Japanese honeysuckle, and this gives our products a shelf life of 2 years and it doesn’t need to be placed in the refrigerator. I put my products by the sink. [Raw Essentials] is sexy and easy to use—[my products also] sit by my bathtub and are very convenient. I moisturize all over the house so whenever I feel dry I just plop some on!

TCC: A lot of your products are very affordable. Why do you not sell Raw Essentials at a higher price?

CA: Most of my products are in the 20-40 dollar range. The kits are more expensive but then they come with 3 to 5 pieces. One of the really big things for me is that beautiful skin is not just a luxury for the rich—everyone has the right to healthy skin. Women have the right to have beautiful skin and they shouldn’t have to pay 750 dollars for caviar on their skin to be beautiful. I personally don’t find any of the skincare lines [that are super expensive] different from the others.

[And some of the ingredients found in these products are disgusting!] Some have formaldehyde in them—formaldehyde is for dead bodies! Laurel sulfates are in WD40 and antifreeze—if you drink antifreeze it kills you! What makes it different if you put it on your skin? Your skin is a gigantic sponge [so these ingredients can make you sick].

TCC: What is your favorite product from Raw Essentials?

CA: That’s really tough because I use everything! But I do love the Vita-A eye serum, and I don’t just use it on my eyes. Everywhere I have a wrinkle, that’s what I use. I like the liquid wash for my face and body because I wash all the time. There are very few soaps or washes that don’t have the laurel sulfate, so I feel proud to have created something that I want and use. Also, [we get our] Vita-A from carrots! It used to be that you had to get a prescription from the doctor for it because it irritates the skin.

TCC: I also heard that your were doing a reality show…could you talk about that?

CA: We’re waiting for it right now. It’s been pitched, and it’s about the secret life of supermodels. We’re on pins and needles about it because it’s different than anything else out there. A lot of the shows out there are morally incorrect, and [our show] is something completely different. I’m not the type of person to throw tables and pull people’s hair, so this will be a completely unusual show. We’ll see [if it gets picked up]!

Interview with Carol Alt by Cara Laviola for thecelebritycafe.com

NEW YORK, Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — The holiday season is a time for celebration and reflecting on what matters most in life: your family, your health and the importance of making a difference in the world. Launched today and now available on the iPad, iPhone, Mac and PC, the November/December 2010 “Giving Back” issue of VIVmag, the original all-digital women’s luxury magazine, celebrates the joys of the season. The issue offers an exclusive holiday lineup of interactive style, food, fashion, fitness and wellness features designed to help women “Vivify” their end-of-year celebrations.

“The holidays are a time when many of us slow down, spend time with family and take stock of our lives and the events of the past year,” said Anne M. Russell, editor-in-chief, VIVmag. “In that spirit, this issue of VIVmag kicks off with an exclusive profile of one of the original supermodels, Carol Alt, who—still stunning and vivacious at age 50—shares her secrets to longevity and what’s most important to her today.”

With complete holiday-themed coverage in VIVmag’s signature dynamic, interactive, rich-media style, the “Giving Back” issue features the VIVmag “Guide to Smarter Giving” to help readers make the most of tax and other financial benefits when making donations, plus resident Home Style entertaining expert Colin Cowie talks with The Angelrock Project founder Malaak Compton-Rock about the importance of philanthropy.

Other holiday health, wellness and style features include:

• holiday fashions that look festive — not foolish — plus red-carpet ready hairstyles and winter style straight from the runway;
• a high-intensity stress-busting workout that can help you lose weight and keep your cool, despite the decadent dishes and difficult relatives you may encounter this season;
• holiday gift guides with advice for choosing gifts that keep on giving beyond the holiday season—for friends, relatives, fitness lovers and even your holiday party hostess;
• wine, food and music advice for planning the perfect holiday soiree.

Celebrated for its interactive, immersive digital content, VIVmag recently won silver in the international DIGITAL MAGAZINE AWARDS competition in the Lifestyle Magazine of the Year category, celebrating the best magazines and individuals from the digital publishing industry. VIVmag also earned recognition as the Leading Digital Edition at min’s Editorial & Design Awards on November 8, 2010. With nearly 375,000 readers, VIVmag is one of the largest subscription-based, all-digital women’s lifestyle magazines and the only one available on multiple digital platforms/devices, including iPad, iPhone, Mac and PC.

Powered by UNITY™, Zinio’s multimedia, universal reading platform, VIVmag expanded its reach to become a truly ubiquitous lifestyle guide for women with the launch of its free VIVmag app for iPad™ on October 19, creating an ultra-portable, accessible-from-anywhere ecosystem for its exclusive interactive, rich media features and advertising content.

To preview the upcoming November/December 2010 Giving Back Issue of VIVmag, visit www.vivmag.com.

About VIVmag
VIVmag is a first: It’s an exclusively digital, 100% interactive magazine that delivers reliable, accurate service journalism in fitness, wellness, fashion, beauty, awareness and nutrition. Its audience of savvy women is genuinely committed to leading healthy, balanced lives. VIVmag’s interactive content entertains and informs, helping readers achieve the confidence that comes from engaging life at a higher level. From interactive exercise demonstrations to point-and-click purchasing power right from its pages, VIVmag has attracted a circulation of 375,000 influential readers committed to discovering and embracing the future of magazines. To learn more about VIVmag, please visit www.VIVmag.com.

About Zinio
Zinio is the world’s largest newsstand and bookstore. With its many digital products and services, Zinio creates better ways for people to discover published content, get more of it and do more with it. Now, readers can purchase content once to be read on any screen. Zinio provides the ability to shop for, search inside, read, share and save digital content in 23 local newsstands in any country in the world. Through the Zinio UNITY™ reading platform, readers can move seamlessly within each publication page between text, interactive graphics, animated illustrations, videos and much more. Offering hundreds of thousands of the best digital issues, Zinio’s e-stores and applications are revolutionizing reading. Founded in 2001 and privately held, Zinio is headquartered in San Francisco and has offices in New York, London, Paris, Barcelona and Taipei.

Posted at www.prnewswire.com

NEW YORK, Nov. 10, 2010 /PRNewswire/ — Supermodel Carol Alt is launching her new skincare line with an in-store appearance at Duane Reade. Carol lives a healthy lifestyle, from the food she eats to the cosmetics she uses. She created Raw Essentials with organic ingredients like green tea, blue chamomile, cucumber, rose, tangerine, lavender and calendula. Raw Essentials is never heated above 115 degrees F, to preserve vitamins and nutrients that create glowing, healthy-looking skin.

Women are turning to this highly-covetable skincare line for wrinkle reduction without harsh chemicals. The wildly popular skincare is coming to Duane Reade. “We are so thrilled to have Carol Alt’s new line Raw Essentials at Duane Reade. Shoppers will be delighted to have a skincare line so cutting-edge and green at their local Duane Reade corner drugstore,” said Joe Magnacca, President of Duane Reade.

Carol Alt is one of the top celebrities in the world, having graced more than 700 magazine covers and 65 films. She is among the Top 5 Models of All Time, according to AskMen.com, alongside Christie Brinkley, Cindy Crawford, and Gisele Bundchen. Fans love her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover, Playboy spread, appearances on The Celebrity Apprentice and Dancing With the Stars in Italy.

The authority on Raw food, she created Raw Essentials for natural skincare without spending a fortune. Raw Essentials is powerful, plant-based skin care for younger-looking skin. Get supermodel skin the natural way with Raw Essentials. To get glowing, healthy-looking skin like Carol Alt, look for Raw Essentials at Duane Reade.

Meet Carol Alt at Duane Reade from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. as she Launches Raw Essentials on:

Wednesday, Nov 17, 2010
939 3rd Avenue (at 58th)

Thursday, Nov 18, 2010
661 8th Avenue (at 42nd)

About Duane Reade:
Founded in 1960, Duane Reade is the largest drug store chain in New York City. In keeping with company’s brand vision of New York Living Made Easy, Duane Reade provides New Yorkers with prescriptions, health products and services, beauty products and services, food and convenience items for daily life in the City…everything for “How I Feel,” “How I Look,” and “What I Need Now.” Duane Reade operates 250+ stores throughout the metropolitan New York City area and is part of the Walgreens family of companies.

Posted at www.prnewswire.com

Celebrities, such as Demi Moore, Carol Alt and Alicia Silverstone, speak enthusiastically about the raw food lifestyle, emphasizing how energetic and healthy it makes them feel. If you’re curious about the diet, but fear meals more suited to rabbits and squirrels than people, read on. Raw food advocates create a wide range of delicious — even warm — meals out of simple ingredients.

Definition
To keep foods raw, do not heat them above 118 degrees F. Some raw food chefs, such as author Ani Phyo, place the limit at 105 degrees F. You may, however, freeze foods and use frozen fruit. Store-bought frozen vegetables, however, are usually heated before freezing and are not raw. Any product that has been pasteurized has been heated beyond this point and is not raw.

Types
Raw food diets can be vegan, lacto-ovo vegetarian or omnivorous. Raw foods from animal sources include raw dairy products, raw eggs, sushi, seared red meat and dishes such as steak tartar and ceviche, a South American fish dish. Raw food enthusiasts also vary in how much cooked food they allow in their diets. Some, such as the omnivorous Carol Alt, claim to eat about 95 percent raw. Others, such as Colorado resident Eric Prouty, aim for 75 percent raw in the summer and 50 percent raw in the cold winter months. Nutritionist Linda Ruff recommends getting started on a half-raw diet, especially if you’ve been eating typical American fare.

Staples
Look for fresh, in-season crops for best flavor and texture. Vegetables you might not have thought to eat raw include corn, turnips, kohlrabi, kale, mushrooms and beets. Raw food recipe books can help you get started with these vegetables and others. In addition to vegetables and fruit, the raw food diet includes nuts, coconut, nut butter, sesame tahini, avocado, dried fruit, sun-dried tomato, olives, olive oil, bean sprouts, sprouted grains and wine. Look also for raw versions of vinegar, soy sauce, sauerkraut and pickled vegetables.

Examples
Raw food enthusiasts make creative use of simple ingredients to make meals that feature raw versions of chili, spaghetti, cheese, pancakes, breads, crackers, cereals, bacon, hummus, veggie burgers, sandwich spreads, French fries, veggie scrambles, sushi rolls, cookies and ice cream. You can purchase some of these products, such as cereal, crackers and ice cream, at many natural markets.

Tips
If you opt to start with a partially raw diet, think always of what raw foods you can add to a dish. Avocado, for example, goes well as a burger topping, in place of cheese on pizza or as a main ingredient on a sandwich. You can further increase the raw percentage of each of these meals by piling on raw vegetables. Good choices include sprouts, chopped tomato or bell pepper, sliced carrots or cucumbers and shredded lettuce or cabbage. You can also easily add nut-based, nondairy cheese sauces to your diet. These are rich, satisfying and easy to make if you have a food processor or high-speed blender.

Written by Linda Basilicato, posted at www.livestrong.com
Photo Credit: Alberto Coto/Photodisc/Getty Images