How many pills did you take this morning? Maybe you swallowed a multivitamin alongside your granola, or chased an iron tablet with an espresso. I palmed a cocktail of Coenzyme Q10, a probiotic, a dandelion leaf liver-cleanse capsule, a magnesium energy supplement and, just to test my gag reflex, a spoonful of fish oil. Most of us have flirted with supplements at one point or another. After a disastrous three-more-inches-off-than-expected trim, I took Viviscal until my hair grew back to Rapunzel lengths; on doctor’s orders, I’ve taken vitamin D in the winter months, and Feroglobin to stop me from feeling faint. But beyond building stronger bones or boosting energy levels, the new generation of pills, powders, and drinks promises more aesthetic benefits. Think glowing complexion, thicker hair, smoothed-ou wrinkles — benefits that, until now, have been restricted to lotions, creams, and injectables. "The appeal of nutricosmetics lies in the increasing pursuit of wellness. Immediate gratification and rapid effects remain powerful pulls for beauty, but attention is also shifting towards long-term wellbeing," explains Rebecca Smith, behavioural analyst at Canvas8. "It’s not just about exfoliating, moisturizing, and toning — what we eat and how we live are just as important to achieving a beautiful complexion." From collagen drinks (like skinade ) to beauty cereal (such as Believe ) to super-supplements (enter Lumity ), diet is the next aesthetic frontier. Maybe it began with swathes of Lycra-clad women downing grass-hued juices in the name of brighter skin, or with hot yoga promising to lengthen your limbs and clear your pores; either way, the pursuit of beauty has moved firmly into the holistic arena. Just look at renowned makeup artist Wendy Rowe ’s latest book — in its Tumblr-pink jacket, Eat Beautiful details soups, salads, and juices to illuminate the skin. Similarly, LA-based Moon Juice — purveyor of 'plant-based alchemy' for mind and body — has expanded its offerings with a range of beauty powders with names like Beauty Dust, Power Dust, and even Sex Dust. Alexia Inge, founder of Cult Beauty, told Refinery29: "We’ve been stocking ingestible skin care since we first launched PerriconeMD eight years ago. At the time, he was a lone voice advocating diet as an important factor in the health and subsequent beauty of your skin. It was pitched then as anti-aging, but that term is falling out of favor… now it’s all about energizing! We recently launched Moon Juice because they are new-gen pioneers in their fields. The results they give are astonishingly quick."