If you're feeling in less than peak condition as the winter approaches, Dr Andrew Weil's self-help book, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health, should have you bright-eyed and bushy-tailed in time for Christmas. Weil is a conventionally trained American doctor who also uses natural treatments to achieve a state of mental and physical well being in his patients.

His books are practical and, while they ask you to make changes to your diet and lifestyle, the changes are gradual and not too demanding. He strongly believes that the body has tremendous power to heal itself and that, with a bit of care and a good diet, most people will be able to avoid major illnesses such as strokes, cancer and heart disease.

The good foods according to Weil are things like broccoli, garlic and ginger. Coffee, artificial sweeteners, saturated fat and chlorinated water are baddies and should be dropped right out of the diet. Topping up the healthy eating side of the programme are suggestions about vitamin and mineral supplements and Weil also wants you to walk.

To get you in the mood it's an easy start - just 10 minutes a day working towards five sessions of 30 minutes by the end of the eight weeks.