COLUMBIA, S.C. — Aging is good: Not getting older means you died young. And there's something creepy about battling every wrinkle and bulge with violent surgical intervention. People who do that take on a crafted-from-imported-materials look.

On the other hand, the first signs of mortality in your early 30s — crow's feet; a closer relationship between rear and thigh; calcium-supplements ads aimed directly at you — are a shocker.

It'd be nice to look fresher. More awake.

The cosmetics industry knows just how you feel, so it wants to sell you a bajillion dollars worth of stuff. But what works? And how much does it all cost?

Good news, bad news

Paula Begoun — a syndicated columnist, cosmetics consumer expert and author of "Don't Go to the Cosmetics Counter Without Me" — says it's hard for women not to be seduced by the fantasy of a magic youth bullet.

"The good news is, there are better products than ever before. The bad news is, plastic surgeons aren't going out of business."

Neither are anti-cellulite-product makers. Their creams, pills, wraps, electrical pulses, special clothing and shoes all claim to remove or "reduce the appearance of" the dimply stuff. (The catch: You're usually instructed to exercise, drink lots of water and eat a good diet as part of the regimen.) Some are loaded with caffeine, some with herbs, others with unpronounceable, man-made ingredients.

Russ Pate, an exercise physiologist with the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health, said that cellulite is like any other fat, and that losing it requires the same old strategy: caloric restriction and/or increased activity.

"It's not going to go away by rubbing it or electronically stimulating it or anything other than changes that result in a negative caloric balance," he said.

At 5-foot-3 and 110 pounds, 29-year-old Moira Carr is in the same boat with most of the rest of the women on planet Earth.

"Believe me, I have cellulite," she said.

Carr tested a slew of products over a two-week period: Estee Lauder's Firming Body Creme ($37.50), Body Performance Anti-Cellulite Visible Contouring Serum ($50) and Exfoliating Body Polish ($28); as well as Biotherm's Biovergetures Firming Body Expert ($38) and Abdo-Choc ($37), which is touted as a "tightening concentrate."

Carr liked the exfoliant and the moisturizer, as well as the products' scents. But, she said, "The cellulite and stretch marks are still hanging in there."

Volunteer Fran Blackmon tried out an $80 anti-cellulite body wrap followed by a Swedish massage at European Skin & Hair Clinic in Columbia, S.C. (The salon also offers a "non-surgical face-lift" involving low levels of electricity.)

The wrap, said esthetician Lydia Potter, forces a "crusty layer" of toxins — car exhaust, bad food, stress — from the body.

"I once saw a client lose 18 inches after one wrap," she said.

Blackmon lost 6 (about a quarter-inch from 14 points on her body) but she was too relaxed to care.

"I feel like a new woman — rejuvenated, ready to do some things," she said.

"I don't know whether it was the massage or the wrap ... but this thing is addictive," she said.

Face front

While you're looking at your rear, all manner of things are happening to your face. Skin renewal slows down with age because collagen and elastin — the Power Duo of young skin — start to break down.

"If you got lots of sun, this is when it shows up," said Deborah Mayo, an esthetician at Urban Nirvana in Columbia, S.C. "I've seen people in their 20s who looked like they were in their 40s, and vice versa."

Carr, who has begun to experience dryness — especially around her eyes — tried the $105 anti-aging facial ("Your first step in age prevention") at Urban Nirvana.

Mayo used an array of pricey products by Yonka — cleanser, two exfoliants, a gel masque, an alpha-hydroxy peel, moisturizer and eye cream.

"I've never felt so soft before," said Carr.

But the same caveat applies to facials as to cellulite products, dermabrasion and just about everything else you do to your skin and body: You have to keep doing it to retain the effect.

The one thing that costs almost nothing, Mayo and Begoun agree, is avoiding the sun and/or using sunscreen — but many women just won't stop tanning.

Another skin villain: free-radical damage.

"Oxygen, sun and pollution create a molecular chain reaction that causes inflammation, collagen breakdown and immune system damage," Begoun said. "Vitamins C, A, green tea and grapeseed extract are good antioxidants/anti-inflammatories that battle that."

You can find the above ingredients in some drugstore moisturizers — Begoun gives the thumbs-up to Olay Regenerist and the Dove Essentials line, as well as to the pricier Stop Signs, RepairWear and Anti-Gravity product lines by Clinique.

Dr. Greta Zimmerman at Columbia Skin Clinic recommended moisturizers and foundations with sunscreen. Neutrogena, she said, is excellent because it has a sun-protection factor of 20 and is non-irritating for most skin.

Zimmerman's other suggestions to slow the ravages of time: Retinoid products — which help to chemically exfoliate and renew skin — and glycolic acid products, which loosen the adhesion between the top layer of dead cells.

But be careful with over-the-counter versions, Zimmerman said, "because they can be more irritating to the skin than prescription products. Talk to your doctor first."

Some simple anti-aging techniques: use a sunscreen correctly — that means no tan at all; quit smoking; get enough sleep; eat fresh fruits and veggies; take a multivitamin; go easy on the alcohol; moisturize.