Demi Moore's Health Secret That Sucks
CBS
Posted: 2008-03-25 17:03:19
(March 25) - Demi Moore has found a health secret that sucks. Literally.
"Just a week ago I was in Austria doing a cleanse and part of the treatment was leech therapy," Moore said on "Late Show with David Letterman" Monday night.

BEVERLY HILLS, CA - FEBRUARY 21: Actors Ashton Kutcher, Demi Moore and Rumer Willis attend the 1st Hollywood Domino Tournament hosted by De Grisogono at the Beverly Hills Hotel on February 21, 2008 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
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BEVERLY HILLS, CA - FEBRUARY 21: Actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore attend the 1st Hollywood Domino Tournament hosted by De Grisogono at the Beverly Hills Hotel on February 21, 2008 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images)
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HIGHER RATES; NO TABLOIDS.. * EXCLUSIVE * .Actor Ashton Kutcher, Actress Demi Moore, Actor Tom Cruise and Actress Katie Holmes at the Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City. **EXCLUSIVE**.Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Cocktails.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com..To license this image (15436385), contact WireImage.com
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Actor Ashton Kutcher and Actress Demi Moore arrive at the Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City..Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Arrivals.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com..To license this image (15433659), contact WireImage.com
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Actor Ashton Kutcher and Actress Demi Moore arrive at the Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City..Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Arrivals.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com..To license this image (15433652), contact WireImage.com
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Actor Ashton Kutcher and Actress Demi Moore arrive at the Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City..Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Arrivals.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage.com..To license this image (15433651), contact WireImage.com
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Actor Ashton Kutcher and actress Demi Moore arrive at the Madonna + Gucci Present A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City..Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Arrivals.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage.com..To license this image (15433200), contact WireImage.com
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Actor Ashton Kutcher and actress Demi Moore arrive at the Madonna + Gucci Present A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi at the United Nations on February 6, 2007 in New York City..Madonna and Gucci Host "A Night to Benefit Raising Malawi and UNICEF" - Arrivals.United Nations.New York, NY United States.February 6, 2008.Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage.com..To license this image (15433199), contact WireImage.com
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NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 06: Actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore attends a reception to benefit UNICEF hosted by Gucci during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2008 at The United Nations on February 6, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for IMG)
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NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 06: Actors Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore attends a reception to benefit UNICEF hosted by Gucci during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Fall 2008 at The United Nations on February 6, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for IMG)
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"It detoxifies your blood and they have a little enzyme that when they're biting down on you gets released into your blood," the actress added. "Generally you bleed for quite a bit and it detoxifies your blood."
Moore said that the treatment is uncomfortable, but a little Lamaze breathing helps her get past the pain.
"They start in a spot for me that is a horrible spot: my belly button," she said. "It crawls in and you feel it bite down on you ... and then you just watch it swell up and get fatter and fatter and then when it's super drunk on your blood it just kinda rolls over like it's stumbling out of a bar."
According to Moore, leeches are fussy little creatures.
"Leeches don't like hair," she warned. "So if you're hairy be prepared to do a little shaving or waxing. They much prefer Brazilian."
Although it sounds bizarre, leeches do have a place in modern medicine.
In 2004, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) cleared the commercial marketing of leeches for medicinal purposes for the first time when it granted approval to French company Ricarimpex SAS.
According to the FDA, leeches can help heal skin grafts by removing blood pooled under the graft and restore blood circulation in blocked veins by removing pooled blood.
Leeches have been used as an alternative treatment to blood-letting and amputation for several thousand years. They reached their height of medicinal use in the mid- 1800’s. Today they are used in medicine throughout the world as tools in skin grafts and reattachment surgery.
Moore is currently promoting her new movie, "Flawless," which co-stars Michael Caine.
Hey Paparazzi ...
You've Been Punk'd!
If you thought Paris Hilton's weekend dinner date with a fu-manchu sporting guru was all a ruse, well, you were right. Members of the paparazzi ate it up, snapping photos that ended up in newspapers and news Web sites. One problem: the "guru" is an actor and the whole thing was set up by Ashton Kutcher.