T here is perhaps nogreater example ofmy need for order,of my desire for

stability and harmony,than my year-end To Dolist.

Topping it, bright as abeacon in a storm-tossedocean, are several projectsto declutter, organize, tidy

up. Honestly, few thingsgive me as much pleasureas knowing everything issecure in its place.

I don’t know what thissays about me, and I’mwell aware of the snidejudgments others makeabout such unnatural ob-sessions. Who hasn’tworked in an office that

proudly displays somevariation of this: A cleandesk is a sign of a sick mind.

It’s an uphill battle, aSisyphean task, keeping atidy desk or an unclutteredhousehold. I suspect mynatural instinct is to hoard,and my children accuse me

IN MY OPINION

Tidying up all of life’s clutter can reallybring us joy — maybe, sometimes

BY ANA VECIANA-SUAREZaveciana-suarez@miamiherald.com MATAMOROS MCTSEE VECIANA-SUAREZ, 2C

Page: Features_f Pub. date: Tuesday, December 29 Last user: lcastro@miamiherald.com Edition: 1st Section, zone: Tropical Life, State Last change at: 18:51:18 December 28

TUESDAY DECEMBER 29 2015 1CFACEBOOK.COM/MIAMIHERALDTWITTER.COM/MIAMIHERALDMIAMIHERALD.COM H1

Tropical Life JANET JACKSONPOSTPONES TOURFOR UPCOMINGSURGERY, 3C

PEOPLE

T he countdownbegins. The ball inTimes Square isabout to drop.

People will kiss, give achampagne toast and re-flect on their new resolu-tions.

For many, it’s an excitingtime. A new beginning.

For alcoholics in recov-

ery, it’s the end of a stress-ful season filled with temp-tations and uncomfortablesituations.

With the free-flowingalcohol at holiday partiesand family gatherings, it ishard for those strugglingwith addiction to avoid adrink. Adding to that is thedifficult household dynam-ics and tense work rela-tionships.

Tim Myers, 34, knowsthis well. He took his first

sip of booze when he was15 and struggled to regain

sobriety for 10 years. “When I was first getting

sober I would go home forChristmas,” said Myers,originally from upstateNew York. He moved toSouth Florida to get treat-ment at Caron Renaissancein Boca Raton.

“I would find that thestruggle was not alwayswith the alcohol. That wasa big part of it, but thestruggle was with familymembers and old friends.That can be hard to rushback into.”

According to a surveydone by Caron, nearly 9out of 10 adults feel thatit’s appropriate to drinkalcohol during holidayparties.

“It really shows the cor-

relation between the holi-days and the increase inalcohol use,” said BradSorte, executive director ofCaron Renaissance andCaron Ocean Drive inFlorida.

“In that same survey, wealso found that over halfthe adults who do drinkalcohol experience at leastone negative conse-quence.”

That could include wak-ing up with a hangover ordoing something embar-rassing.

Today, Myers has beensober for more than fiveyears and attributes his

9 TIPS TO

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For people struggling with addiction, the holidays can bea tough time. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Experts suggest good communication and an “exit plan”. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

BY CRYSTAL CHEWSpecial to the Miami Herald

MATIAS J. OCNER mocner@miamiherald.com

Tim Myers, 34, plans how he will avoid drinking alcoholbefore every holiday season. Myers has been sober formore than five years.

SEE ALCOHOL, 6C

STAY SOBER ONNEW YEAR’S EVE

JULIE NOTARIANNI MCT

By 57, Alex Rodriguezhas survived some majorhealth scares. He has un-dergone two open-heartsurgeries in the past twoyears, and in August, after

routine blood tests atMount Sinai Medical Cen-ter, he learned he was pre-diabetic.

“I didn’t feel anything,”said Rodriguez, a formersales manager for nearly 30years at a technology pro-duction company who livesin Sunny Isles Beach. “I

never really had any symp-toms.”

That is often the casewith prediabetes, a condi-tion where a patient’sblood-sugar level is higherthan normal but not yetelevated to be classified asType 2 diabetes. A predia-betic blood glucose level

measures between 100 and125 milligrams per deciliterafter a fasting glucose test,which requires a patient tofast for at least eight hoursor overnight. Diabetes isdiagnosed when bloodglucose levels are 126 mg/dL or above.

There may not be any

symptoms, but there aresome risk factors for pre-diabetes, including: beingoverweight with a bodymass index of more than25; older than 45; a familyhistory of diabetes; notexercising regularly; gesta-tional diabetes duringpregnancy; and high blood

pressure. Hispanics, Afri-can Americans, NativeAmericans, Pacific Islan-ders and Asian Americansalso are at higher risk.

Rodriguez had some ofthe risk factors. His fathersuffers from diabetes, hehas high blood pressureand is overweight. Rodri-guez weighs 360 poundsafter gaining 100 pounds

HEALTH

Prediabetes a growing concern with high obesity ratesBY ALLISON HORTONSpecial to the Miami Herald

SEE PREDIABETES, 2C

AlAl

““III pripripri atat how ilyily

Page: Health_1 Pub. date: Tuesday, December 29 Last user: lcastro@miamiherald.com Edition: 1st Section, zone: Your Health, State Last change at: 18:51:18 December 28

6C TUESDAY DECEMBER 29 2015Your Health MIAMIHERALD.COM

H1

Interstitial Cystitis and PelvicPain Support Group: Joinothers for a free support groupfor people who are dealing withinterstitial cystitis, also known aspainful bladder syndrome, andother pelvic dysfunctions. Learnabout the latest treatments andmanagement strategies; 1:30-4p.m. Sunday; South MiamiHospital — Victor E. ClarkeEducation Center, 6200 SW 73rdSt., South Miami. Free. 786-662-8751.

Yoga — Temple Emanu-El:Enjoy a one-hour yoga classwith Arielle; 6 p.m. Tuesday;Temple Emanu-El, 1701 Wash-ington Ave., Miami Beach. $10.

Yoga with Stacey: A multilevelhatha yoga class that welcomesbeginners. 10-11:30 a.m.Wednesday and Saturday.Gentle yoga with Stacey:10-11:30 a.m. Monday, UnitarianUniversalist Congregation ofMiami, 7701 SW 76th Ave.,Miami. $15; $12 multiple classes.

305-274-8029.

Yoga and Concrete CavalryRun at Concrete Beach Brew-ery: Every Wednesday, thebrewery hosts a beginners’ yogaclass on its patio. After the class,participants may choose be-tween quenching their thirstwith a cold beer or run a milearound Wynwood. Yoga classbegins at 5:30 p.m. The runstarts at 6:30 p.m., ConcreteBeach Brewery, 339 NW 24th St.,Miami. $15 yoga tickets are

available for purchase on a firstcome, first served basis. The runis free. 305-796-2727.

Free eye exams and glassesto eligible children: The Flor-ida Optometry Eye Health Fund,working with the Miami Light-house for the Blind and VisuallyImpaired, provides free eyeexaminations and glasses toeligible children; Miami Light-house for the Blind and VisuallyImpaired, 601 SW Eighth Ave.,Miami.

MOVE IT!

who has eaten sushi hastasted nori, the greenwrapping on sushi rolls aswell as a flavoring in misosoup. Nori is rich in pro-tein (up to 50 percent ofthe plant’s dry weight),and one sheet has asmuch fiber as a cup of rawspinach and more ome-ga-3 fatty acids than a cupof avocado.

All seaweed is packedwith vitamins, mineralsand antioxidants. And ifthat wasn’t enough, astudy from 2010 foundthat the alginate in sea-weed could reduce fatabsorption. Wakame isanother seaweed com-monly found in Japaneserestaurants. It containscalcium, magnesium andis a natural diuretic.

All seaweed also con-tains iodine to keep a well-functioning thyroid. Recip-es can be found atoceanvegetables.com. I usea piece of kombu when

I t was a whirlwindyear with highs andlows, and now 2015comes to a close. A

time to reflect, a chanceto improve, let’s try somenew foods, you have noth-ing to lose.

I’ve gone through thelists, I’ve read the new

trends, I’ve picked out thebest and ignored the rest.In no order, and without arhyme, here are the toptwo foods you shouldfind.

A Seaweed: This mightbe the new kale. Anyone

making soup. It is likeputting a natural vitaminpill in the soup without achange in flavor.

A Fermented foods:You want a gut brimmingwith good bacteria. A fewof the benefits are im-proved digestion andimmunity and perhapseven healthy weight. Andthere is no better gutnourishment than pro-biotic-rich fermentedfoods.

A few easy-to-find fer-mented foods are sauer-kraut and pickles, miso,tempeh (fermented soy)and kefir. And of courseyogurt that has on thelabel “contains live andactive cultures.”

A 6-ounce cup of yogurthas 17 billion live bacteria.Any vegetable can befermented, and homefermenting is also becom-ing a trend. It seems fairlysimple. Go to probioticscenter.org/fermented-vegetables/ for instruc-tions.

Sheah Rarback is aregistered dietitian on thefaculty of the University ofMiami Leonard M. MillerSchool of Medicine. OnTwitter: @sheahrarback

CHEW ON THIS

Two ‘new’ foods tolook for in 2016

BY SHEAH RARBACKsrarback@hotmail.com

antioxidant, you get whatyou pay for.

In order to be effective,topical vitamin C must beformulated at a pH of 2 to2.5. (This acidic pH is whythose with sensitive skinmay experience stingingupon application.) Thereare also different forms ofvitamin C, and some aremore effective (and moreexpensive) than others.Lastly, the product musthave a certain concentra-tion of vitamin C, andthis, too, adds to the costof a product. When youtake these three param-eters into consideration,you see that properlyformulating topical vita-min C is expensive — andthis is why you should bewary of cheap vitamin C(especially when shoppingonline).

I’ve tested countlesstopical vitamin C prod-ucts, and here are theones I recommend atdifferent price points:

$: La Roche-PosayActive C ($53)

$$: Jan Marini C-Esta($99)

$$$: iS Clinical SuperSerum Advance+ ($140)and SkinCeuticals CEFerulic ($162)

When it comes to oralvitamin C supplements,fortunately the above

T here are scores ofantioxidant skin-care products onthe market, and

while these free-radicalfighters are important forfending off skin damage,some are certainly betterthan others. Some of themost popular antioxidant

ingredients include greentea, vitamin E, resveratroland coffeeberry, but per-haps the most widelystudied is vitamin C.

Topical vitamin C hasbeen proven to have far-reaching benefits for theskin. From stimulatingcollagen production toimproving discoloration(and effectively neutraliz-ing the free radicals thatcan cause prematureaging and skin cancer), Irecommend topical vita-min C for all of my pa-tients. But, it’s importantto know that when itcomes to this specific

rules do not apply, and ageneric drugstore versionis just fine. However, oralvitamin C doesn’t havethe same effects on theskin as a topical version,since not enough of thenutrient gets to the skinwhen taken in pill form.

Topical vitamin C is animportant part of anyskincare regimen, both foranti-aging and skin healthbenefits. These productsare best used in the morn-ing after cleansing andbefore moisturizer andsunscreen. Because theskin isn’t exposed to asmany free radicals atnight, there’s no need toinclude vitamin C in yourevening skincare regimen— and because theseproducts are expensive,this also helps your supplylast longer.

Dr. Leslie Baumann is aboard-certifieddermatologist, New YorkTimes best-selling authorand CEO of BaumannCosmetic & ResearchInstitute in Miami.

SKIN DEEP

What you need to knowabout topical vitamin C

BY DR. LESLIE BAUMANN drb@drbaumann.com

success to preparation. The TV and radio com-

mercial writer attendsextra 12-step meetingsduring the holiday season.He constantly checks inwith his support systemand ensures he has a geta-way vehicle when he goesto New York for the holi-days.

If you are trying to staysober this New Year’s Eve,here are some tips.

1. Stay connectedDon’t go through tough

times alone. Lean onfriends, sponsors, ther-apists, spiritual advisers orpastors.

“If you know the holi-days are going to be tough,plan on talking to yoursponsor at least once aday,” said David Vittoria,assistant vice president ofSouth Miami HospitalAddiction Treatment andRecovery Center. “Stayingconnected is really, reallykey.”

2. Take care of your-self

Self-care is imperativeduring stressful times.Activities like exercise andmeditation will help avoidbuildup of negative emo-tions. Dr. Indra Cidambi,an addiction expert andmedical director of theCenter for Network Ther-apy in New Jersey, encour-ages working out, even ifit’s just walking 10 minutesa day. She also recom-mends anything that willhelp lift spirits, such asgetting a massage or goingto extra Alcoholics Anony-mous meetings and ther-apy sessions.

“Treat yourself right,”Cidambi said. “If someoneis having a lot of interfami-ly conflicts, then they canvisit their therapist, sitdown with them and gettheir dirty laundry out.”

Cidambi also wantspeople to avoid HALT, heracronym for hunger, anger,loneliness and tiredness. Itis much easier to avoidtemptations when peopleare at their best.

4. Carry a nonalcohol-ic beverage

Many experts adviserecovering alcoholics tohold a nonalcoholic bever-age.

“Hold the beverage inyour hand, so that nobodywill come and ask you‘what would you like todrink’ or ‘can I get you adrink?’ ” Cidambi said.

5. Rehearse saying noPractice saying no, so

that it comes naturally.Don’t feel pressured togive an explanation. Just begraceful and firm, so thatother people understandthat not everyone maywant to drink during theholidays.

6. Have an exit plan“People who expect

they’re going to have adifficult time at a partywhere there is a lot of alco-hol should plan ahead,”Vittoria said. “If you haveto communicate ahead oftime that you have to leaveearly, apologize in ad-vance. Sometimes givingword of an early exit mighthelp, especially new folksin recovery.”

7. Have a conversationSome situations are

made easier when every-thing is out in the open.

“Families entering the

holiday when they have aloved one who has beenstruggling with alcoholdeal with their own set ofchallenges,” Sorte said.“It’s very important forboth the individual withthe alcohol issues and thefamily to have open com-munication.”

Supporting each otherand talking about differentstrategies to stay sober willhelp.

8. Attend an alcathonMost communities have

around-the-clock AA meet-ings during the holidayscalled alcathons.

People who don’t feelcomfortable at a NewYear’s Eve party don’t haveto sit at home or be alone.

“You just have to walk inand introduce yourself,”Myers said. “It’s the mostwelcoming organization inthe planet.”

9. Get help after a re-lapse

Some people who aretrying to stay sober mayhave a slip.

According to the Centersfor Disease Control andPrevention, it is estimatedthat about 16.6 millionadults have an alcohol-usedisorder, and alcohol-related death is the third-leading cause of preven-table death in the UnitedStates, with approximately88,000 patients dyingannually.

Dr. Ihsan Salloum, thechief of substance andalcohol abuse at the Uni-versity of Miami’s MillerSchool of Medicine, be-lieves that relapsing maycause a catastrophic reac-tion.

“They say, ‘Well Islipped, so what is the use?I’m going to drink moreand enjoy it,’ and theycontinue drinking,” Sal-loum said.

“But for somebody withan alcohol problem, thebest thing to do is to stopdrinking, get themselvesout of the situation andseek help.”

FROM PAGE 1C

ALCOHOL.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

For more helpTo find a local AA meeting,visit http://www.aa.org.

Caron Treatment Centers:7789 NW Beacon SquareBlvd. Boca Raton,800-221-6500,http://www.caron.org.

South Miami HospitalAddiction Treatment andRecovery Center: 6900 SW80th St., 786-662-8118,www.baptisthealth.net.

University of MiamiHospital: 1400 NW 12th Ave.,Miami, 305-243-6400,http://www.umiamihospital.com/specialties/psychiatry.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

NEASE MCT