Cervical Cancer Awareness Month: have you been screened?

 

— Modern medicine has given us unprecedented tools to prevent cervical cancer, and the American Social Health Association (ASHA) and the National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC) call for all women to have greater access to life-saving screening tests and vaccines.

Each year in the U.S. approximately 12,000 women are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and more than 4,000 die as a result. The true tragedy of the disease is that cervical cancer screening tests and vaccines exist that can prevent virtually every case.

 

In both the U.S. and around the world, the disease disproportionately impacts poor women. ASHA President and CEO Lynn B. Barclay says that in addition to not having access to health care, women often lack awareness about cervical cancer. “Science has put us in a remarkable position to protect women from cervical cancer, but technology is only half the battle,” Barclay says. “It’s imperative we continue efforts that not only promote greater access to health care, but that we also inform women about cervical cancer and the marvelous means we now have to prevent this disease.”

 

2012 will see ASHA/NCCC focus strongly on increasing uptake of cervical cancer vaccines. “Fewer than half of girls and young women who are eligible for these vaccines have completed the three-dose series, so increasing vaccine uptake is a priority for us.” Barclay says a key to getting more “needles in arms” is to reach out to healthcare providers in addition to the general public: “Especially for parents, having the family doctor or nurse endorse a vaccine is often crucial. With this in mind, we’re developing additional cervical cancer information and counseling tools designed specifically for front-line healthcare providers.”

 

ASHA/NCCC address the challenges of cervical cancer prevention by offering numerous programs that include national advocacy, publications, and interactive services that provide education and support for patients, families, and health professionals. For more visit us online at http://www.ASHAstd.org and http://www.nccc-online.org/index.html.

 

The American Social Health Association (ASHA) is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1914 to improve the health of individuals, families, and communities, with a focus on educating about and preventing sexually transmitted infections. ASHA’s educational web sites include: http://www.ASHAstd.org, http://www.iwannaknow.org, and http://www.quierosaber.org.

Founded in 1996, The National Cervical Cancer Coalition (NCCC) is a growing coalition of people coping with cervical cancer and HPV related issues. The Coalition primarily consist of women, family members, friends and caregivers, but also includes women’s groups, cytotechnologists, healthcare providers, bio-tech companies, cancer researchers, and organizations providing cervical cancer detection programs. Their web sites are http://www.nccc-online.org/index.html and http://giahc.org/.

###

Be sure to check out this awesome lady!

http://crazysexylife.com/

Kris Carr is a crazy, sexy, cancer survivor. She adapted her lifestyle when she was diagnosed, and credits her recovery to a plant based diet.  Be sure to check our her wellness blog for great ideas and inspiration!

Healthy Winter Soup

We are loving these recipes we found through Alexandra Jamieson’s blog, Delicious Vitality.  Her name may sound familiar, she’s written The Great American Detox Diet in response to her ex-husbands documentary about the effects of a diet based solely on McDonald’s (Super Size Me).  She is a great resource for healthy living, and we highly encourage you to take some time to look around her blog!

From Alexandra:

According to the Five Element system, autumn is the season of the Metal element, governed by the lungs and large intestine. This sets up the conditions for flu or head cold, which comes from your body trying to expel excess mucus, toxins, and inferior fats.

Foods with a sour taste help with this detoxification process, and can be included daily as we enter into autumn. These foods include unpasteurized apple cider vinegar, lemons, limes, grapes, raw sauerkraut and pickles, and whole grain sourdough breads.

 

Pungent foods such as spices, ginger, and black pepper support the Metal element. These stimulate the digestion and help with the assimilation of food. Include pungent taste with seasonal fall foods such as apples, grapes, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, collards, grapes, kale, pears, persimmons, pumpkins, winter squash, and yams.

This soup has  a lot of great autumn ingredients and will help keep your body strong and centered throughout the season:

Kale Shiitake Sweet Potato Soup

4 cups water or low-sodium vegetable stock

1 cup fresh shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, caps thinly sliced

1 small sweet potato, peeled, chopped into 1/4 inch cubes

1/2 bunch fresh kale, washed and stems removed

1 teaspoon Mellow white miso, per cup

1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds

Directions:

1. In a saucepan combine the water/broth, shitake mushrooms and sweet potato and bring to a boil.

2. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

3. Meanwhile, chop the kale into bite size pieces and add to the soup.

4. Cook until tender, another 8 minutes.

5. Dissolve a teaspoon of light miso in a bowl with a small amount of broth.

6. Ladle in the soup and sprinkle with toasted pumpkin seeds.

Yield: 6 servings

Classical Stretch – Breast Cancer Rehabilitation Post-Surgery

 We wanted to share this amazing video from Miranda Esmonde-White, it is a great tool for  rehabilitation and physical health post breast cancer. Please share with friends and family. As always, with lots of love and support from everyone at The Well Woman Clinic & Lean Logic LLC

Please Click to watch video (or navigate your brower to http://breastcancerrehabilitation.com/Rehabilitation.html).

 

The Affordable Care Act

 

  On August 1st 2011 the Department of Health and Human Services passed new legislation that requires new health insurance plans to cover key preventative services for women at no cost to patients. The Well Woman Clinic applauds this progressive action. The women of this country deserve no less than access to all comprehensive and clinically effective care! Listed below is a post about the legislation from the Department of Health and Human Services, explaining in greater detail the services that will be covered. For more information and to learn more about the Affordable Care Act, please visit www.healthcare.gov.

Also, at the end of the post please see a sweet little video that expresses just how happy we are about this major victory! We look forward to talking to you about your health concerns and needs.

From the Department of Health and Human Services:

Affordable Care Act Ensures Women Receive Preventive Services at No Additional Cost

Historic new guidelines that will ensure women receive preventive health services at no additional cost were announced today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Developed by the independent Institute of Medicine, the new guidelines require new health insurance plans to cover women’s preventive services such as well-woman visits, breastfeeding support, domestic violence screening, and contraception without charging a co-payment, co-insurance or a deductible.

“The Affordable Care Act helps stop health problems before they start,” said HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.  “These historic guidelines are based on science and existing literature and will help ensure women get the preventive health benefits they need.”

Before health reform, too many Americans didn’t get the preventive health care they need to stay healthy, avoid or delay the onset of disease, lead productive lives, and reduce health care costs.  Often because of cost, Americans used preventive services at about half the recommended rate.

Last summer, HHS released new insurance market rules under the Affordable Care Act requiring all new private health plans to cover several evidence-based preventive services like mammograms, colonoscopies, blood pressure checks, and childhood immunizations without charging a copayment, deductible or coinsurance. The Affordable Care Act also made recommended preventive services free for people on Medicare.

Today’s announcement builds on that progress by making sure women have access to a full range of recommended preventive services without cost sharing, including:

• well-woman visits;
• screening for gestational diabetes;
• human papillomavirus (HPV) DNA testing for women 30 years and older;
• sexually-transmitted infection counseling;
• human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) screening and counseling;
• FDA-approved contraception methods and contraceptive counseling;
• breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling; and
• domestic violence screening and counseling.

New health plans will need to include these services without cost sharing for insurance policies with plan years beginning on or after August 1, 2012.  The rules governing coverage of preventive services which allow plans to use reasonable medical management to help define the nature of the covered service apply to women’s preventive services.  Plans will retain the flexibility to control costs and promote efficient delivery of care by, for example, continuing to charge cost-sharing for branded drugs if a generic version is available and is just as effective and safe for the patient to use.

The administration also released an amendment to the prevention regulation that allows religious institutions that offer insurance to their employees the choice of whether or not to cover contraception services. This regulation is modeled on the most common accommodation for churches available in the majority of the 28 states that already require insurance companies to cover contraception.  HHS welcomes comment on this policy.

Previously, preventive services for women had been recommended one-by-one or as part of guidelines targeted at men as well.  As such, the HHS directed the independent Institute of Medicine to, for the first time ever, conduct a scientific review and provide recommendations on specific preventive measures that meet women’s unique health needs and help keep women healthy.  HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) used the IOM report issued July 19, when developing the guidelines that are being issued today. The IOM’s report relied on independent physicians, nurses, scientists, and other experts to make these determinations based on scientific evidence.

Today’s announcement is another part of the Obama Administration’s broader effort to address the health and well-being of our communities through initiatives such as the President’s Childhood Obesity Task Force, the First Lady’s Let’s Move! campaign, the National Quality Strategy, and the National Prevention Strategy.

For more information on the HHS guidelines for expanding women’s preventive services, please visit: http://www.healthcare.gov/news/factsheets/womensprevention08012011a.html. The guidelines can be found at: www.hrsa.gov/womensguidelines/.

 

A great day for women’s health: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sw2REPmbtj4 !

Power Lunch

Chickpea Salad

1 cup chickpeas, drained

1 Handful of cherry tomatoes, or 1/2 cup diced tomatoes

1 tbsp flat leaf parsley, diced

2 tbsp feta

1 tbsp organic olive oil

1 clove garlic, diced

2 tbsp lemon juice

Sea salt and pepper to taste

Gently combine ingredients and toss with lemon, olive oil, and salt and pepper.  We love the idea of adding seasonal ingredients like summery cucumber and carrots, or autumnal grilled zucchini, sauteed summer squash, or wilted greens!  Serve on a bed of lettuce for extra greens.  Great recipe to make in bigger quantities and keep on hand for a quick snack, lunches, and dinner sides.

Nutritional Information:

Calories: 404

Carbohydrates: 51g

Protein: 18g

Fat: 15g

Fiber: 13g

Laser Facials: Radiant Skin from Within

If you’re an active person, chances are you spend more than your fair share of time in the sun. And if you’re over thirty, you are more than likely to show signs of premature aging due to sun damage.  Witha laser facial treatment, you can now treat sun spots, pigmented lesions and overall skin texture—giving you a more revitalized appearance than you’ve had in years.  Dr. Towne is able to turn back time with this amazing and rejuvenating laser facial!

How does it work?

Facial skin treatment works by directing a beam of light to an irregularity in the skin, such as enlarged blood vessels or irregular chromophores. This removes the abnormality without any scarring or damage, while stimulating collagen production to tighten the surrounding tissue, resulting in more even skin tone, improved skin texture and reduced signs of aging. How does this treatment differ from chemical peels and dermabrasion? Unlike other treatments that remove an outer layer of skin and require significant healing time, laser treatment works by gently penetrating the skin to destroy the underlying vessels and pigment that are the cause of the problem. The skin itself is not damaged at all.

Is the treatment painful?

The treatment causes only minimal discomfort and any initial soreness is easily alleviated with a cold air cooling system.

How many treatments are required?

Typically several sessions are required for full-face treatment. The average treatment takes about 15 – 20 minutes. Results will be seen after the first few treatments. It can be performed in a relaxed, comfortable manner without the use of typical anesthetics or gel.

How long does recovery take?

You’ll be able to return to normal activities immediately, though sunscreen should be applied as a post-treatment precaution.

Come see for yourself and meet Dr. Towne for a free consultation.  We are still offering a 50% reduction on all services booked in the month of August. Take advantage of this amazing offer and reveal a younger you.

info@wellwomanclinic.net

info@leanlogicmd.net

207.865.0805