| WOW! E-News
February 2010 | |
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| WOW! Notices |
WOW! Rebates...What's Eligible?
 Learning Resource Center Classes
Road Races
Nutrition Education
Nutrition Works, LLC of the greater Portland area, offers a wide range of nutrition counseling services that are covered by MaineHealth insurance at a 10% co-insurance. They also offer cooking classes & nutrition/wellness classes which are eligible for WOW! Rebates. Click here for more information about their classes.
and much more...
To view the entire list of eligible activities and print your WOW! Rebate click here. ______________________
The Missed Beat!
FREE lecture on Tuesday, March 9th, presented by the Maine Heart Center.
For more information click here.
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For late breaking WOW! news:
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| Dr. Lisa's Happy, Healthy Wellness ABCs |
Welcome to February!
Dr. Lisa's Wellness ABCs for February focus on National Cancer Prevention Month.
 Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the United States after heart disease. According to the American Cancer Society, "Of the 550,000 cancer deaths each year in America, one third are linked to poor diet, physical inactivity and weight." February's recipe, Spiced Winter Fruit Compote, offers a Valentine's treat to complement any healthy diet.
MaineHealth WOW! provides a wealth of cancer prevention resources, including WOW! Superhero Rewards and WOW! Rebates. Click here for more information on these programs and Dr. Lisa's Wellness ABCs.
Lisa Belisle, MD, MPH
Medical Advisor, MaineHealth WOW! Program |
| Superhero Spotlight ~ Amanda Henson ~ PHO |
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Amanda Henson is February's WOW! Superhero.
Thirteen years ago, Amanda, then 34, noticed a lump in her breast that her doctor thought was a cyst. The lump was aspirated and the pathology was normal, but Amanda was concerned and sought a second opinion. A surgeon  suggested that she have surgery to remove the lump, as he felt it was not going to go away, but the pathology indicated that it was most likely nothing to worry about. Amanda scheduled surgery to remove the cyst; she moved up the surgery date when she felt that the lump was growing.
During the surgery it was discovered that Amanda had a necrotic tumor that was five centimeters in diameter. She had aggressive treatment including chemotherapy, which she feared would leave her unable to have children - her lifetime dream.
Today Amanda is a breast cancer survivor and the proud mother of twin boys. "I feel it is so important to share my story with young women. Youth is not a guarantee for good health; you have to take care of yourself. And if something does happen, I want women to know they can still achieve their dreams." Amanda now celebrates and supports her health by participating in the Tri for a Cure Triathlon, celebrated this year on August 15.
For more inspirational stories log onto www.mainehealth.org/wow. If you would like to share your Superhero story, contact mainehealth@mainehealth.org. |
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Buying Local is Easier Than Ever |
A steadily increasing number of families in Maine are making connections with local farmers by buying shares in farm community supported agriculture programs. CSA shares are eligible for a $50 WOW! Rebate per rebate period. Community supported agriculture is a way for consumers to buy local food directly from a farmer. Each growing season, a farmer offers a certain number of "shares" to the public; consumers who purchase a share receive seasonal produce throughout the farming season.
Summer CSAs will be available soon and farmers markets will be open. If you would like to learn more about CSA's MOFGA is hosting CSA Fairs on February 28th. Click here for a fair in your area. To find a CSA near you visit http://www.mofga.org.
For a glimpse of why buying local may be important to you view the movie trailer FRESH. |
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Kids Eat Less Junk Food When Schools Stop Providing It |
 Take the junk food out of school vending machines and cafeterias and kids will eat less junk food, according to a study published in Health Education & Behavior. Read more.
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General Mills Reducing Sugar in Kid's Cereals |
 General Mills - the maker of Lucky Charms, Trix, and Cocoa Puffs - plans to reduce the amount of sugar in its cereals marketed to children. The move comes as many food companies alter their products and face growing scrutiny from consumers, regulators, and health groups over the nutritional value of their foods. Read more. | |
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Are You Facing a Tough Medical Decision? |
Do you suffer from long-term or short-term back pain? Are you trying to find the best cancer treatment options for you? Or are you trying to cope with depression?
Let Shared Decision-Making Programs developed by the Foundation For Informed Medical Decision Making help you make the most informed medical decisions in concert with your doctor. These programs are available by calling a WOW! Health Coach (for those who have MaineHealth insurance) at 1-888-318-2282, or you can contact your local Learning Resource Center.
All Foundation programs:
- Present the latest clinical evidence about the risks and benefits of treatment options in ways you can understand.
 Explain why there is sometimes a lack of evidence to support one option over another.
- Include interviews with patients who have undergone treatments and experienced good and bad outcomes, illustrating the variety of patient perspectives and concerns.
- Focus on helping you engage in high-quality decision making with their doctors.
- Support you in carrying out your choices with confidence and competence.
The programs offer a balanced presentation of each option, from both clinical and patient experience perspectives. The goal is never to encourage any one treatment approach over the others, but rather to explain fairly and clearly the pros and cons of each option - and let you, the patient, working with your doctors, decide which is best for you.
Decision aids available:
~ Back Pain ~ Breast Cancer ~ Cancer Screening (Colon, PSA test) ~ Depression ~ End-of-Life Decisions ~Heart Disease ~Osteoarthritis ~ Living with Diabetes ~ Weight-Loss Surgery
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Good Healthcare on a Tight Budget |
Patients should be very careful about treating healthcare expenses the same way as other expenses. Cutting back on healthcare - especially without consulting your provider - is a risky decision. Over time, it could lead to bad results for your health and even for your financial security.
With that caution in mind, there are some steps you can take to make sure you are getting the best healthcare value you can. Think ahead about the following:
- If your employer offers health insurance, compare your options to make sure you are choosing the best plan for your needs. Talk to your benefits specialist to make sure you understand your coverage. Switch to your spouse's plan if it is more affordable and still meets your needs. If available, use flexible spending accounts.
- If you need prescription medicine, ask your doctor if you can switch to the generic version. The Food and Drug Administration requires generic drugs to have the same quality, strength, and purity as brand-name drugs. They are cheaper because the manufacturer did not invest the money to develop the drug.
- 90-day prescriptions are available for a 60-day co-pay for MaineHealth health plan members through mail order or at select local pharmacies click here for a listing of participating pharmacies.
- Prescription medications are also available online. Be sure to purchase from trusted pharmacies such as CVS, Rite Aid, Walgreens, Wal-mart and Hannaford. Shopping online allows you to compare prices.
- Keep up-to-date on routine screening tests that can catch disease early when it is easier to treat. For many people, wellness checks, such as cancer screenings and blood pressure checks are important practices that should not be skipped. Checklists from the U.S Preventive Services Task Force can help men and women find which tests they need.
- Continue (or begin) healthy, daily habits that can stave off illness and
 disease. Being physically active, eating a healthy diet, keeping at a healthy weight and drinking alcohol in moderation are all smart paths to good health.
For more information about healthcare quality and advice on how to be a more effective healthcare consumer, visit the Maine Health Management Coalition at www.mhmc.info. |
| Tobacco Tales |
Have you ever tried to quit smoking? Chances are, you may have quit for a few days and before you knew it, you were back to smoking again. What's really going on here? The answer is mostly about nicotine, the drug found in tobacco.
Click here to learn more. |
| Raising Readers |
 This month Raising Readers recommends How Are You Peeling? Foods with Moods by Saxton Freymann, (Scholastic; ISBN 9780439598415). According to Raising Readers this book "uses the expressive 'faces' of fruits and vegetables" to explore various emotions. Reading How Are You Peeling? is one way for families to spend time together and share their love this Valentine's Day.
For more children's book recommendations, visit the Raising Readers Blog or check out the Raising Readers Recommends Great Books: Great Topics brochure.
MaineHealth believes that literacy is a family affair. If you are a healthcare provider, read more about this important topic in our Raising Readers Issue Brief, "Beyond Raising Readers: Literacy as a Family Affair."
Did you know that Raising Readers turns ten in 2010? Look for more birthday-related information in upcoming months!
Read on, friends. |
| KidsHealth |
We at WOW! know that good health begins early. Go to KidsHealth for articles:
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| LifeBalance Employee Assistance Program |
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LifeBalance can help you and your whole family adopt healthy habits and routines. Call to speak with a consultant if you have questions or concerns about getting a good night's sleep, losing weight, quitting smoking, managing stress or other health-related issues.
Check out the health library, which includes information on a wide range of diseases, conditions, injuries and treatment procedures, as well as helpful interactive tools, medical news, and much more. You'll also find the Weight Loss Toolkit and health calculators, which can help you reach your weight and fitness goals. To read or download these helpful articles below you will need to use the ID code: mainehealth & Password: lifebalance:
Now is also a good time to start making summer arrangements for your school-aged child. Check out the online Summer camp locator and helpful articles to help you narrow down your choices.
For managers and supervisors:
Doing your best to help your employees stay healthy is an important part of every manager's job. Good health boosts productivity, energy, and engagement. LifeBalance offers a wide range of resources designed to help managers take care of themselves and the people they manage.
You can contact a consultant to talk about ways to manage stress, offer support to an employee with a chronic condition or illness, or talk with an employee about health and work issues. You can read helpful articles such as Reducing Employee Absences, and to listen to recordings and podcasts designed especially for managers. Be sure to listen to our podcast on Helping Employees Manage Stress. (Transcipts are available for all podcasts.)
For more information on other services that LifeBalance offers, click here. Your contact with LifeBalance services is free and completely confidential.
 ID: mainehealth Password: lifebalance
Or call: 1-877-259-3785 |
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