WNC Wellness review

Legislation would limit Mission Health’s acquisitions

The bill, introduced by Sen. Jim Davis (R), would also place a cap on Mission’s employment of physicians by limiting it to 10 percent of physicians in a county. Sen. Davis introduced the legislation in response to what he believes is a “monopoly” by Mission, according to the report. ” – [Becker’s Hospital Review]

Mission Health Systems released a “The State of Mission” in response to the bill.

• Study: Meditation makes people more rational decision-makers

When the researchers did MRI imaging of the Buddhist meditators brains, they found that they used different areas of their brain than other people when confronted with what could be construed as an ‘unfair’ choice, which allowed them to make decisions based more on facts and less on emotions.” – [USA Today]

Report: Secondhand smoke increases medical costs in NC

A new study shows that exposure to secondhand smoke is expensive in North Carolina, costing $293 million per year in health care costs alone. An estimated 1,690 adult nonsmokers die every year in North Carolina as a direct result from secondhand smoke exposure […] North Carolina’s highly successful smoke-free restaurants and bars law that went into effect in January 2010 may have reduced these costs.” – [MX Blogwire]

Traditional Chinese medicine can help manage your cancer symptoms

TCM is extremely beneficial to manage symptoms associated with Cancer and Cancer therapies, like chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. Current studies show that using TCM can help reduce and/or eliminate nausea, vomiting, fatigue, insomnia, mental and emotional stress, and pain. In addition, TCM may also help to improve quality of life and shorten recovery time.” – [Mission Health/Voices of Courage]

No evidence coffee raises risk of high blood pressure

Despite earlier concerns, downing lots of coffee doesn’t seem to increase the risk of high blood pressure, according to a new report — but the evidence isn’t conclusive.” – [Reuters]

VA website to help veterans gain access to doctors:

The Charles George VA Medical Center in Asheville has implemented a new technology within VA’s My HealtheVet website that allows veterans to communicate directly with healthcare teams online. The system, called Secure Messaging, promotes a partnership between the patient and his or her healthcare team by providing an additional communication method that is convenient, flexible and available 24 hours a day.” – [BlueRidgeNow.com]

• Autism far more common than formerly thought:

Over the last decade, we have learned that ASD is far more prevalent than we previously believed, probably affecting 6-9 per 1,000 children. The increase in occurrence has been largely in the milder end of the spectrum. This may reflect the growing awareness of the autism spectrum, rather than a true increase in the incidence of autism. Controversy remains about whether there is truly an “epidemic” of autism.” – [Asheville Citizen-Times]

• Opinion: Happiness is not found in a Prozac bottle:

As an acupuncturist and a traditional Chinese herbalist I have helped many patients get off a wide variety of drugs, many of which are usually prescribed on a long term basis. Chinese medical practitioners are able to treat with finality most conditions for which drugs are prescribed, including mental health problems. Once a patient’s condition has significantly improved, I suggest working with the prescribing doctor or pharmacist to titrate (slowly wean) off the drug, until its use is no longer needed. ” – [Tree.com]