Soquel, CA Elder Abuse Alert : Arts & Crafts

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With Beverly Fabrics closing in Seaside and the closest store way up in Soquel, many seniors are looking for supplies online.  Beware of one of the many current scams that are taking place, this one revolving around sewing machines, of all things.  Crooks are advertising online and in social media brand-name models of sewing machines for under $100.  If it sounds too good to be true, it is.  This so-called e-commerce close out sales are typically fake and you will send in your money and never get the product.  There is yet another arts and craft scam going on right now where scammers are putting on virtual arts and crafts fairs.  When you order something from a booth at one of these online fairs, they will take your money but won’t send you anything.

Devices To Monitor Your Vitals Are Getting Better, And Cheaper Over Time

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Electronic devices like a FITBIT or Apple Watch have been on the market for a long time but they continue to get more inexpensive and add features.  This has attracted a number of new entrants into the market such as new designs of a blood pressure monitor which can range in cost from $15-$100.  Before buying one, measure your upper arm and choose a model with an arm cuff that fits.  Avoid wrist and finger monitors which are less accurate.  For more information, go to the American Medical Association’s website at www.validatebp.org.  There are also low-cost oxygen monitors which tend to range from $20-$300.  A pulse oximeter uses light beams to pass through tissue and measure your oxygen saturation level.  In addition, check out Heart Rate Monitors which go from $200-$300.  There are two types—those that strap onto your chest and those you wear on your wrist.  The chest models are typically more precise but the wrist monitor is better suited for everyday use (AARP The Magazine, February/March 2022, page 24).

MRI Studies Looking For Clues To Alzheimer’s And Dementia May Have Been Unreliable

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A study which was published in the journal Nature found that by studying M.R.I. data from about 50,000 people searching for clues between brain structure and complex psychological traits in groups with different numbers of subjects, thousands of patients must be included for the study to be reliably replicated.  This threw cold water on a number of recent studies done looking for clues in M.R.I.s to solve how diseases develop, looking at anything from autism to Alzheimer’s disease, because they typically only focused on a handful of M.R.I.s.  Researchers from The School of Medicine at Washington University, St. Louis and colleagues located elsewhere noted that researchers across the globe are increasingly using magnetic resonance imaging, or M.R.I., to try and find links between what is seen on an M.R.I. like cortical thickness or patterns of connection, and complicated psychological traits such as cognitive ability or mental-health conditions.  These brain-association studies are looking to unlock clues to what causes mental health and dementia.  The researchers concluded that studies done to date have been too small (many just had a few dozen participants) and suggested that there needed to be at least 1,000 participants for the studies to be considered valid.  This is problematic because M.R.I. machines typically cost about $1,000 per hour to operate.  Journals historically have preferred surprising correlations to findings of no correlation, a phenomenon known as publication bias.  “The paradoxical effect is that the answer that’s the most wrong gets published if you use a small sample,†said Nico Dosenback, an associate professor of neurology at Washington University, as well as an author of the Nature study.

Researchers Say We Should Eat More Cheese

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Believe it or not, full-fat dairy has been linked to a reduced risk of obesity.  That may be due in part to the satisfying creamy fats that reduce the desire to snack later on.  But be sure you also eat some of the good fats like foods high in Omega-3 fatty assets like Salmon, mackerel, sardines and tuna.  Olive oil may reduce dementia risk by flushing out the proteins that gum up communications channels between brain cells (AARP The Magazine, March/April 2022 Issue, page 38).

 

Pebble Beach, CA Home Care Aide (HCA) Senior Alzheimer’s & Dementia Caregiver Jobs Available : Set Your Own Hours: $2/Hour Extra On The Weekends CNA or HHA Designation A Plus

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Pebble Beach, CA Home Care Aide (HCA) Senior Alzheimer’s & Dementia Caregiver Jobs Available : Set Your Own Hours: $2/Hour Extra On The Weekends CNA OR HHA Designation A Plus (Service Areas Are Aromas, Big Sur, Carmel, Carmel-by-the-sea, Carmel Valley, Castroville, Corral-de-Tierra, Gonzalez, Greenfield, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Prunedale, Salinas, Seaside & Soledad

We have developed a reputation for having the best caregivers (Home Care Aides or Senior Companions) in Monterey County over the past decade and have recently expanded into Santa Cruz County.   We are currently looking for qualified caregivers.

Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey and Santa Cruz is seeking compassionate, mature and dependable caregivers who want to improve the lives of our elderly Clients by providing in-home, non-medical care.  Our services include:

Caring companionship

Meal preparation

Incidental transportation

Running errands

Light housekeeping

Medication reminders

Monitoring of safety while bathing

Information and referral services

Other services that improve the safety, security and quality of life of seniors.

If you believe you would make an exceptional Home Care Aide, we would love to hear from you!  We prefer those with experience helping the elderly, disabled and others with mobility problems.  Having cared for those with dementia and/or Alzheimer’s is a plus.  To work for us, you must have excellent references, a clear criminal record, a good driving record, and an insured reliable vehicle.  To apply, please visit our website www.fhcofm.com, click on home care aides, then careers where you can fill out an application online.  We have immediate openings all over Monterey County.

IRS Taking Public Comments On Controversial Change In Rules For Inherited IRAs

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`The IRS will take public comments through May 25 on a controversial change to the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act, which passed in 2019.  Known as the SECURE Act, it allowed anyone who inherited an IRA to withdraw the money any way that they wanted, including skipping annual distributions, provided the account was drawn down to zero by the end of year 10.  Now, the IRS is proposing that this option would only be available to non spouse beneficiaries who inherit an IRA if the original owner dies before having to take required minimum distributions.  If the original owner dies after April 1 following the year of the person’s 72nd birthday, the date when RMDs are first required, non spouse beneficiaries must take RMDs in the first nine years and then empty the account in year 10 (Kiplinger’s Retirement Report, May 2022 page 14).

Elder Abuse Alert : Policemen Asking For Support Sometimes A Scam

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The AARP Has been great at tracking the latest scams all across the nation and letting us know what to look out for.  Although not new, people who call saying they are asking on behalf of organizations such as the National Save The Police Fund which make you believe they are a charity are actually scamming us.  They aren’t a charity.  According to AARP The Magazine, March/April 2022 Issue, page 74) many of these organizations are actually “independent, expenditure-only†political action committees, or PACs.  Super PACs generally are regulated by the Federal Election Committee (FEC) which scrutinizes spending of these organizations very little.  This is unlike a typical charity which has to register with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to become a 501 (c) 3.  According to Nomorobo, a robocall-blocking company that works with AARP on fraud prevention, at the end of 2021, robocalls raising money for police groups were the highest volume phone messages in most major U.S. markets.

Time To Ditch The 4% Rule In Retirement

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Even the inventor of the 4% rule (Bill Bengen), which theorizes that withdrawing 4% in year one and then adjusting each year for inflation your retirement savings will last you a lifetime, is agreeing that we may need to take a more conservative approach given stock market volatility and soaring inflation.  “The problem is, there’s no precedent for today’s conditions,†Bengen told The Wall Street Journal.  Given the challenges of making forecasts right now, Bengen recommends cutting spending, if possible.

 

Monterey, CA Join A Healthcare Professional From Community Hospital Of The Monterey Peninsula For A Walk For Health

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Join Karen Egy, PsyD, Psychologist from CHOMP on a monthly stroll in Laguna Grande Park at 1249 Canyon Del Rey Boulevard in Seaside for a walk in the park on Saturday, May 21 from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. and learn why physical activity doesn’t have to be hard.  Walking boosts physical health, mental well-being, and can help manage serious health conditions.  The 30 minute walk will be held monthly and you can learn more about improving your health from CHOMP health care professionals who will lead and educate you along the way.  Register at www.montagehealth.org/walkforhealth.