Featured Stories
In This Issue
"Discover 100 Ways To Live
To 100"
It's possible to put quality years on your life by resolving to live a certain way. Tanner Garrity lists 100 ways to live longer and healthier. (Riding a motorcycle isn't one of them.) Check out the other 99 ways to live longer and healthier.
Tips On Fighting Inflation
Give yourself a "T" party: Be Thrifty. Tailor expenses to needs, not wants. Stick with long-term Total Return investments. Money guru Evelyn (Evie) Preston provides helpful tips on how to protect yourself during inflation. This downturn, too, will pass.
Managing Chronic Pain With CBDa
Many older adults use CBD for pain management and other health issues. Stacy Cason, founder of Planetarie, developed a breakthrough in hemp processing with unique benefits for users. Read what drove this former nurse to launch her own CBDa company.
Ask Larry: "Will I Live To 100?"
Maybe but longevity depends mostly upon your lifestyle. Good genes count but only about 20%. Positive outlook helps. Doing something "meaningful" is important for retirees.
Need Extra Money?
Check out reverse mortgages. Not for everyone but new rules make
it a viable option for some. Read why.
Looking For Senior Housing?
$3,000 per month. Meals included.
Tips To Help Loved Ones With Alzheimer's
No cure but there are many things you can do to help loved ones suffering with dementia including setting daily routines and keeping things simple. Read more. PMGMD.
Keep Smiling!
And let me know what kind of stories you prefer to read in this free publication. Feel free to forward The Scoop to your family, friends
and associates.
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"Discover 100 Ways
To Live To 100"
At this point, we’re all familiar with the trope. A local news station visits a retirement home to celebrate Muriel’s 106th birthday. She’s deaf or blind or both or neither, sitting in a wheelchair in the “good spot” next to the TV set and a reporter asks her her secret.
You’ve lived through both World Wars?! How’d you do it?
Then Muriel gets to flash a mischievous grin and tells us she smoked
a pack a day for 50 years.
Interacting with centenarians in this way has long made them seem like circus oddities. It trivializes the concept of lifespan and longevity, reducing the science to a throw-your-hands-in-the-hair “Who the hell knows!” It reinforces the idea that our time on this planet isn’t necessarily under our control.
If my dad had a stroke and his dad had a stroke then one’s probably coming for me too, right? If I make it to 80, or — God forbid — 90,
I’ve just beaten the odds. Right?
Not exactly. Since the mid-1990s, in fact, following the infamous Danish twins study, researchers have understood longevity to be
“only moderately heritable.”
For a while, this spawned estimates that genetics accounted for somewhere between 20 and 30% of one’s longevity. More recently, scientists have concluded that the true heritability of human longevity at birth is closer to just 7%.
Where does that other 93% come from? Your lifestyle. Your decisions. Your everyday habits, big and small. It’s possible to put years on your life, to surge past both average life expectancy and your own expectations, by resolving to live a certain way.
The crazy part? This doesn’t involve some complex Ponce de
Leónian quest. You don’t even have to search far and wide for the answers. Thanks to the efforts of vanguard sociologists, geneticists and historians, we know where the world’s largest concentration of centenarians live and how they spend their days.
You might wonder: Why would I want to live longer? Doesn’t the end of life look drawn out, expensive and horrible? Why would I sign up
for decades of suffering? Well, the latest wave of longevity research isn’t focused on living years for the sake of years. It’s concerned with quality years.
Think about it. More years to travel, to exercise, to spend time with your family and whatever new family comes along. An entire life of creativity and challenges to enjoy after retirement. And consider this: those who make it to 100 are no more likely to die at 108 years old than 103.
Genetics do start to factor in a bit more once you get way up there in age (hence how the Muriels of the world make it to 106), but overall, your risk of dying from any of the usual diseases plateaus. Longevity wizards only really suffer in the last couple years of their lives.
Take note — this movement is going to happen, with or without you. With an assist from modern medical care, scientists project there will be 25 million centenarians scattered across the world by 2100. (There are currently just 573,000.) But you don’t need to wait for Benjamin Button patents from the big pharmaceuticals. You can start living in the name of longevity today.
Below, are ways to live to 100, broken down by how you optimize
your lifespan through diet, fitness, good choices and some truly wild cards. Before diving in, understand that you can’t do all of them;
some of them are likely even incompatible.
But the idea is to cherry-pick those that work for your life. Ultimately, if nothing else, know this: making the call right now to act in the name of longevity — whether your “right now” is 35 or 65 — won’t just add life to your ledger. It’ll enrich and lighten every year along the way.
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How a Woman's Unique Background Gave Rise To a Powerful Pain Management Product
Every day for 15 years, Stacy Cason treated patients suffering from various medical issues, many of whom dealt with chronic pain. “They were hurting, and often, the end result of that was turning to opioids,” Stacy said.
As an anesthesiology nurse practitioner, Stacy witnessed firsthand
And it was witnessing that crisis and the devastating impacts on patients and their families that ultimately led Stacy to found her company. It focuses on providing products that support pain management in a natural, organic way without the dangerous side effects of opioids and even common over-the-counter NSAIDs like ibuprofen.
“I saw firsthand what opioids did to people and the chronic pain that leads to depression and lost quality of life,” Stacy said. In 2018, Stacy founded Planetarie, the world’s first-ever USDA-Certified Organic CBDa manufacturer and distributor. Planetarie produces soft gels, muscle rubs, infusions, drink additives, salves and more that leverage CBDa, the raw acidic cannabinoid derived directly from the hemp plant in its purest form.
Teachers, family and friends identified Stacy from the start as a gifted and talented child. She started working at an office at just 12 years old and quickly learned she had a natural business sense. But growing up in a rural part of northern Louisiana with patriarchal norms deeply embedded in the culture put a college-bound Stacy on one of the only two culturally accepted paths: nursing or teaching.
“I remember having a discussion with one of my teachers about how I should attend Harvard,” Stacy said. “But, I didn’t know that I could. I didn’t believe that I could. I didn’t see it as a viable option. It was a very small, close-minded area.”
Stacy opted for nursing school instead, working in an intensive care unit before eventually moving to Miami. She married a U.S. Air Force officer and obtained a master’s degree in anesthesia from Florida International University. Stacy moved to Denver in 2012 and, in 2013, started attending classes at the University of Denver (DU) to earn her MBA while continuing to work in health care.
She graduated from DU in 2015. During that time, the constant influx of patients struggling with pain and opioid addiction wore on her, and, in 2017, Stacy let her medical license expire.
“I was getting tired — tired of watching people in pain and not being able to help them in a productive way, in a way that wouldn’t result in other conditions or addiction,” she said. Stacy went on to earn a degree in Real Estate Management from Harvard University in 2018, ultimately going into commercial real estate development.
Stacy purchased a ranch in May 2018 and started growing hemp in
an effort to make it economically viable.
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"Tips For
Fighting
Inflation"
By Evelyn (Evie) Preston,
The Money Lady
“A nickel ain’t worth a dime anymore,” is a perfect old Yogi
Berra quote for our times as the affects of inflation top global concerns.
To understand out-of-control price hikes, all you have to do is buy
gas and groceries. But what exactly is inflation and why now, and how’d it happen so fast?
The short version: inflation’s a sharp increase in the cost of goods
and services—the higher the price, the less you can afford. It’s also important to understand inflation’s interconnectedness as much as
its effects.
Q: With inflation raging, what should I do now?
Answers always depend on one’s personal situation. Fortunately, many seniors/retirees have already faced and settled ongoing costs from mortgages to maintenance and are able to proceed with caution.
Now is the time to reassess our finances a la the old adage: Use it up…Wear it out…Make it do…or Do without.
For the next few—likely down—years, also give yourself a "T"
Party: Be Thrifty...Tailor expenses to needs, not wants… Stick with long-term Total Return investments…Use Time Tested strategies like the magical Theory of buying low over Time…Track the economy for the next Transition…Trust in yourself…Be a Tortoise...This too shall pass.
The Good News: studies find that seniors don’t skimp on healthcare and most interestingly, charity!
Q: Does inflation affect senior's Social Security monthly payments?
Very much. Social Security payments are mainly based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the average costs of our necessary, ongoing purchases. This yearly calculation affects our next year’s amount. Low inflation kept these benefits from growing much during the recent past but that should change next year and give recipients
a welcome cash cushion.
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"Stairway To Life"
Comics for folks over 50 by John Donaghue
John Donaghue is an award winning creative art director and creator of Under Cardiac Comics appearing in The Scoop.
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Lookout For Warning Signs
June is Alzheimer’s and Brain
Awareness Month!
Alzheimer’s disease has impacted most people’s lives, through a friend or loved one. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, 6 million Americans are living with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis.
Alzheimer’s is a progressive neurodegenerative disease which means it gets worse over time, and the person affected eventually loses the ability to accomplish daily tasks. Memory loss, such as frequently forgetting names, words or new information, is typically one of the first warning signs of Alzheimer’s disease.
Part of Alzheimer’s disease awareness is knowing the symptoms so you can recognize them in a loved one who may be developing Alzheimer’s. Symptoms to look out for include:
• Memory loss confusion with time or place
• Trouble planning, organizing or solving problems
• Communication struggles
• Misplacing things and being unable to retrace steps
• Mood and personality changes
The sooner a diagnosis is made, the sooner someone can work with their medical team to optimize the treatment of physical and mental health conditions. Optimal physical health, regular medical follow-up, socialization, activity, nutrition and overall well-being can make a big difference in dementia symptoms and progression.
Please talk with the doctor about medication options as well. Although there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, there are things you can do to help a loved one and support them through their difficulties and struggles, such as:
• Have a daily routine
• Keep things simple
• Eye-level and close by conversation
• Set them up for success
• Be reassuring and validating
• Don’t take their behavior personally
• Try not to correct
Physicians Medical Group of San Jose is the largest independent physician’s association in Santa Clara County. We have been part of the community for 40 years with more than 1,000 doctors in 460 offices, plus we speak 30+ languages. Call 888-988-8682 or visit pmgmd.com for more information.
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Chateau-Cupertino
Senior Independent Living Community With a Flair
Senior living doesn't get any better than living at Chateau-Cupertino whether you're in retirement or just ready for the next great phase of your life. Enjoy a home-life environment in your own senior apartment with three fresh served home-style meals daily.
Housekeeping and laundry services, all basic utilities, great activity programs, game rooms and transportation--all included starting at $3,000 per month.
Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, Cupertino is one of the best places to live in CA--home to world famous Apple company.
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ASK LARRY
By Larry Hayes, A050 CEO/Publisher
"Will I Live
To 100?"
“My parents are in their 80s. My grandparents lived into their 90s. Will I?"
-- Holly, 59, Walnut Creek, CA
Maybe. But just because your parents and grandparents lived long lives doesn't mean that you will. Good "genes" help but only account for about 20% toward longevity.
What's more important is your lifestyle. Do you eat healthy? Watch your weight? Exercise on a regular basis? Possess a positive outlook? Have something meaningful to do?
Got a Question? Ask me anything. If I don't know the answer, I'll ask someone who does. Email me at larry@activeover50.com. ASK LARRY is written by Larry Hayes, CEO/Publisher of A050. ActiveOver50.com
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Your Local
Reverse
Mortgage
Professional
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With over 15 years experience right here in
Silicon Valley, I can help answer your questions
Q: Will the bank own my home?
The bank does not take ownership of your home; they simply extend a loan
to you. You continue to own and live in your home and are responsible for payment of property taxes, required insurance and if applicable, HOA fees.
Q: Do my children/family members lose their inheritance?
No, a borrower may designate an heir of their choosing.The heir(s) will inherit the home after the last surviving borrower passes away and may then choose to keep (by paying off the amount of reverse mortgage balance) or sell the home. Should they choose to sell, any remaining equity after paying off the loan (minus interest and fees) would be theirs.
Q: What is the lending limit of the HECM reverse mortgage?
As of January 1, 2021, it increased to $822,375. Which means it's very likely you can qualify for more money.
To learn more, call me today: 408.722.0010
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