Smart Senior – Page 2 – Seniors Lifestyle Blog

What’s Involved in Estate Planning?

Not everyone realises that estate planning and wills are not the same things. While your intention can be the same, there can be much more involved in estate planning as a whole, rather than simply putting together a will.

If you’re unsure what’s involved in either estate planning or will creation, the following information may prove helpful.

What is an Estate Plan?

An estate plan involves creating a plan for your assets and any investments when you die. It ensures your loved ones are provided for while also making sure your assets make it to the people you wished to benefit from them.

Estate plans incorporate the making of a will, your superannuation death nomination, power of guardianship, power of attorney, testamentary trusts, and medical treatment wishes if you’re no longer able to communicate.

While having an estate plan in Australia is not a legal requirement, it can be a worthwhile plan to make sure your family and friends are well cared for in the event of your passing.

5 Reasons Why Older People Fear the Dentist

The highest rate of dental fear is in the 40-64-year age range, with many people in this group avoiding trips to the dentist as much as possible.

However, dentists themselves are not scary people. They are like any other adult, just doing their job and providing a service. So, why do people fear them? Dentists shouldn’t take it personally because these common reasons for dental fear below have nothing to do with the dentist themselves.

Past Bad Experiences

Dental technology has come a long way in the last few decades, but it can be hard to see that if you’ve had previous bad experiences with archaic technology.

Most Common Mistakes When Planning a Will

One of the best things you can do for yourself, your family, and their future, is put time into planning wills. Even though you may not think you have enough assets to require a will, the threshold can be a lot lower than you might think.

Wills allow you to have some control over who gets your assets when you die, including your estate, pets, and children. Whether you’re in the process of creating a will from scratch or upgrading the one you already have, make sure you take some time to plan and research. By doing so, you may be able to avoid some of the following mistakes.

Failing to Create a Will At All

Estate planning and will creation can take some time. So much time, in fact, that you may put it off until it becomes too late. Once you have a will in place, it can require minimal upkeep.

Therefore, it can be worth setting time aside to think about your estate and who you would like it to go to. Everything from life insurance policies and superannuation to personal belongings and cars should be factored into a will.

If you don’t make your intentions known in a legal document, you may never be able to ensure that the people you wanted your assets to go to will receive them. Your death may even result in court cases to split assets between family members with legal intervention.

Why Dentures Might Be the Best Option for You

Whether you’ve lost your natural teeth to decay, disease, or even an accident, you might be wondering what your options are. Your dentist might recommend dentures, which are especially common among older adults.

However, not everyone is convinced that dentures are the right option for them. While it’s true that dental implants might also be of value, there are several reasons why dentures could be even better for your unique situation.

They Are Comfortable to Wear

Technology is evolving all the time, which means that uncomfortable dentures your own grandparents wore several decades ago may not be the same dentures you can expect to wear. It’s true that it can take a few visits to your dentist to achieve the correct fit, but these visits are worth it for your overall comfort.

Most Common Types of Laser Eye Surgery to Help You Decide

Many people decide to get laser eye surgery when they are tired of wearing contact lenses and glasses. They don’t have to worry about making allowances under helmets or experiencing discomfort when swimming and partaking in adventure sports.

However, it’s easy to become overwhelmed when you start looking at your laser eye surgery options. There are so many different laser surgery types available, and not all will suit your needs.

Fortunately, your eye care specialist can walk you through the best options. Still, we’ve included the most common surgery types available in today’s market.

Laser Assisted In-Situ Keratomileusis (LASIK)

Out of all laser eye surgery options, LASIK or laser assisted in-situ keratomileusis would have to be one of the most popular. It’s fast, offers the quickest recovery times, and is also one of the most comfortable options for patients.

This type of eye surgery involves two lasers to reshape the cornea rather than blades. It’s also one of the most preferred options for conditions like presbyopia, astigmatism, hyperopia, and myopia.

When your appointment time rolls around, you will experience laser treatment for just a few seconds on each eye, and you will be able to drive and do most daily activities within 24 hours. It may offer you much-needed peace of mind to know that LASIK is FDA-approved.

How to Maintain Strong Bones As You Age

You may not know it, but we are constantly building bone mass until we blow out the candles on our 30^th birthday. From that point onwards, we’re breaking down more bone than we’re rebuilding.

As a result, it becomes crucial for our bone health to factor activities and changes into our lives that combat bone loss rather than contributing to it. Here are a few things you can do to keep your bones healthy as you age.

Ensure You Get Plenty of Vitamins and Minerals

Talk to your doctor about the vitamins and minerals you should consume plenty of to assist with bone health. Calcium and Vitamin D can be the two standout options in this respect.

3 Common Mistakes People Make When They Move House

When you decide that the time has come to move from your family home into retirement housing, there’s generally a lot to consider, such as packing and hiring removalists, as well as hiring cleaning professionals and garden maintenance to ensure the house and garden looks nice once all your belongings have been moved out.

The hardest decision to make is, of course, making the move itself. Still, there are also many more minor decisions to make along the way.

Knowing you have so much to plan and think about can lead to some very common mistakes. A small amount of research before moving day may help you avoid many of them – such as these below.

Not Hiring a Moving Company

Even though you might be thinking about all the costs associated with moving, hiring a moving company can actually be a lot more affordable than you might think. If you decided not to hire one, you often have to find people with trailers to help you move, and if such people aren’t available, you may end up needing to hire a company anyway.

Moving companies can handle all parts of the moving process, from loading your possessions and furniture into the truck to unloading it into your new home. Many people who have hired moving companies before say they would do it again in a heartbeat due to how convenient it is during a high-stress time of your life.

5 Most Commonly Asked Questions About Dental Implants

Even though dental implants are a common procedure that dentists perform at least most weeks, that doesn’t mean the average person in need of them understands what they’re all about.

You might be toying with the idea of dentures or dental implants, or you might be concerned about how much care is involved in dental implants. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the idea of this treatment option, it can be worth asking your dentist some of the following questions:

What to Put in Your Will

Some people have put off the process of planning wills because they aren’t sure what to put in them. They may know they have assets that they’d like to leave to their loved ones, but working through the legalities of a will can be daunting. It can sometimes seem easier to leave it for another day, but that day could be too late.

Fortunately, creating a will is a lot easier than it might seem. Here are a few things to consider putting in yours when the time comes to begin estate planning.

Specific Bequests

If you have something specific that you know someone in your family or friends circle would appreciate more than anyone else, a will is the best place to make your intentions known.

You might have a stamp collection that a grandchild has viewed with great delight over the years, or a brother you might know could benefit from a cash injection to buy a new home. Rather than leaving it up to your family to decide where your assets go, leave instructions to make the entire process much easier for them.

Guardianship

One of the best times to start planning your will is when you have welcomed new children into your family. Should the worst ever happen to you, it’s crucial to make plans for your children’s future without you.

5 Ways to Transition to a Retirement Home Easily

The unfortunate reality is that transitioning to a retirement home is going to be stressful for all involved. Even when hiring removalists and being organised, it’s a significant change in your family’s life, and there’s going to be an adjustment period.

However, you can undoubtedly make sure the transition is as straightforward as it can be by possibly doing some of the following things:

Hiring a Moving Company

If you or your loved one is moving into a retirement home, then they possibly are no longer able to care for themselves and their home as well as they used to. Therefore, it’s easy to assume that moving furniture is likely also outside of their limits.

Aside from hiring muscle power to move large and cumbersome furniture, you also get to benefit from their generously sized transport. Rather than having to hire a trailer or making several trips, a moving company in a truck picks up everything in one trip and takes it to your new home with ease.

Make Several Trips to the Retirement Home Before Moving

Whether it’s you or a family member moving into retirement housing, consider how much easier the transition might be if you’ve made several trips to the facility before moving. The more you familiarise yourself with it before moving day arrives, the less daunting it will be when you finally say goodbye to your old home for good.

Best Low Impact Exercises For Seniors

Even though physical fitness is recommended for both young and old, many older adults can find it challenging to keep up. Bone and joint pain, along with connective tissue issues, can make most standard exercise types uncomfortable and even painful.

However, that’s not to say you can’t exercise at all, especially since it’s so crucial for our health and wellbeing. If pain and discomfort are slowing you down, consider any of the following low-impact exercise types.

Walking

Walking is something that requires minimal effort, no money, and no extra equipment. It’s also something you can do in the comfort of your home with equipment if you have no intentions of venturing out.

Most Common Signs Of An Aging Plumbing System

One of the last things you want to go wrong in your home is the plumbing. Plumbing problems can cost a fortune, especially when leaks spring and lead to significant water damage.

However, you can pre-empt issues that will require your attention sooner rather than later in some situations. Typically, this is because of an aging plumbing system. So, how can you tell your plumbing system is getting old? Any of these indicators below can point to that being the case.

Water is Discoloured

You mostly expect any water that comes out of your tap to be clear, but that’s not always the case if your plumbing system is getting old. Cloudy water can be caused by air within your pipes, but rust is a known problem if your water is coming out brown or yellow.

If your water has a green tint, corrosion in copper pipes might be to blame. Sometimes, it’s not your pipes that are to blame, but your city’s. In either situation, call a plumber to identify the cause of the issue and come up with a solution.

How to Care for Your Dentures to Make them Last the Distance

Getting dentures for the first time can be overwhelming. It can also be exciting and emotional. You all of a sudden have the means to chew and talk properly and smile with confidence.

As a result, care instructions given to you by your dentist may not sink in, and you might be left feeling like you’re forgetting some of the most important information about your new teeth. To help your dentures last the distance, consider the following information.

Avoid Any Abrasive Cleaning and Care Products

You might think you’re doing right by your dentures by using strong cleansers, hard-bristled brushes, whitening toothpastes, and harsh oral care products, but you may actually be causing damage. There are specific denture products on the market to use to ensure you’re caring for your new teeth appropriately.

Some other products designed for your natural teeth can lead to damage. There’s also no point in using whitening toothpastes since peroxide rarely changes the colour of denture teeth.

While cleaning, it’s also worth keeping in mind that hot or boiling water should be avoided. These can warp your dentures, leading to expensive repairs.

How to Maintain Your Mental Health As You Age

When you’re so focused on keeping your physical health in check as you age, it can be easy to forget about your mental health. Psychologists will tell you that the two are closely linked. It’s worth keeping that in mind when you carry out daily activities designed to keep you fit and healthy.

Fortunately, it can be just as straightforward to take care of your mental health as it is your physical health. Consider filling your days with some of these things below.

Have a Plan For Your Retirement Years

It can be a challenging transition to move from full-time or part-time work to full retirement. You go from having a daily routine to being left to your own devices.

Friends and family might attempt to fill your days by loading you up with DIY tasks and grandchild babysitting, but it’s essential to consider what you want to do. You might have a hobby you’d like to focus on or a club to join. You might even look at volunteering opportunities.

Focus on making a plan for your retirement years before you retire. That way, there might be less chance of you falling into a rut that affects your mental health.

Most Common Signs You Have Cataracts

Vision is one of our most important senses and one we rely on to help us with everyday life. However, in many situations, it’s not always going to be at its best, with conditions like cataracts seeing the need for cataract surgery.

Cataracts affect over 700,000 Australians, and it’s the leading cause of blindness worldwide. Given its prevalence in most populations, it’s essential to look out for signs of this condition commonly associated with the natural aging process.

What Are Cataracts?

Cataracts are defined as being cloudiness of your eyes’ usually clear lenses. They tend to develop slowly over time and require diagnosis by a medical professional. Cataracts can be treated, but early diagnosis is crucial to a successful outcome. Therefore, it can be essential to look out for some of the following signs of cataracts.

Clouded or Blurred Vision

Blurred vision can be caused by many things, such as migraines, refractive errors, and cornea abrasions. However, one of the most common causes of blurred or clouded vision as you age is cataracts.

Security Measures to Take if You Live Alone

Most people take home security quite seriously, but if you live alone, there is value in taking it even more seriously than if you would if you lived with other people.

Being alone can make you feel vulnerable, and you can also be seen as vulnerable by those who wish to enter your home without your permission. For peace of mind and safety, consider the following security measures.

Install A Security Camera

Technology is evolving at a rapid pace, and it’s also becoming much more affordable. Security cameras used to cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, but you can now purchase them for a fraction of that.

Install a security camera so that you can enjoy peace of mind when you’re home and even more so when you’re not. Whenever you feel the need, you can view the footage on your phone or computer to ensure nothing untoward is happening around your home.

If you were ever the victim of a crime like theft, you might be able to hand over helpful video footage and photos to police to bring the criminal to justice.

What Happens If You Don’t Have a Will?

A will is a legal document that allows you to express how you want your assets and property to be distributed when you die. Planning wills is a simple process that requires you to outline information such as benefactors and what they should receive.

However, as straightforward as estate planning and will creation is, at least half of Australians still don’t have a valid will. If you die without one, you’re leaving behind a complicated mess for your loved ones.

What Does the Law Say About Dying Without a Will?

The law can be complicated when it comes to what happens when you die without a will. The answer to that question can depend on where you live. If you die without a will in Australia, it’s called intestacy, or ‘dying interstate’.

Typically, the law allows your assets to be divided up among surviving immediate family members, such as a spouse or children. However, if no close family members can be found, your assets may be allocated to parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins.

Depending on the state, organisations and individuals may also be able to pursue moral claims against your assets and estate. A charity with close links to you and those not related to you may end up with some of your assets if successful.