10A • COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL • JANUARY 23, 2019
Boomer & Senior
News Line
By Matilda Charles
Take 9 Years Off Your Brain Age
Things people should know
about creating wills
Drafting a last will and testament is an
essential component of estate planning.
Despite the importance of having a will, a
recent survey from AARP found that two
out of fi ve Americans over the age of 45 do
not have one.
Putting wishes down on paper helps avoid
unnecessary work and sometimes heartache
upon the death of a loved one. Wills allow
heirs to act with the decedent’s wishes in
mind, and can ensure that assets and pos-
sessions will end up in the right hands.
Estate planning can be tricky, which is why
many people turn to attorneys to get the
job done right. Attorneys who specialize in
estate planning will no doubt discuss the
following topics with their clients.
• Assets owned: Make a list of known
assets and fi gure out which assets are
covered by the will and which will have to
be passed on according to other estate laws,
such as through joint tenancy on a deed or
a living trust. For example, life insurance
policies or retirement plan proceeds will
be distributed to your named benefi ciaries.
A will also can cover other assets, such as
photographs, clothing, cars, and jewelry.
• Guardianship:
Parents’ wills should
include a declaration
of who they want to
become guardians
their underage chil-
dren or dependents.
• Pets: Some people
prefer to use their
will to also dictate
guardianship for
their pets and to
leave money or
property to help
care for those pets.
However, pets do
not have the legal
capacity to own property, so one shouldn’t
gift money directly to pets in a will.
• Funeral instructions: Settling probate
will not happen until after the funeral.
Therefore, funeral wishes in a will often
go unnoticed, states the legal advisement
resource Find Law.
• Executor: An executor is a trusted person
who will carry out the terms of the will.
This person should be willing to serve and
be capable of executing the will.
People who die without a valid will be-
come intestate. This means the estate will
be settled based on the laws of where that
person lived, and a court-appointed admin-
istrator will serve in the capacity to transfer
property. This administrator will be bound
by laws and may make decisions that go
against the decedent’s wishes. To avoid this
outcome, a will and other estate planning
documents are crucial.
Tips for living with
low vision
Visual impairment affects people of all ages and all walks of life.
The American Foundation for the Blind defi nes visual impairment,
often referred to as “low vision,” as any vision problem that is severe
enough to affect an individual’s ability to carry out the tasks of every-
day living. Millions of people have some degree of visual impairment
that requires corrective lenses, and some still struggle even while
wearing glasses or contact lenses.
People with low vision can experience diffi culty performing daily
activities, such as cooking,
shopping, reading, watching
television, and more. Some
practical solutions can help
people address changes in their
vision.
• Use more light. After about
age 60, many people require
additional light to perform most
indoor tasks as well as outdoor
activities. After age 60, the pupil
no longer opens as widely as
it once did, which affects the
amount of light that reaches the
retina, where vision processing
occurs. Brighten areas of the
kitchen, garage, crafting table,
and other areas where fi ne de-
tails are examined.
• Rely on darker contrasts.
Contrasting colors can make it
easier to see edges and lines of
demarcation. For example, use a
dark tablecloth and white dishes
to see table settings and food
more clearly.
• Label items. Bold-colored la-
bels or those of different shapes
can help set items apart when
reading containers or boxes
becomes challenging.
• Use fi lters and shields. Certain
devices, such as lens fi lters and
shields, can reduce glare and
improve vision. Individuals also
can invest in shields for their
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computers or tablet screens to
January 31, 2019 to take
reduce glare.
advantage of the
• Choose “large print” formats.
2018 rate of $41.00.
At local booksellers, seek books
Ask us about Auto Pay
that are available in large print.
This makes it easier to enjoy
reading.
• Switch bulbs at home. The eye
care resource All About Vision
suggests swapping fl uorescent
and incandescent light bulbs
with warm-toned LED bulbs.
These bulbs emit less blue light
and can be more comforting
with reduced glare.
• Invest in adaptive devices.
Large-button phones with speed
dial, large-print calendars,
watches that speak the time, and
digital home assistant devices
also can help men and women
overcome vision loss.
Low vision impacts daily living,
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days. Special introductory offers are limited to no more than two special subscriptions in a twelve
but there are ways to counter the
month period and must be paid in advance to qualify for special rate. Once the above discounted
effects of impaired vision.
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Want to boost your mental acu-
ity? Get moving and eat your
vegetables.
Here’s yet another study that
says we can increase our mental
sharpness by walking or riding
a stationary bike three times
a week for six months and
going on the DASH (Dietary
Approaches to Stop Hyperten-
sion) diet. This Duke University
study has an interesting result,
however: It concluded that we
can shave nine years off our
brain age.
The study looked at seniors who
had mild cognitive impairment
and assigned them one of four
combinations of activities: the
walking/bike exercise, a DASH
diet or both. A fourth choice
was health education alone.
The first three months were
spent doing exercise under the
supervision of the research
facility. Later the participants
were released to exercise on
their own.
Specifically, the seniors were
asked to ride a stationary
bike or walk for 35 minutes
three times a week following
a 10-minute warm up. The
DASH diet, for those who were
assigned, promotes healthy
grains, low sodium, reduced
dairy and meat -- the standard
healthy diet for those with high
blood pressure. (See MayoClin-
ic.org for more information.)
There was no push to intensify
the rate of exercise (participants
were told to aim for 70 percent
maximum heart rate), but the
exercise intensified over time as
participants became more fit.
The results: Those with the
best improvements had been
assigned the walking/bike ex-
ercise as well as the DASH diet.
They benefited by being more
organized, achieving goals and
regulating behavior. Even those
who only exercised saw signifi-
cant improvement. Researchers
believe this was because of
increased oxygen to the brain.
If you want to go on the same
program, talk to your doctor
and get advice, especially about
the intensity rate of exercise. If
you’re concerned about your
balance on a stationary bike,
ask about the benefits of a row-
ing machine instead.
Should You Join a Gym?
Did you sign up for a gym
membership as a way to fulfill
your New Year’s resolution to
get fit? If so, good for you. If
not, also good for you.
A gym membership is only as
good as your determination
to use it, and there are many
reasons not to sign up. At the
first of the year you’ll be one
of many who joined, and the
gym might be crowded. If you
get on a schedule of going on
certain days, something likely
will come up to break your
routine, possibly bad weather.
If you’ve signed a contract, that
money is coming out of your
account every month no matter
what. You’ll likely need to drive
to the gym, and you might feel
like you need to buy workout
clothes or a gym bag.
On the other hand, if you’re de-
termined to exercise and don’t
want to spend money on a gym
membership that you might not
use, there are ways to work out
at home.
Check YouTube on the Inter-
net. Sample types of exercise
you’ve never tried. Yoga comes
in many varieties. Tai chi and
qi gong are similar but not the
same. Look for workouts with
hand weights or seated exercis-
es. Google “seniors exercising at
home” for ideas.
Opt to have a few pieces of
equipment at home and alter-
nate days with walking, either
outdoors or at an indoor facility
like a mall on days when you
need to run errands anyway.
Ask your doctor to suggest a
few pieces of equipment.
Working out at home is free,
private, with no waiting for
equipment and no driving to
the gym.
If you still want to join a gym,
wait a few months. Most of
the people who signed up as a
resolution will be gone.
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