Frauds and Scams 2

Seniors lose more than $3 billion to fraud each year. One of our most popular workshops is about scams and frauds. Yesterday I talked about the first five scams, today here is more detail about the second five. If you haven’t yet been approached by a scammer, you could face a scheme in the coming years. Sometimes family members, especially relatives caring for the elderly, are even the ones behind the attack. Some of the most common senior scams include:

1.     Charity scams.

2.     Funeral scams.

3.     Government imposter scams.

4.     Grandparent scams.

5.     Internet scams.

6.     Investment scams.

7.     Medicare scams.

8.     Reverse mortgage scams.

9.     Romance scams.

10.   Sweepstakes scams.

Investment Scams

You might get contacted by a person claiming to be a financial advisor, real estate investor or wealth manager who promises an exciting investment opportunity or big returns if you send them funds. These scams will take your money and not return anything to you.

Protect Yourself: Before sending any contributions to new investment, consult a trusted advisor with appropriate credentials and avoid fast decisions.

Medicare Scams

Someone may contact you claiming to be a Medicare representative who can help you save money by getting some form of additional coverage. The caller might ask for personal information or checking account numbers, and even have some information about you.

Protect Yourself: If you get a Medicare-related call, email or text, ignore it. If you have questions about your health coverage, contact Medicare directly.

Reverse Mortgage Scams

If you own your own home, you could be contacted by an individual claiming that you could access some of the equity in your residence with a reverse mortgage. They may offer to appraise your home for a fee, give you an invalid home value and ask you to sign up with inaccurate loan documents.

Protect Yourself: Don’t respond to any requests that ask you to share details about your home or make a payment for a reverse home mortgage. If you’re interested in getting a reverse mortgage, reach out to a reputable lender or advisor in your area and talk about your options.

Romance Scams

If you sign up for an online dating site, you could be approached by imposters who express interest in starting a relationship. After you talk on the phone or start dating, the scammer will ask for money to help pay for their utility bill, a parking ticket, home repair or something else. The scheme could go on long-term, especially if you date for a year or more.

Protect Yourself: To avoid falling victim, research the people who contact you via an online dating site. If you aren't sure, ask someone you trust to evaluate the situation and steer clear of money requests.

Sweepstakes Scams

A fraudster could contact you to congratulate you for winning a lottery. They might send you a fake check, which may initially look real until it is rejected by the bank, and you might be asked to pay for fees or cover taxes.

Protect Yourself: If you are asked do not pay any fees or cover taxes. If you are told that someone who is incompetent has either won a prize or incurred an obligation, look into it carefully. Do not allow anyone to forward you money of any kind in any way that you must pass on to anyone else.

Frauds and Scams 1

 Summertime and the living is easy and the scammers are out to get you.  Seniors lose more than $3 billion to fraud each year. One of our most popular workshops is about scams and frauds. If you haven’t yet been approached by a scammer, you could face a scheme in the coming years. Sometimes family members, especially relatives caring for the elderly, are even the ones behind the attack. Some of the most common senior scams include:

1.     Charity scams.

2.     Funeral scams.

3.     Government imposter scams.

4.     Grandparent scams.

5.     Internet scams.

6.     Investment scams.

7.     Medicare scams.

8.     Reverse mortgage scams.

9.     Romance scams.

10. Sweepstakes scams.

Here’s a breakdown of how these elderly scams work, along with what to do to avoid falling prey to an attack.

Charity Scams

If there’s a hurricane or other natural disaster in your area, a criminal might call you and ask for donations to a non-profit that is working to rebuild the region or help needy families.

Protect Yourself: Don’t agree to give to charities over the phone or when first approached. Instead, investigate the organization and find a number to call if you are interested in giving a donation.

Funeral Scams

If you place an obituary in a local publication after a loved one dies, a thief might contact you and insist that your deceased relative left behind a debt that needs to be paid. In another variation of this scam, the criminal might attend the funeral service to gather information about you before asking for money to cover an unpaid debt. Someone pretending to be from the funeral home could call you and insist that there are extra charges that didn’t get paid yet.

Protect Yourself: For all these attempts, refuse to send money immediately and ask for written documentation of the expense.

Government Imposter Scams

You might receive phone calls from people pretending to be from the IRS or Social Security Administration that demand immediate payment of unpaid taxes or ask for personal information in order to continue your Social Security or Medicare benefits. The scammer could be using a technique called spoofing which makes it appear as if the incoming phone number is legitimate. The caller is likely to ask you for information or demand you make a payment, which might need to be in the form of a gift card.

Protect Yourself: “These government agencies will never initiate contact with people through a phone call, so you can be sure that the person calling you is a scammer.

Grandparent Scams

In this scenario, a person will pretend to be the grandchild of the person who answers the phone and ask for money. The caller might claim they are having an emergency, such as a car accident or problem with the law, and don’t want anyone to find out. They might ask you to send them money or gift cards.

Protect Yourself: Setting up a code word for your grandchildren to use in a real emergency is a good thing to do.

Internet Scams

If you share information about yourself through social media, you could be targeted by scammers online. Internet scammers can find out personal information about you that is available online and use that to craft a scenario that might motivate you to provide funds or share more information.

Protect Yourself: If you receive a message that asks you to click on a link or share details about your identity or make a payment, press “delete.”

For all those coffee lovers out there

 2-3 cups of coffee a day may reduce kidney injury risk by 23%

I love my coffee as to many of us. I never knew that coffee could be good for us. The following is taken from Medical News Today and the link to the entire story is above.

The most beneficial amount of coffee

For the study, the researchers used data from 14,207 adults ages 45 – 64 from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.

The researchers assessed the participants’ coffee consumption during their first visit via a food frequency questionnaire. In total, they found:

·        27% never drank coffee

·        14% drank less than a cup of coffee per day

·        19% drank 1 cup per day

·        23% drank 2-3 cups per day

·        17% drank more than 3 cups per day

To define acute kidney injury, the researchers looked at rates of hospitalization, including an International Classification of Diseases code indicating AKI throughout a median period of 24 years follow-up. They noted 1,694 cases of incident AKI during the follow-up period.

After adjusting for demographic factors, they found that individuals who consumed any amount of coffee had an 11% lower risk of developing AKI compared to individuals who did not consume the beverage.

The researchers further noted a dose-dependent relationship between AKI and coffee intake, with those consuming 2-3 cups of coffee per day experiencing the most substantial risk reduction.

Coffee’s protective effects

When asked what might explain the potential protective effects of coffee for acute kidney injury, Dr. Matthew Weir, professor of medicine and the head of the Division of Nephrology at the University of Maryland, who was not involved in the study, told Medical News Today that the study did not offer clues.

“[The researchers] provide theories, but there are numerous problems with retrospective data review, which may confound the observations and limit the validity. At least there was no evidence of harm,” said Dr. Weir.

In the study, the researchers noted their findings might be the result of bioactive compounds in coffee that improve perfusion and oxygen utilization in the kidneys.

Dr. Kalie L. Tommerdahl, assistant professor of pediatric endocrinology at the University of Colorado, and Dr. Chirag Rohit Parikh, director of the Division of Nephrology at Johns Hopkins University, who were both authors of the study, told MNT that they conducted a companion study to further understand the potential mechanisms.

“We studied ten youths aged 12 to 21 years old with type 1 diabetes and aimed to assess the effects of a confirmed 7-day course of a single daily Starbucks cold brew (325 ml, 175mg caffeine) on [various measures of renal function],” they said.

“The study included a small sample size. While it confirmed that we can effectively assess these intrarenal measures in adolescents with type 1 diabetes, we did not find any differences in [renal function] following a short course of daily coffee consumption,” they added.

The researchers concluded that they needed to further evaluate the physiological mechanisms underlying the potentially protective effects of coffee consumption in larger studies of a longer duration.

“In addition, consumption of other caffeinated beverages such as tea or soda should also be considered a possible confounding factor. Further limitations include reliance on the inclusion of AKI on the problem list during inpatient hospitalization and the potential for confounding effects from differences in etiologies for participant hospitalization,” they said.

Creative Block

From time to time we all get stuck when we are doing something creative. “Creative block” is a metaphor for being stuck, but to think of it as a blockage is unconstructive. Most creative people agree that the best way to overcome a creative block is to create. Creating something new always means moving away from your comfort zone and trying something new. To be creative and to produce work that the world will see takes courage. Here are some thoughts on the creative process and getting stuck and unstuck.

Writing about writer’s block is better than not writing at all. — Charles Bukowski

If you hear a voice within you saying, “You are not a painter,” then by all means paint, boy, and that voice will be silenced, but only by working. — Vincent van Gogh

Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. You cannot intellectualize creativity. You can think about something before or after — but not during. — Ray Bradbury

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. — Maya Angelou

Most artists have experienced the creative block. We get stuck in our work. We beat our head against the wall, and eventually, the wall will yield. Perseverance, and faith in the impossible task are essential ingredients. — Lukas Foss, composer, pianist, and conductor

Inspiration is for amateurs. The rest of us just show up and get to work. If you wait around for the clouds to part and a bolt of lightning to strike you in the brain, you are not going to make an awful lot of work. All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. — Chuck Close, visual artist and photographer