When a loved one passes away, it's a very difficult and emotional time. One of the last things you will want to think about is how to handle their body, but it's something that needs to be done. You will usually have two options for handling their body. You can opt for them to be buried in a cemetery or for cremation services. 

What Is Cremation?

Cremation is the final disposition of a body. It consists of incinerating the body until it is reduced to cremains. After the body is cremated, the cremains will be returned to the family. The family can then decide what they want to do with the cremains. 

Common things to do with the cremains include:

• Put in an urn and display 
• Scatter during a ceremony
• Place in a headstone at a cemetery (e.g. in the leg of a bench headstone)

How Does Cremation Work?

Cremation will usually be done after a funeral and/or visitation has occurred. This allows family and friends to say goodbye in a more personal way. However, if you'd like to skip the funeral/visitation or you want the cremation done before, you can choose direct cremation. Direct cremation simply means the body is cremated soon after death, skipping the services and embalming. 

The cremation steps go as follows:

1. Identification of the deceased confirmed
2. Medical devices and implants are removed
3. The body is placed inside the cremation chamber at 1,400 to 2,000 degrees
4. After around 2 hours, the remains are removed
5. Any remaining metal pieces are removed by hand or by a magnet
6. The remains and bone fragments are processed into something that looks like ashes
7. The "ashes" are placed into a container and returned to the family

Why Choose Cremation?

Some may not understand the appeal of cremation, but there are many reasons why cremation has been rising in popularity. 

Some of those reasons include:

• Less expensive
• Easier
• Deceased's request/fear of being buried
• Better for the environment
• No space at their cemetery
• Allows more time for funeral preparations

Cost of Cremation Services

The bigger reason that cremation has been gaining in popularity is due to the lower cost. The cost of cremation services will vary depending on your location and the type of cremation you opt for. However, the cost averages between $4,000 and $7,000. If you chose direct cremation, the cost would be a little different. Direct cremation is a little cheaper and ranges between $2,000 to $5,000. 

For more information on cremation, contact a company like Simple Choices Inc.