Ice Bucket Challenges all around! From my Facebook newsfeed to random conversations overheard on the Metro, everyone is talking about Ice Bucket Challenges and donating for the cause. Sadly, most people dump a bucket of water over their heads and/or dish out a few bucks and leave it at that. But before you do that, you need to know why. And heres why. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis- the reason people are pouring buckets of icy water over their heads. Well, not because they have it,(duh! people who have it can barely lift a finger) but because they aim to create awareness about the condition. To understand what ALS is, you need to know what motor neurons are. Motor neurons are those that control your muscles, and therefore, movement. ALS affects the upper and lower motor neurons and causes their progressive degeneration over a variable period. People with the condition undergo steady muscular atrophy (muscle loss) which eventually results in paralysis. Weakening of oral, pharyngeal and respiratory muscles lead to impairment of speech, swallowing and breathing. A person with ALS is not likely to live more than 2-5 years after the condition sets in. One of the most famous victims of ALS is the world-renowned physicist, Stephen Hawking, who has lived more than 50 years after being diagnosed with the condition. Unfortunately, we have no idea what causes ALS (except the familial type) and have no way to cure or effectively treat it. (people who think their contributions are saving lives is sadly mistaken.) So primary aim here must be to create awareness, because what we need is people to take interest and make inroads into the study of this condition. The channeling of your funds towards better therapy for patients and research into ALS is the objective of this campaign. Now that you know what ALS is, go ahead and pour that bucket of water over your heads! :)
Posted on: Thu, 21 Aug 2014 15:36:43 +0000
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