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Christine's Ice Bucket Challenge

I was nominated by Grace Petzold. I nominate the entirety of the NIU Honors House in New Hall East, especially Cluster 408 and 404. I have also donated fifty dollars to alsa.org. You have 24 hours. Please consider donating along with participating in the ice bucket challenge. I go more into it below.

Because this ice bucket challenge has taken the internet by storm, I decided to do a little research on what ALS really is. Many of the people who are participating have no real idea on what ALS is and yet they are participating in this ice bucket challenge and/or donating. It’s a noble thing, and I’m glad that this is happening, but I believe that you should also know what ALS is.

I took this information directly from the ALSA official website. It gives a succinct, clear definition on Amyotrophic Later Sclerosis (also known as motor neurone disease, Charcot disease, and Lou Gehrig’s disease), what it does to its victims, and why we should care.

“A-myo-trophic comes from the Greek language. "A" means no or negative. "Myo" refers to muscle, and "Trophic" means nourishment–"No muscle nourishment." When a muscle has no nourishment, it "atrophies" or wastes away. "Lateral" identifies the areas in a person's spinal cord where portions of the nerve cells that signal and control the muscles are located. As this area degenerates it leads to scarring or hardening ("sclerosis") in the region.

“As motor neurons degenerate, they can no longer send impulses to the muscle fibers that normally result in muscle movement. Early symptoms of ALS often include increasing muscle weakness, especially involving the arms and legs, speech, swallowing or breathing. When muscles no longer receive the messages from the motor neurons that they require to function, the muscles begin to atrophy (become smaller). Limbs begin to look "thinner" as muscle tissue atrophies.

“Although the cause of ALS is not completely understood, the recent years have brought a wealth of new scientific understanding regarding the physiology of this disease.

“While there is not a cure or treatment today that halts or reverses ALS, there is one FDA approved drug, riluzole, that modestly slows the progression of ALS as well as several other drugs in clinical trials that hold promise.”

ALS is a terrible disease. However, I also ask that you consider donating your money to other organizations that support victims who are affected by other equally terrible diseases. If you know more about a certain disease, or have had a family member affected by one, please don’t hesitate to donate. I believe that one of the reasons why the ice bucket challenge occurs should be the raise awareness to donate to charity. As a contributing member of society, we often take many things for granted—our health, our money, and our families. I ask that you take several minutes to donate to a charity of your choice, and, as a fun option, participate in the ice bucket challenge.

Donate to the ALSA at http://www.alsa.org/
Other charities to consider:
The American Cancer Society at http://www.cancer.org/
National Multiple Sclerosis Society at http://www.nationalmssociety.org/
American Diabetes Association at http://www.diabetes.org/
Alzheimer’s Association at http://www.alz.org/
National Alliance on Mental Illness at http://www.nami.org/
American Parkinson Disease Association at http://www.apdaparkinson.org/

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