It generally progresses quite quickly and can completely ravage and kill its victims within 2-5 years after a confirmed diagnosis.
It tends to effect more men then women and strikes in middle age. There is no cure and medications can only lengthen life expectancy to a few more months.
This disease effects every body system including the respiratory (trouble breathing) and digestive system (loss of swallowing reflex and bowels).
The cruelest symptom of the disease is that most* of those suffering from it retain their full mental faculties, which means they completely understand what is happening to their bodies and they are powerless to change the outcome.
*Researchers have recently discovered a form of ALS which affects brain function causing dementia.
The disease received national press and a widely accepted name, when the famous New York Yankees baseball player, Lou Gehrig, announced his retirement from the game due to this affliction.
According to the ALS Association Approximately 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year.
Thankfully through the work of dedicated scientists, volunteers, advocates, and donations, we are one step closer to finding a cure to this sadistic disease.
Patients, families and caregivers remain hopeful that one day ALS will be a memory instead of a reality.
Until then, the fight to eradicate Lou Gehrig's Disease marches on!
A cure begins with you! To learn more about ways you can bring public attention and learn more about this disease see the following sites:
Mayo Clinic Fact About ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis)
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/amyotrophic-lateral-sclerosis/DS00359
ALS Association website link which includes a calendar stating 31 ways you can help those suffering with ALS in May, ways to become an advocate and more!
ALS Association
Les Turner ALS Foundation This foundation was named after a Chicago businessman, named Les Turner, who received his diagnosis in 1976. This site offers information on local events, patient services they provide, counseling and support, and research information.
http://www.lesturnerals.org/
Official Lou Gehrig Website
http://www.lougehrig.com/about/als.htm
Books About ALS (Fiction and Non-Fiction)
Children's Picture Book
Your Ema Loves You by Eloise Lovelace
Juvenile Non-Fictional Informational
Lou Gehrig's Disease by Melissa Ambramovitz
ALS- Lou Gehrig's Disease by Mary Dodson Wade
Teen Fiction
God is in Pancakes by Robin Epstein
Juvenile Fiction
The Happiness of Kati by Jane Vejjajiva
Adult Fiction
The First Time by Joy Fielding
Returning to Earth by Jim Harrison
You're Not You by Michelle Wildgen
Adult Non-Fiction (Religious Aspects) Featuring ALS Patients
I Choose Everything: Embracing God in the Face of Terminal Illness by Jozanne Moss
Learning to Fall: The Blessing of an Imperfect Life by Philip E. Simmons
Biography/Autobiography
Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, A Young Man and Life's Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom
Luckiest Man: The Life and Death of Lou Gehrig by Jonathan Eig
What a Time to Live: The Autobiography of James B. Hamilton by James B. Hamilton
How Will They Know If I'm Dead?: Transcending Disability and Terminal Illness by Robert C. Horn
Rowing Without Oars by Ulla-Carin Lindquist
This Far and No More: A True Story by Andrew H. Malcolm
Augie's Quest: One Man's Journey From Success to Significance by Augie Nieto
Letting Go: Morrie's Reflections on Living While Dying by Morris S. Schwartz
I Remember Running: The Year I Got Everything and ALS by Darcy Wakefield
Charlie's Victory: An Autobiography by Charlie Wedemeyer
His Brother's Keeper: A Story From the Edge of Medicine by Jonathan Weiner
DVDs
Adult Motion Picture DVD about Lou Gehrig
The Pride of the Yankees starring Gary Cooper as Lou Gehrig
Adult Informative DVD
ALS Lou Gehrig's Disease (Host Jamie Guth)
Adult DVD Documentary
So Much So Fast
Adult Television Movie
Tuesdays With Morrie starring Jack Lemmon and Hank Azaria
Ted Koppel Interview with Morrie Schwartz DVD
Lessons on Living
Medical Sourcebooks
The Official Patients Sourcebook of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis by Icon Health Publications
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis by Robert G. Miller
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