Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Lou Gehrig's Disease
FACTS ABOUT ALS
- ALS is not a contagious disease.
- Although the life expectancy of an ALS patient averages about two to five years from the time of diagnosis, this disease is variable and many people live with quality for five years and more. More than half of all patients live more than three years after diagnosis.
- Most people who develop ALS are between the ages of 40 and 75, with the majority after age 60, although it can occur at a younger age.
- As of 2015, there is no cure to ALS
- A large majority of ALS cases occur in Caucasians.
- In general, ALS is not inherited.
- It’s widely known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
- These is no known way to prevent ALS
- There is no way to cure ALS
- ALS doesn't effect your thoughts, only the way you verbalize them.
5 Ways to maintain a healthy life style
Keep your diets high in carotene and lutein, commonly found in dark green vegetables, as this decreases the risk of ALS
Add more physical activity into your daily lifestyle. This can help put you at a lower risk of getting ALS.
If you think you may have ALS, avoid taking baths in warm water for long periods of time, as this can injures muscles.
If you have symptoms of ALS, try to make your lifestyle more relaxed, as extreme tiredness increases the harshness of the symptoms.
WHAT CAUSES ALS?
ALS is inherited in 5 to 10 percent of cases. The other cases appear to occur randomly
Some other possibilities may be as follows:
Gene mutation - Various genetic mutations can lead to inherited ALS, which appears nearly identical to the non inherited form.
Chemical imbalance -People with ALS generally have higher than normal levels of glutamate, a chemical messenger in the brain, around the nerve cells in their spinal fluid. Too much glutamate is known to be toxic to some nerve cells.
- Disorganized immune response - Sometimes a person's immune system begins attacking some of his or her body's own normal cells, which may lead to the death of nerve cells.
"National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)." National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2015. <http://www.ninds.nih.gov/>.
"ALS Headlines." The Robert Packard Center for ALS Research at Johns Hopkins : Lou Gehrig's Disease : ALScenter.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2015. <http://www.alscenter.org/>.