Lou Gehrigs Disease

Lou Gehrig's Disease (ALS)

Lou Gehrig's disease is also called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. Amyotrophic means that muscles have lost their nourishment. When this occurs, they become smaller and weaker. Lateral means that the disease affects the sides of the spinal cord, where the nerves that nourish the muscle are located. Sclerosis mean that the dead part of the spinal cord develops scared tissue where healthier nerves should be. ALS, which is often called Lou Gehrig's disease after the famous hall of fame baseball player that played for the New York Yankees.

ALS disease is something that damages motor neurons in the brain ands spinal cord. Motor neurons are the nerve cells that control muscle movement. These Motor neurons are an important part of the neuromuscular system which enables our bodies to move and is made up of the brain, nerves, and muscles. Everyday activities such as walking, running, and lifting things are controlled by the neuromuscular system. With time, ALS causes motor neurons to shrink and eventually disappear, so muscles can no longer receive signals to move. Because of this, muscles begin to shrink and become smaller, which eventually makes them useless. After having this disease for a while it is almost as if the body becomes paralyzed. Somebody that has the disease is not affected in any other way but this, all of the other senses such as touch, smell, sight, and hearing still work fine.

This disease is something that is extremely rare in kids. Actually, most people who develop this disease are adults between the age of 40 and 70. Studies show that only 2 out of every 100,000 people will catch the disease every year.

The earliest symptoms of ALS are such things like muscle weakness in the arms and legs, tripping or falling a lot, dropping things, difficulty speaking, and twitching of the muscles. Some later effects include difficulty eating, swallowing, and breathing. It is very hard for doctors to diagnose the disease due to the