The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge kicked off last month to raise awareness and funds for ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral sclerosis, which is more commonly known as Lou Gehrigs disease. The Ice Bucket Challenge basically consists of people making a video of themselves dumping a bucket of ice water over their heads and then posting the video on social media sites while challenging friends to do the same within 24 hours or donate $100 to ALS. The ALS Association has reported a huge spike of donations since the challenges started, citing having received $13.3 million in donations since July 29, compared with $1.7 million during the same period last year, as well as 260,000 new donors. The ALS Ice Bucket challenge, which was created for the general public, has surprisingly spread throughout the entertainment industry with many popular celebs (Chris Brown, Oprah, Lebron James, Justin Timberlake, Bill Gates, Kevin Hart, Justin Beiber etc) making hilarious Ice Bucket Challenge videos challenging other celebs to do the same.Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), often referred to as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease,” is a progressive disease that attacks nerve cells and ultimately leads to total paralysis, though the mind remains sharp. Life expectancy is typically two to five years from the time of diagnosis. ALS organization reports that approximately 5,600 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with ALS each year and as many as 30,000 Americans may have the disease at any given time.
