Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS: Distracts from Causes and Cures

Views 9

Why the Ice Bucket Challenge Doesn’t Matter

 

The Ice Bucket Challenge, as of the writing of this article, has grossed over 41 million dollars in donations, which “has driven hundreds of thousands to join the fight against ALS,” according to a recent Huffington Post blog written by Jose Costa.

 

The perpetual meme of ‘fighting’ idiopathic diseases -- meaning, diseases ‘we have no idea are caused by’ -- has become the most successful cause-marketing strategy of our time, with billions of dollars spent, raised, but very little in terms of improving the ultimate outcome: saving lives.  Just look at Susan G. Komen, which raises billions for races and research into pharmaceutical and/or radiation-based treatments, who has yet to do anything to stem the expansion of overdiagnosis and overtreatment of healthy women (1.3 million women falsely diagnosed of breast cancer in the past 30 years), much less improve the survival times of those who actually do have a life threatening form of breast cancer.

 

For organizations that explicitly confess their inability to have any idea what causes or cures the diseases they presumably exist to overcome, co-opting the good intentions of the mainstream with viral social media campaigns has become the flavor of the day.

 

In these monthly ‘Wars’ against disease, neither the combatants or victims stand to make much ground because no one is looking at root causes, the essential precondition to removing them and finding a real cure.

 

At Greenmedinfo.com we have spent years finding studies on about 3,000 ailments -- obtained through the government’s own biomedical research database MEDLINE -- that can clearly be identified to have unnatural/manmade causes and natural solutions.

Take a look at our ALS page now, and you will a wide range of published and peer-reviewed studies indicating that we shouldn’t be spending so much time raising capital, but rather awareness as to the already obvious ways we could reduce the morbidity and mortality associated with the disease. Some highlights include:

 

CAUSES:

  • Lead: 4 studies on the lead-ALS link indicate that lead exposure can contribute to the etiology of ALS. If that’s the case -- or if we even consider it a potential cause -- reduce and/or eliminate exposure and then detoxify the body from it. This is a no-brainer that apparently the ALS Association, and the conventional medical establishment, chooses to ignore.

  • Pesticides: Should we be surprised that highly brain- and body-toxic chemicals could contribute to a neurodegenerative condition? If you read the ALS Association’s “About ALS page,” you would be left with the impression that we have no idea what causes this terrible disease. Here are 3 studies showing a link between ALS and pesticide exposure.

  • Statin Drugs: Yes, we should not be surprised. With 300+ adverse health effects linked to statin drugs in the biomedical literature, and neurotoxicity #1 on the list, ALS has also been found to be a possible side effect of this highly toxic class of cholesterol lowering drugs. Remember, the dry weight of the brain is largely compromised of fats and cholesterol. Any drug that suppresses the ability to produce this brain-essential lipid, could contribute to a wide range of neurological conditions. And here is proof that statin drugs are one of them: statin-ALS link.

  • Cigarette Smoking: No mystery here. Tobacco kills, and it isn’t just the nicotine and the thousands of chemicals naturally occurring or added afterwards to ‘enhance’ the effect. It’s the radioactive polonium 210 within them  -- the subject of a decades old cover up -- that is the primary cause of tobacco associated morbidity and mortality. No wonder that this highly toxic plant’s smoke has been linked to ALS.  Again, it is sickening that the ALS Association won’t address this obvious risk factor openly on it’s site.

  • MSG: Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is an ominpresent contaminant -- classified as an FDA approved additive - in tens of thousands of foods in the food supply. Here is a 2010 study linking MSG to the pathogenesis of ALS.

 

These are a sprinkling of some of the biomedically vetted likely contributing causes, but thankfully, the ‘curative’ natural agents are far more numerous. Of the 39 substances found to have potential value in ALS -- none of which Big Pharma, or their cause-marketing collaborators, acknowledge - these are the most compelling we have found:

 

'Solutions':

 

Don’t forget the basics: something as simple as moving the body -- exercise -- has been found in at least 3 studies to improve ALS.

Keep in mind, these are only the studies we have indexed, with limited resources and time.  I am sure there are plenty more. Go to the National Library of Medicine’s bibliographic citation database and search yourself. You will have 23 million abstracts under your fingertips. Search for “ALS” and you will find over 13,000 published studies on the topic.

 

Let’s hope the ALS Association put their newly contributed money where their mouth is, and dedicates it to finding solutions that relieve the suffering of those with the condition. Money is great. It enables us to do things. And those who donate it, show that they care enough to give up a fragment of their financial freedom to help others.  But if the causes are clear -- things that damage the brain -- and the solutions are as well -- addressing nutritional deficiences and chemical/toxicant exposoures and correcting them -- let’s at least stop pretending raising more money, or making a game of pouring ice on one self is anything but a charade.


Let’s get real. The causes and solutions for ALS are in front of us. The real solution is to address them.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of GreenMedInfo or its staff.

This website is for information purposes only. By providing the information contained herein we are not diagnosing, treating, curing, mitigating, or preventing any type of disease or medical condition. Before beginning any type of natural, integrative or conventional treatment regimen, it is advisable to seek the advice of a licensed healthcare professional.

© Copyright 2008-2024 GreenMedInfo.com, Journal Articles copyright of original owners, MeSH copyright NLM.