The Ice Bucket Challenge is back, but this time for a new cause.
The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, which became a megavirus in the summer of 2014, had over 17 million people on social media.
Supported by the ALS Association, this challenge was aimed at raising awareness of the disease. Ultimately, he raised $115 million for ALS research and patient care.
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Eleven years later, the Ice Bucket Challenge was revived by USC Mind, the University of South Carolina’s Mental Illness Needs Discussion Club.
Guests of “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon” participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge on August 12, 2014. (Douglas Gorenstein/nbcu Photo Bank/nbcuniversal Getty Images via Getty Images)
The USC Group has launched the #SpeakyOurMind Ice Bucket Challenge in support of a foundation called Active Minds, the country’s largest mental health nonprofit for teens and youth.
The challenge was taking off on social media, raising around $400,000 from the event’s fundraising site.
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This revival of the trend sparked controversy to deprive attention of ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects neurons in the brain and spinal cord.
According to the ALS Association, the average life expectancy after an ALS diagnosis is usually 2 to 5 years.
“I’ve posted a video on social media watching people stealing the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge for different causes,” said Brooke Ebby, an ALS patient and influencer, “If ALS is still untreated and 100% fatal.”
The ALS Association and Active Minds have announced that they are teaming up for the new Ice Bucket Challenge in May. (Abigail Brewhart)
Another content creator and ALS patient, Michael Stone spoke about the impact the challenges have had on the ALS community.
“It’s more than a trend,” he printed in an infographic. “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has changed my life.”
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“Increasing ALS awareness is important because it leads to fundraising and fundraising leads to research,” writes Stone. “What started as a viral challenge has grown into something much bigger: a global effort that funds life-changing research and gives hope to those affected by this devastating disease.”
Brian Frederick, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer of the ALS Association, shared the organization’s support for the revived movement.
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“We are excited to see young people robbing their spirit of activity for their mental health, but we want people to know that ALS is still deadly and in need of treatment,” Frederick said in a statement to Fox News Digital.
“Given the devastating physical, emotional and financial sacrifices ALS takes on the whole family, mental health is an important issue in the ALS community.”
Frederick commented that the original ALS Ice Bucket Challenge “dramatically accelerated” the fight against ALS, leading to “new genes discovered, new treatments in the pipeline” and a significant increase in care services.
According to Frederick, the ALS Association has invested more than $150 million in research on ALS, and has invested an additional $1 billion in ALS research funds.
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“We still have a long way to go to treat ALS from deadly to livable, but we are grateful for the challenge of Ice Bucket and raising awareness of ALS and mental health,” he added.
The Kids Group will throw away ice buckets for the fifth anniversary of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, held in Boston, Massachusetts on July 15, 2019. (Nancy Lane/Media News Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)
Cathy Cummings, CEO of the International Alliance of the ALS/MND Association, noted that ALS and many of its caregivers can face “severe mental health challenges” such as depression and anxiety.
“Using Ice Bucket Challenge to raise awareness about mental health is also supporting our community,” she told Fox News Digital. “We want to preserve space for multiple people’s experiences.
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In a press release Thursday, both the ALS Association and Active Minds announced they are teaming up at this new Ice Bucket Challenge in May.
