Ice bucket challenge revival for mental health sparks controversy among ALS community

The Ice Bucket Challenge is back, but this clip for a caller cause.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that went mega-viral successful the summertime of 2014 had much than 17 cardinal radical connected societal media, and adjacent celebrities connected speech shows, dumping crystal h2o implicit their heads.

The challenge, supported by the ALS Association, was intended to rise consciousness of the disease. It yet raised $115 cardinal toward ALS probe and diligent care.

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Eleven years later, the Ice Bucket Challenge has been revived by USC Mind, the University of South Carolina’s Mental Illness Needs Discussion club.

Guests connected "The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon" participated successful the Ice Bucket Challenge connected Aug. 12, 2014. (Douglas Gorenstein/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images)

In enactment of a instauration called Active Minds, the country's largest intelligence wellness nonprofit for teens and young adults, the USC radical launched the #SpeakYourMind Ice Bucket Challenge.

The situation is taking disconnected connected societal media and has raised astir $400,000 connected the event’s fundraising site.

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The inclination revival has sparked immoderate contention for taking attraction distant from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), besides known arsenic Lou Gehrig’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative illness that affects nervus cells successful the encephalon and spinal cord.

The mean beingness expectancy aft ALS diagnosis is typically 2 to 5 years, according to the ALS Association.

Brooke Eby, an ALS diligent and influencer, posted a video connected societal media with the caption, "Watching radical bargain the ALS crystal bucket situation for a antithetic origin erstwhile ALS inactive doesn’t person a cure and is 100% fatal. Fuming."

The ALS Association and Active Minds announced they're teaming up successful the caller Ice Bucket Challenge for the period of May, which is some Mental Health Awareness Month and ALS Awareness Month. (Abigail Breuchert)

Michael Stone, different contented creator and ALS patient, spoke retired astir the interaction the situation had connected the ALS community.

"It is much than a trend," helium printed successful an infographic. "The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge changed lives."

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"Raising consciousness for ALS is important due to the fact that it leads to funding, and backing leads to research," Stone wrote. "What started arsenic a viral situation grew into thing acold greater: a worldwide effort that’s backing life-changing probe and giving anticipation to those affected by this devastating disease."

Brian Frederick, the ALS Association's main selling and communications officer, shared the organization’s enactment for the revived movement.

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"We’re thrilled to spot young radical taking up the tone of activism for intelligence health, but we besides privation radical to cognize that ALS is inactive fatal and urgently needs a cure," Frederick said successful a connection to Fox News Digital.

"Mental wellness is an important contented successful the ALS community, fixed the devastating physical, affectional and fiscal toll that ALS takes connected full families."

Frederick commented that the archetypal ALS Ice Bucket Challenge "dramatically accelerated" the combat against ALS, which led to "new genes discovered, caller treatments successful the pipeline" and a important summation successful attraction services.

Since the challenge, the ALS Association has invested much than $150 cardinal successful ALS research, followed by astir $1 cardinal successful further ALS probe funding, according to Frederick.

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"We inactive person a agelong mode to spell to crook ALS from fatal to livable and cure it, but we’re grateful to everyone for taking the Ice Bucket Challenge and raising consciousness of ALS and intelligence health," helium added.

A radical of kids dumps buckets of crystal h2o their heads connected the 5th day of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge connected July 15, 2019, successful Boston, Massachusetts.     (Nancy Lane/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)

Cathy Cummings, CEO of the International Alliance of ALS/MND Associations, noted that galore radical with ALS and their caregivers tin look "serious intelligence wellness challenges," specified arsenic slump and anxiety.

"Using the Ice Bucket Challenge to rise consciousness astir intelligence wellness supports our assemblage arsenic well," she told Fox News Digital. "We would similar to clasp abstraction for aggregate people’s experiences, without needing to prime which is much deserving." 

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In a property merchandise connected Thursday, some the ALS Association and Active Minds announced they're teaming up successful this caller Ice Bucket Challenge for the period of May, which is some Mental Health Awareness Month and ALS Awareness Month.