Steve and I grew up in a day where as a child, our parents were pretty uninformed about what was in our foods, as well as told that pesticides and the like were safe and made life easier. After Steve was diagnosed with ALS, he did some reflecting and researching on the possible environmental factors that could contribute to him being diagnosed. Here's some words from him.
"Upon first getting diagnosed the normal thing to do is to trace back to why it happened? I'll never know because science isn't caught up with the magnitude of this disease, but it's beyond me just being an athlete and being jumped by gang members and beat with a baseball bat while in college. It's beyond a gene mutation or the possible hereditary gene trait. The lake I grew up swimming in was later to be found to have blue algae which long story short, develops over time with pollution. Also, has a linkage with ALS. Then you add the study that was recently found with environmental toxins are associated with ALS symptoms which added some weight to my suspicions. Almost every house I lived in the yard was sprayed with some chemical for weeds, as well as a chemical for bugs; and then add living on a golf course for sometime and that added exposure. I can't prove with 100% certainty that environmental factors contributed to my ALS, but the fact that it EVEN can is the problem here. There's also the talk of Tic bites and Lyme disease. I was tested when first diagnosed, although I often want to be tested by someone who goes more in depth because I lived on horse farm for sometime and experienced tic bites on a frequent basis. This is where climate change is important for those who don't understand. The warmer the temperature rises, the more bugs survive, which means the more illness and diseases they spread. The more our land is taken over by houses, and sea level rises taking away our coasts the more the bugs infringe on our space because they have no where else to go. Being someone who not only has a terminal illness but several antibiotic resistant bugs that will not go away, and at some point may ultimately kill me, I don't even think I need to say more about factory farming. The fact that those animals are miss treated and full of disease is one thing, the fact that we are exposed to antibiotics before needing them because of this, and they now won't work on me. This is just a small example of what is to come in our world more and more if we don't stop it. Take me as an example if you need one to wake up and be the change."
These words from Steve are poignant and I will wait until tomorrow to give you a ton of ideas on how you can play a role in helping stop the climate change that's happening at an alarming pace. For now I want to leave you with a thought. The fact that it is even at all a realm of possibility that Steve got ALS due to environmental factors should for sure open some people's eyes. If it doesn't I want you to think about how much exactly you are exposed to on any given day, and how much that exposure ADDS UP. From the pesticides you spray your lawns with, and unless you're eating organic the pesticides you are consuming, to the toxins in the air you breathe, and our water systems that are being poisoned every single day; why are we allowing this to happen?
Does everyone really just think, "Oh it's too late, nothing we can do now?" I promise you our planet is resilient IF WE STOP IT NOW. We can fix it, it's not too late YET. So please take some action, and look at what Steve's been through. No one deserves it.
That's all for now, tune in tomorrow for some seriously simple ways every person can help.
No comments:
Post a Comment