Want to donate money to a good cause? Consider THESE stats first…

Because of the hype and the viral social media following of the Ice Bucket Challenges, the ALS Association has received close to a billion rand in donations.

While it's not a bad thing to donate to a cause such as this, you might want to look into the following two aspects:

1. Where your hard-earned money goes; and
2. The significance of the disease and the people it affects.

Let's talk about point number 2…

 
Popeye ate Spinach to fight off harmful enemies proving there’s more to greens than meets the eye...
 
It’s not only Popeye who is entitled to fight off unwanted enemies using Spinach...
 
Like Popeye, you too can fight off harmful health enemies such as high cholesterol, cancer, heart disease, weight gain and many other unwanted health complications with the power of the right greens.
 
Discover the greens that’ll help you power up against health enemies here.
   

Think about the diseases that kill millions of people every year and the money researchers need to prevent it

 
This is the amount of money institutions makes from donations for research to find better treatments and cures:
 
1.    Breast cancer at $280 million;
2.    Prostate cancer at $147 million;
3.    Heart disease at $54 million;
4.    Motor Neuron Disease (MND) (including ALS) at $22 million;
5.    HIV/AIDS at $14 million;
6.    Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) at $7 million;
7.    Diabetes at $4.2 million; and
8.    Depression at $3.2 million.
 
But now look at these diseases and the number of lives they claim every year:
 
·         Breast cancer: 41,374
·         Prostate cancer: 21,176
·         Heart disease: 596,577;
·         Motor Neuron Disease (MND) (including ALS): 6,849
·         HIV/AIDS: 7,683
·         Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD): 142,947
·         Diabetes: 73,831
·         Depression (suicide): 31,518
 
As you can see, heart disease, COPD and diabetes are among the top diseases that kill people. So why don’t they get as much money for research and education that others like prostate cancer institutions that don’t claim as many lives do?
 
The question is a good one. And something authorities should answer.
 
In the mean time though, we hope this has been informative and that it helps you decide where your money should go when you donate it to a good cause to help others cope with illness. 

Tags: als, heart disease, diabetes, als ice bucket challenge, donating money to a good cause, research and development in chronic diseases