Jiffy Lube Steps Up to Join the 6th Muscle Up Muscular Dystrophy Fundraiser

Muscular dystrophy is a serious condition wherein one will lose a lot of muscle mass and have weaker muscles. The cause of muscular dystrophy is said to be the presence of mutations from a person’s genetics that would stop the production of a protein that forms the muscles. Symptoms can mostly be found in childhood while the actual condition only blows up during adulthood. It is usually more commonly found in boys than in girls, and it has the ability to make a person not able to walk or move. While there is no cure for it, fortunately, there are therapies and medication that can help manage it so that it won’t be as bad for the patient.

While medical science aims to look for better means of treatment, there has been a lot of institutions that have been contributing to the research by providing more funds. One group, in particular, is Jiffy Lube, which has been a long standing supporter of the Muscle Dystrophy Association. Together, they have been coming up with programs to inspire those who suffer from the disease and also work together to further push forward the research and development of treatment. One of their biggest and most recent programs is the Muscle Up Fundraiser, which aims to bring in more money for further helping those with the condition. With this fundraiser campaign, the MDA aims to boost the research and development of muscle dystrophy treatment in order to reach out to more patients who suffer from the disease.

All About Muscular Dystrophy

While we have been discussing a lot about muscular dystrophy, the term itself may sound a bit foreign to most people. So, in order to further appreciate what the MDA and Jiffy Lube have been doing for the cause, it’s best to know more about the condition to understand why the two institutions are so intense with their programs.

As mentioned above, muscular dystrophy is a muscle-weakening disease wherein a genetic abnormality stops the production of protein in the body. As it predominantly occurs in males, it is also quite alarming to note that it affects 1 out of every 5,000 males according to an article posted on Medical News Today.

There are many types of muscular dystrophy with the Duchenne being the most common form. It begins in the child’s third year when they will eventually have to use a wheelchair as they grow older. These people would often lead short lives because of respiratory system failure.

The other eight types of muscular dystrophy are the myotonic, the Becker, the limb-girdle, the congenital, the facioscapulohumeral, the distal, the Emery-dreifuss, and the oculopharyngeal types. These eight are not as common as the Duchenne, but they still do affect a wide range of people.

Some of the symptoms would include pain and stiffness in the muscles, having a hard time running or doing other physical activities, having a hard time standing up, having speech disabilities. Later on, the patient would then lose the ability to walk, have smaller muscles, have respiratory problems, have a weaker spine, and later on, cardiac problems.

What is Jiffy Lube International?

One of the partners behind the Muscle Up program for muscular dystrophy patients is Jiffy Lube International. Jiffy Lube International is a market leader in automotive maintenance. Jiffy Lube International has more than 2,000 branches in the country, and they specialize in all types of automotive maintenance services.

What is the Muscular Dystrophy Association?

The other half of the program is run by the MDA, which is a leading organization that fights for patients who suffer from this condition. Their area of work is research and development of treatment for the condition, actual treatment of the condition, and also empowerment and inspiration for patients.

All About Jiffy Lube’s Muscle Up MDA Fundraiser

With the combined efforts of the MDA and Jiffy Lube International, the Muscle Up campaign was born and was able to garner a total of $5 million over 5 years. The campaign is still going strong and aims to raise more money for the further research of the condition.

The mechanics of this campaign would be for customers to donate a minimum of $3 to the MDA in order to participate in Jiffy Lube’s Muscle Up savings book wherein customers can save money from many retailers in the list.

The goal of this fundraiser is not only for the MDA to put more money into research and development, but also to help the MDA fund a free one-week summer camp for kids that have muscular dystrophy or other related muscular diseases. This is a chance to help inspire these kids and give them hope for their lives. The aim of the camp is to help the kids find out different interests, allow them to participate in certain activities, and also to get more self-confidence. The purpose is to help them realize that although they do have a condition such as this, they still may enjoy their lives.

This will not only be good for the kids but also for the families as well. Families who have kids like these would definitely have a hard time with their kid’s needs. MDA understands that, which is why this program was created in the first place.

Although the efforts of both parties are amazing and applaudable, one may wonder what Jiffy Lube International has to do with muscular diseases. According to a Jiffy Lube spokesperson, there is some sort of parallelism between the body’s muscles and the vehicle’s structure in a sense that both need a lot of care and maintenance in order for them to perform well. This is why Jiffy Lube has been so passionate about this advocacy.

Of course, the MDA has been nothing but grateful for the support of Jiffy Lube when it came to this project. According to MDA Executive Vice President Karen Lewis Alexander, they are very grateful for the support that they received from their partners, including Jiffy Lube. Alexander further stated that with this kind of support system, they are confident that they can find better treatment for MD and other muscle-debilitating diseases. In fact, new drugs have already been approved by the FDA. These drugs were said to be for the treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and spinal muscular atrophy.

Final Thoughts

With such a fruitful partnership, the research for better treatment opportunities in the neuromuscular illness department can progress even further. With new medication and new treatment methods having stemmed out from this amazing partnership, medical science may be a step closer to finding an actual cure for the disease. Of course, it is definitely still a very long way before we can actually reach there, but with institutions like these two, it is no wonder as to why more and more treatment methods have been discovered. The efforts of these two big institutions are definitely recognized by the public and more importantly, by the muscular dystrophy patients themselves. Hopefully, in the near future, the MDA is able to find an actual cure for the disease in order to lessen the occurrences and numbers of patients that have this deadly disease.