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For over a year, the actress has been battling multiple sclerosis. A disease, which made him gain a lot of weight and shocked many Internet users. Some even suspect an abuse of cosmetic surgery.
Shortly before her 50th birthday, the “Dead to Me” actress revealed she had multiple sclerosis, a chronic autoimmune disease that targets the central nervous system. An affection which transformed him physically but which did not prevent him from responding with humor to certain criticisms.
Faced with criticism, Christina Applegate keeps smiling
Despite illness, Christina Applegate decided to walk the Critics Choice Awards red carpet on January 16 with her daughter Sadie Grace LeNoble.
An appearance that sparked a lot of criticism and comments, as the actress points out.
“I made the unfortunate decision to look at some comments on a People magazine article about me and my kids at the CCA“, she wrote in the caption of a screenshot.
On this one, we can read the inappropriate comment of an individual “Multiple sclerosis didn’t make you look like that, a plastic surgeon did. And you’re a hustler and you’re not (Christina) Applegate. And besides, he’s a bad plastic surgeon.”
An unpleasant message to which the actress wished to react with humor.
“What’s wrong with people? (…) I laughed“, she concluded.
After being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, Christina Applegate had gained a lot of weight – 18 kg in total.
MS often accompanied by weight gain
Patients with multiple sclerosis often have to deal with an increase in weight, especially fat mass. This can be explained by the symptoms of the disease (extreme fatigue, difficulty walking, etc.) leading to a drop in physical activity, and by the treatments, based on steroids.
MS: Three out of four patients are women
It is estimated that 120,000 people in France have multiple sclerosis. This disease strikes young adults, it is most often diagnosed between the ages of 25 and 35. In France, three quarters of patients are women.
It is an autoimmune disease: the defense system (immune system), usually involved in the fight against viruses and bacteria, gets carried away and attacks myelin, the protective sheath of nerve fibers which plays a role important in spreading nerve impulses from the brain to different parts of the body. This leads to motor disorders, tingling, balance disorders, visual or urinary disorders… often transient. In 85% of cases, multiple sclerosis begins with a relapsed form. The course of the disease is extremely unpredictable.
Its management requires multidisciplinary follow-up: an initial assessment carried out by the general practitioner, in conjunction with a neurologist, and a doctor specializing in physical medicine and rehabilitation. Other specialists may be involved: nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, etc.
No treatment cures multiple sclerosis but some exist to improve the daily lives of patients. this disease is the subject of a great deal of research, such as the possible use of Car-T cells or a vaccine approach following the link discovered with the Epstein Barr virus.