Runners asked to support cystic fibrosis ‘Strawfie Challenge'

Why do you run? Many people run to stay fit and avoid health problems. But imagine if poor health was a part of your life from the moment you were born – along with a cocktail of drugs and physiotherapy – and where bouncing or running were as essential to you as the air that you breathe. This is the reality of life for 10,000 people with cystic fibrosis in the UK.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-shortening genetic condition – only half live to celebrate their 40th birthday. It causes the internal organs, especially the lungs and digestive system, to become clogged with thick sticky mucus, resulting in chronic infections and inflammation of the lungs.

Advances in treatments and understanding of the disease have steadily increased the median survival age of people with the disease to 43 years old.

Activities that ‘jolt’ the body help to shift the thick sticky mucus, preventing more damage. It is precisely because running and other physical activities are so much a part of the daily life of many people living with cystic fibrosis, that the organisers of a new selfie campaign to raise awareness about the disease, are appealing to the running community to support the Strawfie Challenge.

The ‘Breathe With Me Strawfie Challenge’ is asking people to try breathing with the reduced lung capacity that many people with cystic fibrosis experience as their disease progresses.

The way to do this is very simple and it will only take a minute to try. Take a narrow drinking straw, seal your lips around it, pinch your nose (or use a noseclip) and try breathing just through the straw for 60 seconds.

If you are part of a running group, could you organise a group Strawfie, like members of the Farnham Runners Run England group, pictured.

WHY DO A STRAWFIE?

The action of breathing through a straw, while pinching your nose, emulates the reduced lung function experienced by people living with cystic fibrosis.

HOW TO TAKE PART

Take a selfie of yourself breathing through a straw (a Strawfie) and post online (Facebook/Twitter/websites/blogs) with a comment about how it made you feel...

Donations*: Text BWCF64 £(amount) to 70070 or visit www.justgiving.com/TWF-breathewithme

Nominate three friends to try the Strawfie Challenge.

In aid of the Cystic Fibrosis Trust.

FIND OUT MORE

Website: www.breathewithme.info 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Breathe-With-Me-Strawfie-Challenge/1518322021726017

Campaign song: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUhOwCNkAlU