Why is Lou Gehrig’s disease named after him?

Henry Louis Gehrig was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees.

Lou Gehrig was renowned for his prowess as a hitter and for his durability, which earned him his nickname “The Iron Horse”.

Lou Gehrig was an All-Star seven consecutive times, a Triple Crown winner once, an American League (AL) Most Valuable Player twice, and a member of six World Series champion teams.

Lou Gehrig was the first MLB player to have his uniform number (4) retired by a team.

Lou Gehrig set the record for most consecutive games played (2,130), a record that stood for 56 years and was long considered unbreakable until surpassed by Cal Ripken Jr., in 1995.

However, Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak ended on May 2, 1939, when he voluntarily took himself out of the lineup, stunning both players and fans, after his performance on the field became hampered by an undiagnosed ailment subsequently confirmed to be amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, an incurable neuromuscular illness; which is now commonly referred to in North America as “Lou Gehrig’s disease.”

Why is Lou Gehrig’s disease named after him?

The official name for Lou Gehrig’s disease is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Lou Gehrig was by far the most famous person of his time to develop the disease, so it explains why the disease was renamed after him following his death in 1941.

Lou Gehrig’s disease damages the motor neurons in an individual’s brain and spinal cord.