Actor Clark Middleton (NBC’s The Blacklist and Hulu’s The Path) has spent a lifetime defying the limits of arthritis. Diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at an early age of 4, he quickly learned the importance of being independent, eventually seeking solace in theater and acting after multiple joint replacement surgeries. Now he wants to let your viewers know how they can “Get a Grip on Arthritis!
Because arthritis is typically invisible, complicated, and often misunderstood, juvenile arthritis doesn’t get the same kind of attention other pediatric illnesses do. But, did you know that 300,000 American kids have the disease? Despite this growing epidemic, a recent Harris Poll Survey commissioned by the Arthritis Foundation found that only seven percent of Americans know that arthritis is the No. 1 cause of long-term disability in the U.S.
