16 people died of ALS in a tiny Alpine village. Was a mushroom to blame?

About 30,000 Americans live with ALS, or Lou Gherig's disease — a fatal degenerative neurological illness that gradually paralyzes every muscle.

Recent research shows that only 5% to 10% of patients have a family member diagnosed with the disease, and there are only a handful of known genetic mutations. So, what's causing the other 90% of cases?

Atlantic writer Shayla Love's recent piece "An Impossible Disease Outbreak in the Alps" investigates what one doctor called an "impossible" cluster of cases in the tiny village of Montchavin, where 16 people, all unrelated with no known mutations, were diagnosed and died of ALS. The article delves into the role of environmental factors in ALS and focuses in on the likely cause in Montchavin — a mushroom. Love joins Here & Now to talk about her reporting.