A YOUTUBE video maker is using his online following to help raise money for Parkinson’s research – after being inspired by his father’s experience with the disease.

Teenager Myles Wheeler, from Southend, has more than 37,000 subscribers to his page on the website where he regularly posts humorous videos.

He has been inspired to start educating his largely teenage fanbase after watching his dad Alan live with the condition for six years.

Myles, 18, is taking part in a worldwide project among users of the video sharing website, to raise money for different charities of their choice.

He said: “Parkinson’s UK is a charity close to my heart. They were there for Dad and I when he was first diagnosed.

“The feedback has been quite positive so far, most of my audience are quite young and I think it was important to show them something they probably hadn’t heard about before.”

His dad Alan, 54, an optician, appears in the video and explains that some tasks are harder than before, and he has lost his sense of smell and finds it hard to control the volume of his voice, but is still able to work despite the condition.

Myles said: “He was really happy to be involved in it. He doesn’t come across as like a tragic figure and that’s what I wanted to show. He’s quite a cool guy.

“He’s inspired by Michael J Fox who always comes across as a very strong figure. He just wanted to show he’s a normal person and how it affects you.”

Steve Ford, chief executive of Parkinson’s UK, said: “Myles is helping us to raise awareness of the condition to a younger audience and we applaud him for his work. I’d encourage everybody to spend five minutes watching Myles’s entertaining online video to learn more about Parkinson’s.”

For more information on Parkinson’s, visit: www.parkinsons.org.uk or call the confidential helpline on 0808 800 0303.

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