• An impairment is a disability under the ADA if it substantially limits, or has previously substantially limited, one or more of a person’s major life activities.
• Major life activities also refer to the operation of a major bodily function.

For an impairment to be a disability under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), it must substantially limit, or have previously substantially limited, one or more of a person’s major life activities. The law and regulations include a list of examples of major life activities that include, but are not limited to:

• Caring for oneself
• Performing manual tasks
• Walking
• Seeing
• Hearing
• Eating
• Speaking
• Breathing
• Sleeping
• Learning
• Working
• Sitting
• Standing
• Bending
• Lifting
• Reaching
• Reading
• Thinking
• Concentrating
• Communicating
• Interacting with others

Major life activities also include the operation of a major bodily function, such as normal cell growth, and the functions of the following systems:

• Immune
• Digestive
• Bowel
• Bladder
• Neurological
• Brain
• Respiratory
• Circulatory
• Endocrine
• Reproductive
• Special sense organs and skin
• Genitourinary
• Cardiovascular
• Hemic
• Lymphatic
• Musculoskeletal

The operation of a major bodily function includes the operation of an individual organ within a body system. Functions of the brain, for example, are part of the neurological system and may affect other body systems as well. Because impairments, by definition, affect the functioning of body systems, it should not be difficult to identify which impairments will generally affect major bodily functions. For example:

• Cancer affects an individual’s normal cell growth;
• Diabetes affects the operation of the pancreas and the function of the endocrine system; and
• HIV infection affects the immune system.

Impairments that are episodic or in remission are disabilities if they would substantially limit a major life activity when active. This includes conditions such as migraines, which can be episodic, or cancers, which can go into remission.