Oscar-winner Gwyneth Paltrow took a bucket full of ice water to the face on Wednesday when she became a part of the the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge currently sweeping across the Internet. She shared video of the dousing on her Instagram page.

The 41-year-old actress, standing in her Brentwood home's backyard, put her lithe frame on full display in a tasteful bikini. Thinking ahead, Paltrow wore no make-up for the event, showing off her natural good looks. But before the waterworks began, she was quick to challenge a few of her Hollywood A-Listers to follow in her footsteps, including her estranged husband.

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"Hi, I'm going to alsa.org to donate money for ALS," she says, addressing the camera, "but in the meantime I'll do this and nominate Chris Martin, Cameron Diaz and Stella McCartney."

Whereupon a friend standing off-frame let her have it.

Yelping, Paltrow is seen clenching down for a few seconds before dashing off.

Actually and awareness and fundraising campaign for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease), the viral sensation has been backed by the ALS Association and involves a challenger getting a bucket of ice-cold water dumped over his or her head within 24 hours of their being nominated, along with a $10 donation. Paltrow was nominated on three fronts by domestic doyenne Martha Stewart, her trainer Tracy Anderson, and chef Jose Andres.

Paltrow then duly donated $10.

Paltrow joins Robert Downey Jr., Justin Bieber, Selena Gomez, and Rita Ora in the craze, which has raised an impressive $31.5 million dollars for ALS research. Far from being restricted to Hollywood, the challenge has reached far and wide: Pennsylvania lawmaker Brian Sims, Bill Gates of Microsoft, and South Carolina governor Nikki Haley have all taken part. NBA phenom Yao Ming pledged to take the Ice Bucket Challenge on August 23. 

TagsGwyneth Paltrow, ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, Yao Ming, als, lou gehrig's disease