LANCASTER – Lancaster High School’s Friday Night Live Club is hosting a walk this weekend to raise awareness and money for the fight against eating disorders.
The inaugural Lancaster NEDA (National Eating Disorders Assoc.) Walk kicks off at 9 a.m., April 19 on the Lancaster High School track, located at 44701 32nd Street West, Lancaster.
The event will begin with a brief warm up, followed by a two-mile walk around the track. The event will also feature games, beverages, snacks and raffle prizes donated by businesses in the community, according to coordinator Sue Strom.
“The reason that we’re doing this is because we want to bring more awareness and education to the fact that [eating disorders] are becoming much more prevalent,” Strom said, adding that male athletes are increasingly at risk. “People are dying and we want to stop it,” Strom continued.
According to the National Eating Disorders Association, 20 million women and 10 million men suffer from a clinically significant eating disorder at some time in their life, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, or an eating disorder not otherwise specified.
Eating disorders are becoming rampant in the Antelope Valley, Strom added.
“We took a survey and we found that about 85 percent of the people around us have symptoms of eating disorders, and they just go undetected,” Strom said. “We want to educate them to this.”
The group has set a fundraising goal of $2,000, which will go to the National Eating Disorders Association to support individuals and families affected by eating disorders, Strom said.
Supporters can make an online donation to the Lancaster NEDA walk here. Walk organizers have also created a Facebook page for the event here.
“Once we posted the event page on Facebook, we had people who are suffering from eating disorders and who are recovering from eating disorders contact us and say they wanted to be a part of this,” Strom said. “We just want people to come out, have a good time, help us raise money, and get some education on the topic.”
To learn more about eating disorders, visit www.nationaleatingdisorders.org.
Eric says
There are obvious eating disorders. But to say 85% of people suffer from one is just a flat out lie.