In support of Eating Disorder Awareness Week 2006, Feb. 5 to 11, the Sudbury Regional Hospital's eating disorders program is holding a poster contest for post secondary school students in northeastern Ontario.
Students are encouraged to create a poster that best captures this year?s theme, ?Be Comfortable in Your Genes ? Feel at ease with your natural size." The prize-winning poster will be used to promote the 2007 Eating Disorders Week in Northeastern Ontario.
?The message is that there is no ideal weight or shape, because not everybody has the same body type. For many, trying to reach that ideal is impossible even by putting their health at risk,? said dietitian Jeannette Sylvestre in a press release.
?Our society tends to equate thin with healthy, but our natural, healthy weight is determined by our genes, making it as individual a thing as our height and our facial features."
"It?s not our bodies that need changing, it?s our attitude,? she said.
According to Sudbury Regional Hospital, eating disorders remain the third most chronic condition in adolescent females, with 27 percent of girls in Ontario between 12 and 18-years-old engaging in problematic food and weight control behavior.
?We need to promote understanding that eating disorders are not just about eating or not eating. Disordered eating often acts like a coping mechanism that helps individuals to deal with other underlying life stressors and problems,? said Marlene Boettcher, a registered nurse with the hospital.
"We also know that genetics can influence whether or not a person will develop an eating disorder, so if a family member suffers from this condition, it is even more important to watch for environmental triggers.?
Deadline for poster contest submissions is April 28, 2006. Posters can be submitted to the HRSRH ? Regional Eating Disorders Program, 41 Ramsey Lake Rd., Sudbury, Ontario, P3E 5J1.
For more contest information or information on the program, phone 523-4988 or 1-866-244-4344.
