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(KSL News) -- Imagine having to lock your fridge and pantry to keep your two-year-old from over eating. Thats what parents have to do whose children have Prader-Willi syndrome.
To raise awareness for the disorder the Utah Prader-Willi Association sponsored a walk at Sugarhouse Park today.
Lisa Thornton, Pres., Utah Prader-Willi Assoc.: "These kids right now cannot live independently. They have to have supervision all the time or they will eat themselves to death literally "
The genetic disorder affects the part of the brain causing a chronic feeling of hunger, leading to obesity and other developmental problems.
Lisa Thornton, Pres., Utah Prader-Willi Assoc.: "obviously if your child is eating uncontrollably there probably something wrong and you should go them checked and get the help they need."
As many as 80% of the babies who have the syndrome in the U.S. go undiagnosed because doctors don't know the symptoms or how to test for it.
