Students and faculty are being urged to start walking for a good cause.

In order to raise money and increase risk awareness, the American Diabetes Association and UA will be holding a "kick-off" event at the Koffler building, 1340 E. University Blvd.

The "kick-off" event will showcase medical advice, speakers and food, and will give students and faculty a chance to sign up for a walk-off, to be held Oct. 11, to raise money for diabetes research and education.

"This is not just about getting people to raise money," Mary A. Carter, senior program coordinator for the chemistry department, said. "It is about creating a community awareness."

One in 17 Americans has diabetes and nearly one-third of those with the disease don't know they have it.

"I would bet that everyone knows someone who has diabetes," American Diabetes Association Chairman Leighton H. Rockafellow, who is also heading the walk, said. "That is why we need people to come out and support us."

Diabetes symptoms include rapid weight loss for no apparent reason, increased urination and circulation complications, Carter said. Diabetes is a disease that occurs because the body does not produce or properly use insulin, the hormone needed to convert sugar and starches into energy, which is needed to function, Rockafellow said. Type I diabetes, which usually appears in children, does not stem from diet and exercise habits, but from the body's natural inability to produce insulin. Type II diabetes, on the other hand, is often caused by poor diet and lack of exercise and is now affecting a younger age group.

"It used to be 50- to 60-year-olds that were at risk for type II diabetes," Nadine Gruhn, an assistant staff scientist, said. "Now we have seen kids as young as 10 with type II diabetes."

Those acquiring type II diabetes at a young age are often overweight and very inactive, Rockafellow said. No cause for diabetes has been determined, but researchers have found that diet and exercise habits play a major role, Gruhn said.

"Just because you are a college student, it doesn't mean that you aren't at risk," Gruhn said.

Once a person has diabetes, there is no cure. Research shows that it is key for those with diabetes to keep blood sugar close to normal, which may be maintained through diet and exercise.

"Diabetes won't kill you. It's the complications," Gruhn said. "Exercise can help, so what better than a walk-off?"

This will be the 10th annual diabetes walk-off.

"We are hoping that, with UA involvement, we can make this a very successful walk," Rockafellow said. "In the years past the walk wasn't promoted on campus, but this year we hope to get 300 to 500 UA students and faculty members to join us in our fight."

Representatives will be on the north patio of the Koffler building between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. today. There will be diabetes experts available to administer risk tolerance tests. Wild Oats will also be on site to hand out free healthy snacks. The walk-off will be held at the Reid Park Soccer Field, at East 22nd Street and Randolph Way.

"There is no excuse not to come out," Carter said. "If you can't walk, then you can donate money."