Should Morbid Childhood Obesity Be Considered Child Abuse?

[n2doc]

By Philip Yam | Jul 13, 2011 06:30 PM

ow that the battle against the bulge in the U.S. has reached the grade school level, plenty of efforts have begun to fight childhood obesity and its dangers. They range from educational efforts, such as First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campaign, to new pediatric surgical programs nationwide. Now two researchers float a legal approach: make severe obesity a crime.

Lindsey Murtagh of the Harvard School of Public Health and David S. Ludwig of the Children's Hospital in Boston present their case in the July 13 issue of JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association. Their commentary, "State Intervention in Life-Threatening Childhood Obesity," makes the point that kids with a body-mass index in the 99th percentile face serious health threats:

Obesity of this magnitude can cause immediate and potentially irreversible consequences, most notably type 2 diabetes. This complication, reflecting years of progressive metabolic deterioration, carries a dire prognosis. In addition to hyperglycemia, youth with type 2 diabetes typically have severe insulin resistance, low diet quality, sedentary lifestyle, and poor adherence to medical treatment.


Allowing your kids to develop such a condition, which leads to severe cardiovascular damage on all levels and a shortened life, could be seen as bad parenting. Although the authors also point out the existence of other "obesigenic" factors, such as the marketing of unhealthy foods, the primary responsibility falls on the parents. And as such, existing laws could be applied

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http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=should-morbid-childhood-obesity-be-2011-07-13

[derby378]

1. Not abuse, but neglect

Very distinct difference. And we must take care to limit the application of such a law.

[rhett o rick]

2. The problem is how do you punish the parents? Put them in prison? nm

[Vanje]

3. No!

Sometimes families need help, not castigation.
Lets help people.

[Avalux]

4. Morbidly Obese.

Morbid obesity is fatal; it's not merely being fat. I understand the premise of this article and the reasoning behind it. There must be an intervention of some sort for children who are facing this, and are powerless to change their situation. Understand that their parents are not being parents; they can't recognize what's happening to their children.

[Scuba]

5. Where does a 16 lb newborn fit in your equation?

[spinbaby]

6. Could have been prevented

A 16-pound newborn is the result of gestational diabetes.

[Texasgal]

7. Not true.

Not all gestational diabetes is caused by health neglect.

[spinbaby]

15. But it can be treated

Untreated diabetes is the problem.

[Texasgal]

18. Still untrue.

You can manage it, but with some it does not go away until after birth.

[Scuba]

8. Is that correct? I didn't read beyond the headlines....

...preventive medicine is the cheapest form, so if this was a preventable problem it's a shame nothing was done to prevent it.


If, on the other hand, it's just one great big kid...

[gkhouston]

10. I know a woman whose kids were all 12 and 13 pounders. No GD. n/t

[spinbaby]

16. My youngest was 10 lb 12 oz

He hit 20 pounds by 3 months. Just a big boy.

But there's a difference between the upper limits of normal birthweight and overweight caused by diabetes. No way is 16 lb normal.

[Avalux]

20. It doesn't. Completly different circumstances altogether. n/t

[Demeter]

9. Why Don't We Try Single Payer Health Care and a Jobs Policy, First?

When the government is doing its job towards families, then it can point fingers.

[Scuba]

11. Bingo.

[ejpoeta]

19. that would be silly. just blame the parents when they can't get a decent paying job or health

insurance. or maybe they are working two or three jobs and don't have much time to make healthy dinners to eat and may stop at mcdonalds drive thru too often because they are too tired to make dinner. just bash the parents. it's easier. me, i friggin hate mcdonalds. yech. i forgot and let the kids get a fruit smoothie thing and yech it was awful!!

[Chemisse]

12. Why does one child stay slim while its sibling becomes obese?

There is more in action here than the environment. Until scientists can answer that question - and many others, piling blame on the parents is futile.

[bbgrunt]

14. very sane and logical comment!

[Avalux]

17. Please understand the definition of morbid obesity:

morbid obesity: the condition of weighing two or more times the ideal weight; so called because it is associated with many serious and life-threatening disorders.

If all medical diseases are ruled out as a cause of morbid obesity in a child, it's the parents fault. Whether what they are doing is abuse or neglect....the children are headed for early graves and an intervention is needed. Children are helpless and cannot decide for themselves.

[PassingFair]

23. Yep, I had one that wouldn't come to the table, and one that wouldn't leave it.

They are both beautiful young ladies, and their
weight fluctuates, and they are both beautiful
ALL THE TIME.

[gkhouston]

13. Don't underestimate the crap eating choices a lot of poor people have, too.

My kid's school was selected for a survey this past year about eating habits. One of the questions that blew my mind was "How many days a week do you serve your child fruit?"

:wtf: My kid eats fresh fruit every day, at least twice. No questions were asked about vegetables at all!

[Luminous Animal]

21. Many poor people face a lot of obstacles, scant luxury of time, food deserts,

fresh food that is too expensive to fill up a growing child... There is a scene in the movie "Food, Inc" that is heartbreaking. It features a poor working family of four. They talk about the expense of fresh food vs the cheapness of fast food. They are shopping in a grocery store and the two girls weigh a single pear and work out that it would cost $4. It is a pear that they would love to eat but they know their parents cannot afford it.

[ejpoeta]

25. are you kidding. i have been told many a time how i should be able to afford to buy fruits and

vegetables if i just made the decision to. I do btw. i buy apples, bananas, lettuce and tomatoes. frozen broccoli, corn (which i guess is bad now) potatoes (which are bad now). The kids are always asking for kiwi and other things i wish I could get. Sometimes I will let them get one of something. It's like a treat. I have made a concerted effort.... whole wheat pasta is $1.00 when I could buy the regular stuff for .60 for the same amount. So I spend .40 a box more for whole wheat pasta. Whole wheat bread.... costs more....

I have been told I have high blood pressure. And if I go back and it is still high I will have to take blood pressure medication. I was given a dash plan thing. Lots of fruits and veggies. Lots of things that I am not sure I can afford to have in my diet. Because even if I get them, I make sure the kids get them first. Fruits, veggies.... dairy.... whatever it is.... the kids get it first.

[Rozlee]

27. Ignorance of good nutrition is another big problem.

My daughter-in-law and my grandson moved back to West Virginia to live with her mother after my *&%$#* son left her for some skank. It's where she' originally from. They live in a very poverty stricken area and she was raised eating sausage in thick gravy, fried foods, and baked goods galore. My little grandson is 6 years old and weighs 70 pounds. Even though he's the tallest in his class, you can still see that he's fat. It breaks my heart. My daughter-in-law works long hours and when she's gone, his other grandma, great-grandma and aunt feed him artery-clogging fare. My daughter-in-law tells them not to, but they insist that it's what they were all raised eating, and look how healthy they all are (they're all diabetics). My poor little man.

[w8liftinglady]

22. I had to make sure you weren't in DISD.

people with 20 freaking bucks to spend on food are gonna get what is filling.
unortunately,that leaves a lot of healthy items out.

removing these children from home will not serve the child well.better ti=o have a way for the parent to resource

[gkhouston]

30. I agree.

I'm in HISD. So many kids come from low-income homes that breakfast is free for everyone.

[loyalsister]

24. Have you ever seen or been to a food bank?

Non perishable foods.... macaroni and cheese in a box is a popular item. Maybe some canned fruits and veggies, but you certainly won't find fresh fruit that isn't bathed in corn syrup. You will find all sorts of junk food.

[ejpoeta]

26. When I go shopping if I buy canned fruits I try to find it without the syrup.

What fun that can be. Costs extra to get the stuff without the syrup. Unless it's on sale maybe. The store brands I think are all in syrup. Lucky if you can get it with light syrup. Yech!! I always want to try for some juice.

[gkhouston]

29. Yep. Same for veggies, if you can't get them fresh or frozen.

The cheap brands are always full of salt and fat.

[gkhouston]

28. Yes, I have, and yes, the available food is rarely healthful. n/t

[sense]

31. It's abuse and neglect perpetrated

by those who're supposed to be protecting us like the fda, ama, aha, ada. If they'd quit lying to protect corporate interests so many things that have been approved that are harmful would not have been. We've been lied to about vaccines that have animal dna in them, diets that are not healthy, drugs that are ineffective yet very harmful.

Greed. It's a bad thing.