Dr Oz Childhood Obesity: A Form of Child Abuse?

Dr Oz: Child Obesity

Dr Oz did a show on a controversial topic: is Child Obesity a form of Child Abuse?  Are parents to blame for having obese kids or are they simply a victim of their genetics?  If you knew a child was being abused, it is quite likely that you would say something or take action, right?  Doctor Oz debated whether or not Child Obesity, an epidemic of our time, is child abuse or not.  1/3 of the kids in America are overweight or obese, and 80% of obese teens will eventually turn into obese adults.  All around the country, Dr Oz said that Obese Children are being pulled from their homes and being placed in foster care.

Dr Oz: Obese Children

Dr Oz spoke with several Obese Children and their parents.  Victoria said that she does not have a lot of friends and that she gets made fun of a lot for being overweight.  One kid told her on the way home from school that “the bakery is that way fat a**.”  The average 12 year old girl should weigh 117 pounds, but she weighs considerably more.  Her mother, Patricia, said that she is as heavy as she is due to genetics but that it does not help that she overeats.  Victoria even acknowledged that she eats when she is not hungry and she blames herself for being fat.

Doctor Oz also spoke with Javier, who said that kids tease him about his weight and call him fatty.  He seemed most upset that he never gets picked for sports.  The average 11 year old boy weighs 103 pounds.  Javier’s mother, Fantei, said that it is hard to say no to him and that she does not want him to experience hunger.  But even Javier admitted that he worried about dying from a heart attack.  Can you imagine an 11-year-old child worrying about that?  Fantei told Dr Oz that her biggest fear is that Javier will die, get Diabetes or have a heart attack.  She also said that she cannot take responsibility because Javier is old enough to make his own choices and to choose both what he eats and how much of it he eats.

Dr Oz: Childhood Obesity

Dr Oz said that what he is most concerned about are the health problems associated with Childhood Obesity.  If a child is obese, the amount of fluid around the brain builds up and impairs their ability to think.  The heart develops problems from high blood pressure, high cholesterol and high blood sugar levels.  Arteries can even get blocked off.  And of course there are the bone problems, like knee and hip pain, caused by the bowing of the bones from having to carry more weight than they can handle.

Dr Corey Hebert said that it is the parents fault.  Children are eating snacks in car seats and in church.  Those are the snacks that are making them obese.  He said that it should be mandated that if you child has an illness brought on by being overweight, then you should be required to take training courses.

Meme Roth, an Anti-Obesity Activist, said that kids are not old enough to make the right decisions.  Their bodies are being damaged and the parents are the ones providing them with their food.  If your child is sick or hurt, the buck has to stop with you because you have to be your child’s advocate.  Meme Roth said that we are not a victim of our genetics, and that argument she thinks is pure bs.  Another mother of an obese child said that they don’t know what to do, and society is not helping.  She said that a school nurse called her one day and asked if she knew that her child was overweight.  She said, jokingly, “oh my gosh, no, when I sent her to school she was fine”… of course parents know!  But knowing what to do about the problem is where issues arise.

Dr Oz: Obese Kids Lose Child Tax Credit

Dr Oz said that in nine states, they mandate that BMI (Body Mass Index) tests get sent home for all kids along with diet and exercise advice.  One idea that was raised was that parents with obese kids should lose their Child Tax Credit.  Dr Corey Hebert said that money and fear motivates people to change, but this will also depress parents which in turn depresses kids.

Dr Alan Greene, author of Feeding Baby Green, said that when kids are taken away from parents for being obese, the court looks at what is going on in their homes.  If parents are engaged and working with tools to change things, then the kids generally are not taken away.  However, when parents are not engaged, their obese kids could be taken away from them.

Doctor Oz said that if you are an eight year old boy, and you are 4’2″ and 142 pounds or more, then your BMI is at least 40 which is morbidly obese and equivalent to an adult being 100 pounds overweight. Catherine Schuller is a lady who was trying to help an obese boy that the state was trying to take away from his mom.  She said that the nurse called the social services instead of calling the mom, so they placed a summons her door.  However, she had moved, so she missed her court date.  Eventually, she found out about it and showed up at court, at which time the mom and sun were separated.  Schuller compared it to being like a Nazi Germany for fat people.

Meme Roth said that many people in Child Services and even in the police forces are overweight, so how can they intervene and fix problems that they cannot fix for themselves?  Dr Corey Hebert also pointed out that if you take a child away from his or her mom and dad, that stresses the child out and increases Cortisol which only leads to weight gain.  Dr Hebert said that the problem is parents do not even know what junk food is anymore.  A big bowl of noodles, fruit snacks, juice, all of these are really junk food.

Javier’s mother said that she does not understand why she should have to suffer and not have m&m’s in the house for herself just because Javier has no self-discipline.  Both Dr Hebert and Meme Roth were highly disturbed by this comment and said you have to live by “do as I do” not “do as I say.”  You must set a good example for your child!