Jessica: 7 years old. 222 kilo.

[CFLarsen]

Snipped from the article:
==================================================================
A daily menu consisting of e.g. 15 burges with fried, several kilos of chocolate and 5 liters of cola has resulted in her weigth exploding. Breakfast consists of white bread, chips and a couple of liters of cola. She consumes 10,000 calories a day - the recommended energy consumption for an average adult woman is 2,400 calories!

According to an American TV station, she weighed "only" 110 kilos a year ago.

The mother's reaction to the doctors: She is hungry.

Jessicas bones are damaged by the huge weight, and running is out of the question for the girl, who mostly needs to crawl across the floor to get anywhere. For the benefit of the TV-crew she can do a few seconds of dancing, but then the girl is exhausted.
==================================================================

Why isn't this kid immediately removed from her mother?

 

[Ian Osborne]

What's really scary is watching the video without being able to understand Danish. What I heard was, "Jepgh eprhn peqrgh burger, aene eroihgjh aweiufhbg Coca Cola, etihj storhg erkjlery pizza." It seems our cultures are united by junk food.

 

[ChristineR]

I can't read the article, but when someone gets that overweight he or she usually has some sort of disorder which in does fact makes the person hungry all the time. Really hungry. As in screaming and crying for more food. These children will start eating paper and leaves if you leave them alone without real food.

There are programs to help these children learn to cope with the disorders, but even they have trouble meeting their modest goals of keeping the children functionally overweight.

If the child was removed from her parents and put with untrained foster parents the situation might become worse.

A better question might be why she hasn't been able to get decent medical help.

 

[jsiv]

I'm impressed that all that adds up to only 10,000 calories. A single small Big Mac meal here will get you 840 calories (53% RDA for a child), as well as 50% of the RDA of proteins, 60% of fat, 49% of carbohydrates, 107% of salt, 67% of saturated fats, 47% of sugar, and 29% of fiber. A large meal? Double it.

The world is full of parents that can't control their children.

The solution? Let's ban fast food!

 

[Tanja]

In the UK media there was recently a case where the Social Services considered taking into care an eight year old boy who weighed 89 kg. Link to the BBC article here. If I recall correctly, they decided he could stay with his mother, but I hope they included some sort of action plan...scary.

So that was a 89kg eight year old. 222 kg seven year old is truly scary.

 

[Travis]

This plays off the thread I just started!

I'd say the problem is probably more profound than is let on here. My parents were lax with me as a kid. Letting me pretty much eat what I wanted when I wanted. I never consumed so much as to grow to these proportions. I never desired to. Neither did my siblings.

If this girl feels so compelled to eat so much there is a deeper problem. If they removed her and put her someplace that regulates her diet, it would only work for so long. Sooner or later she'd become an independent person and would likely "revert" to this again. This is not to speak of the trauma of being torn from her parents.

Simply removing her, especially if there is no other sign of misconduct on the part of parents, is a knee jerk reaction likely to have more detrimental impacts than positive. Who's more likely to convince her to eat less, her parents or some stranger?

 

[CFLarsen]

What's really scary is watching the video without being able to understand Danish. What I heard was, "Jepgh eprhn peqrgh burger, aene eroihgjh aweiufhbg Coca Cola, etihj storhg erkjlery pizza." It seems our cultures are united by junk food.

The video is in German.

Even so, this is a girl from Chicago. She's American.

I can't read the article, but when someone gets that overweight he or she usually has some sort of disorder which in does fact makes the person hungry all the time. Really hungry. As in screaming and crying for more food. These children will start eating paper and leaves if you leave them alone without real food.

There are programs to help these children learn to cope with the disorders, but even they have trouble meeting their modest goals of keeping the children functionally overweight.

If the child was removed from her parents and put with untrained foster parents the situation might become worse.

A better question might be why she hasn't been able to get decent medical help.

It's not a question of being able to get decent medical help. The mother simply keeps overfeeding the child.

The world is full of parents that can't control their children.

The solution? Let's ban fast food!

This plays off the thread I just started!

I'd say the problem is probably more profound than is let on here. My parents were lax with me as a kid. Letting me pretty much eat what I wanted when I wanted. I never consumed so much as to grow to these proportions. I never desired to. Neither did my siblings.

If this girl feels so compelled to eat so much there is a deeper problem. If they removed her and put her someplace that regulates her diet, it would only work for so long. Sooner or later she'd become an independent person and would likely "revert" to this again. This is not to speak of the trauma of being torn from her parents.

Simply removing her, especially if there is no other sign of misconduct on the part of parents, is a knee jerk reaction likely to have more detrimental impacts than positive. Who's more likely to convince her to eat less, her parents or some stranger?

According to the doctors, the girl will die within a year, if her eating habits don't change now. The mother won't change them.

What to do? Let the girl die?

 

[ChristineR]

So tell me Claus, if you told your child "No more food until lunch" and came back and she was eating dry oatmeal out of the cupboard, what would you do?

And if you put locks on the cupboards and you came back and she was eating toothpaste out of the tube, what would you do?

And if you locked up the toothpaste and you came back and she had bruised herself trying to break down the cupboards with her bare hands, what would you do?

And if you got extra-strength cupboards and you came back and the girl was eating a couch cushion, what would you do?

These are not silly stories. These are actual things that these children have done. If they are taken from their parents and put into foster care they will continue to do them, and there's a good chance that the foster parents will end up dealing with it the same way the parents did--letting the child stuff herself.

I can't judge what's going on in this child's life by a video and an article I can't read.

 

[ImaginalDisc]

So tell me Claus, if you told your child "No more food until lunch" and came back and she was eating dry oatmeal out of the cupboard, what would you do?

And if you put locks on the cupboards and you came back and she was eating toothpaste out of the tube, what would you do?

And if you locked up the toothpaste and you came back and she had bruised herself trying to break down the cupboards with her bare hands, what would you do?

And if you got extra-strength cupboards and you came back and the girl was eating a couch cushion, what would you do?

These are not silly stories. These are actual things that these children have done. If they are taken from their parents and put into foster care they will continue to do them, and there's a good chance that the foster parents will end up dealing with it the same way the parents did--letting the child stuff herself.

I can't judge what's going on in this child's life by a video and an article I can't read.

I'm sorry, what in the article has lead you to believe that this child has such a severe disorder? I can't read it either, but no one who can has mentioned any medical condition leading to such an appetite.

 

[Skibum]

what would you do?

I sure as hell wouldn't feed her a daily menu consisting of 15 burgers with fries, several kilos of chocolate and 5 liters of cola.

 

[Darth Rotor]

According to the doctors, the girl will die within a year, if her eating habits don't change now. The mother won't change them.

What to do? Let the girl die?

This is an interesting counterpoint to the recent thread about the dead child of the two "vegans" whose child starved.

DR

 

[CFLarsen]

So tell me Claus, if you told your child "No more food until lunch" and came back and she was eating dry oatmeal out of the cupboard, what would you do?

And if you put locks on the cupboards and you came back and she was eating toothpaste out of the tube, what would you do?

And if you locked up the toothpaste and you came back and she had bruised herself trying to break down the cupboards with her bare hands, what would you do?

And if you got extra-strength cupboards and you came back and the girl was eating a couch cushion, what would you do?

These are not silly stories. These are actual things that these children have done. If they are taken from their parents and put into foster care they will continue to do them, and there's a good chance that the foster parents will end up dealing with it the same way the parents did--letting the child stuff herself.

"These" children? How do you this child is like what you described above?

She has been to doctors. Nowhere in the story - which you can also read here - does it say anything about eating disorders or anything else than the mother gives the child what it wants.

If a child has eating disorders like the one you describe, would you feed it burgers, chips, chocolate and cola?

I can't judge what's going on in this child's life by a video and an article I can't read.

You just did.

 

[This Guy]

222 kilogram = 489.426 222 05 pound?

She weights 222 kilograms, right?

That's 489 pounds? That's what I come up with via - http://www.onlineconversion.com/weight_all.htm

Jumping jesus on a pogo stick!!!

She's on her way to being one of those people they have to cut the doorways wider to take to the hospital when he heart finally gives up from the strain.

Can't read the article, or understand the audio in the video. But I can't help but think the parent(s) need smacking around a bit. It would likely be cheaper to get her the medical/emotional/mental help she needs than to keep buying all that food.

ETA: Thanks for the english link! OK, no doubt, the mother needs a good a$$ stomping, and told to take care of her child, or it will be put somewhere that it will be cared for. She's killing her child, and if she can't be made to understand that, she doesn't deserve to have one.

 

[Ian Osborne]

The video is in German.

German, Danish - it's all Greek to me!

Even so, this is a girl from Chicago. She's American.

Yes, I caught that at the start of the video. Wherever she is, though, it's depressing that the only words I could understand in that video were the names of junk food.

 

[Ian Osborne]

I sure as hell wouldn't feed her a daily menu consisting of 15 burgers with fries, several kilos of chocolate and 5 liters of cola.

Quite. If she must eat like that, why not hand her lettuces and cellery? She could still eat constantly pending medical treatment for her condition, but she wouldn't end up looking like the Mitchelin Man.

 

[jsiv]

It's not a question of being able to get decent medical help. The mother simply keeps overfeeding the child.

According to the doctors, the girl will die within a year, if her eating habits don't change now. The mother won't change them.

What to do? Let the girl die?

It's easy to sit here and say that she "simply keeps overfeeding the child" when you're not there and have to deal with her "suffering" and begging for food. The mother clearly does not know how to deal with the situation, and needs professional help making it right. This is where child services should step in and force the child to go through the required treatments, ideally together with her mother (but not the two of them on their own) so they can both learn and for emotional support.

 

[tkingdoll]

Quite. If she must eat like that, why not hand her lettuces and cellery? She could still eat constantly pending medical treatment for her condition, but she wouldn't end up looking like the Mitchelin Man.

That's exactly right. The mother's justification for feeding her constantly is "she's hungry". How is that a justification for feeding her constantly on fried food? Something isn't right.

She can't have it both ways. Either her child is so hungry she'll eat *anything* (and therefore needs to be kept constantly supplied with real food to stop her eating paper), or she's fussy and will only eat burgers etc. "She's hungry" doesn't justify either.

The child may well have a medical condition. Or, the mother may have a psychological problem and has overfed her child to the point of addiction and dependency.

It's easy to sit here and say that she "simply keeps overfeeding the child" when you're not there and have to deal with her "suffering" and begging for food. The mother clearly does not know how to deal with the situation, and needs professional help making it right. This is where child services should step in and force the child to go through the required treatments, ideally together with her mother (but not the two of them on their own) so they can both learn and for emotional support.

jsiv, that's quite right. If the child was a heroin addict, would anyone suggest the mother should take her child through cold turkey without the necessary support? It's hardly easy to deprive your child of food. "I'm hungry" is one of the most heartbreaking sentences a child can utter. I think the mother needs education and help here.

 

[Tailgater]

So tell me Claus, if you told your child "No more food until lunch" and came back and she was eating dry oatmeal out of the cupboard, what would you do?

I would be relieved she wasn't downing 15 burgers w/fries.

And if you put locks on the cupboards and you came back and she was eating toothpaste out of the tube, what would you do?

And if you locked up the toothpaste and you came back and she had bruised herself trying to break down the cupboards with her bare hands, what would you do?

I would put things out of reach like I do with my children now. I doubt she can climb.

And if you got extra-strength cupboards and you came back and the girl was eating a couch cushion, what would you do?

Give her some healthy food before it gets to this. Space out the times she eats without letting her eat too much in one sitting. (there are plenty of no-to-low-fat foods she can munch on). I give my kids some fruit in jello for snacks.

These are not silly stories. These are actual things that these children have done. If they are taken from their parents and put into foster care they will continue to do them, and there's a good chance that the foster parents will end up dealing with it the same way the parents did--letting the child stuff herself.

I can't judge what's going on in this child's life by a video and an article I can't read.

Without reading reading the story, I'll judge. The mother should be bullwhipped everytime she hands that kid a burger, candy, or soda. Reminds of the fat kids mother on Willy Wonka. "Here you go dear, just don't fuss". People need to start taking some responsibility for themselves instead of crying for government welfare to help stop them from being idiots. That b***h of a mother doesn't need a government program not to buy the kid a whole pizza.

 

[Mobyseven]

I'm sorry, but no matter how you spin this story, it is child abuse. A seven year old girl weighing 220 kilograms (that's more than three of me put together) is child abuse.

Part of parenting is tough love. You don't just give in and give your child whatever they want, regardless of whether it's fatty food, a new video game, or an toy wanted on a whim.

Perhaps this child does have a disorder. It doesn't in any way excuse the actions of the mother - one year ago the mother had a 110 kilogram six year old on her hands, and yet for that year the mother has kept on feeding her child not only constantly, but feeding her fatty foods, burgers, and soft drinks absolutely packed with sugar.

To me that is one of the more important things to note: Even if you accept for some reason that it's okay for her to constantly feed her child, even if for some strange reason you accept that the constant meals of unhealthy food are alright, how on earth do you justify the soft drink? If your child is thirsty, it is easier, cheaper, and far healthier to just give them a drink of water. Perhaps a glass of milk. But soft drink?

Maybe I am being too harsh here, but I honesty cannot see how this is not a form of child abuse. It isn't as though the girl gained a few dress sizes overnight, this is a long term issue and the mother (and father, mind you) should have done something about this long before it got this severe.

The girl doesn't have long to live, and unless the parents can enact a program for their daughter soon, and stick by it, I would see no problem having this child removed from her parents and placed in the care of people who can manage her - I would go so far as to say that it is the right thing to do. Sure, it would be damaging to the family and would distress the girl and her parents, but unless drastic measures are taken soon, that girl is going to die.

Either the parents prove that they are willing and able to enforce those drastic measures now, or they should have their child taken away.

 

[casebro]

I've watched the TV shows on the Discovery channel- the ones about the "Half Ton Man" and such. Hugely obese, they weigh 500 to 1,000 pounds. Typical story is that they have been bed ridden for the last several years AND HAVE GAINED HUNDREDS OF POUNDS in the meantime. Somebody has been bringing them food in bed. Like, 10,000 calories per day. And somebody has been paying for their food, they haven't held a job in the meantime. I recall one person eating $10,000 in chocolates in a year. Seems to me there ought to be a crime here- "Abuse of the Obese"? Make it a felony, it is a matter of costng someone their life, in one way or another.