Should parents lose custody of super obese kids?

But honestly, it's SO scary for kids out there now. Everyday we're confronted with stories (like the most recent in NY) of kids that go missing. I'd be so afraid to let them out of my sight.

Ahhhhhhh hell, that's just so much B.S. Not sayin' stuff like that doesn't happen but hell, ya'll watch this crap on the news and then convince yourselves that there is a boogy man lurking on every street corner. That wasn't true 20 years ago, it ain't true now and it won't be true 20 years from now. Acknowledging your personal special circumstances what parents OUGHT to be doing is throwing the kids a football...or some lumber to build a tree house with and then give 'em a swift kick out the door with instructions not to come back until the street lights come on. SOME parents (no doubt no one on THIS forum) are turning these kids into nothing more than video-game-playing-I-can't-play-unless-it's-an-organized-event-cheese-pizza-eating-lard-assed-cheese-weenies.

Case in point...about the same time my kids were going off college, I used to wake up in the morning and while drinking my morning coffee could not help but to observe the bus stop at the end of my street... Always 6, maybe 8 kids waiting for the bus and an equal number of parents standing around to make sure everyone played "fair" and took turns getting on the bus first. Buncha parental morons is what they were...Survival of the fittest, let the kids choose their own pecking order...That's how the real world works, at least out here in Garage Logic.

I'll grant you, giving 'em a swift kick out the door to go play "Kick the Can" after dark is gonna end up pissing off a lot of "Get Off My Grass" curmudgeons like me but hey I can handle it if it will toughen these kids up and get 'em up and off their video-game-playing asses to get a little unsupervised character building exercise and play time. Do that and ya'll wouldn't need to be having this discussion about taking people's kids away...I'd bet on it.
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v......Ehhhhhhh sorry about that, I didn't realize I was talking in my "outside" voice Sorry to interrupt, Ya'll were talking about taking fat kids away from their parents...so carry on.

Well said for a curmudgeon.

Well said for a curmudgeon.

Heh-heh...yeah and I've got a lot more answers to most of life's little problems, all ya'll have to do is ask.

I must say though I'm a little disappointed not to have already received another nomination for Justin's "Quote of the Year"...I was pretty frickin' proud of that "cheese-pizza-eating-lard-assed-cheese-weenie" line.

Well said for a curmudgeon.

Heh-heh...yeah and I've got a lot more answers to most of life's little problems, all ya'll have to do is ask.

I must say though I'm a little disappointed not to have already received another nomination for Justin's "Quote of the Year"...I was pretty frickin' proud of that "cheese-pizza-eating-lard-assed-cheese-weenie" line.

Not a chance. The FY you ADW sealed the competition (& slayyyyyyed me ). Way to go champ.

well said steve p just look at the old willy wonka movies fat kid and the new willy wonka movies fat kid ,the new one is at least twice as big as the old one hell the fat kid in the first movie would be a normal size kid today. maybe its food portion size ( a 12 oz coke and a cheeseburger , small fry was my once a week treat when i was a kid)

Just to clarify my previous comment - I don't support any of this. I was referencing another thread by Steve in a different forum. I have ZERO business with families and their weights, especially factoring in the level of love I see with all of my obese family members. All I feel is cold at the thought of taking children away from their loving parents without batter or molestation.

In short, the very suggestion is wack.

There is no way to know what is going on in someone's family and how they are trying to handle their child's obesity problem. Some people are predisposed to being obese for a multitude of reasons that can't be changed. Further, a person is obese when they are 20% heavier than a "normal" weight for their height. How many people here are 30 lbs overweight based on those standards? Also, I know numerous people who have struggled with their kids (both of normal and above normal weight) sneaking food, trading food with kids at school, etc. Lastly, the fostercare program is less than perfect. The longterm psychological effects of taking someone from their parents and placing them with strangers, during such a sensitive period of their life, can be devastating. I can't even imagine the establishment of permanent eating disorders this would instill in children.

Is it a problem? Yes. Should we punish the children for it? Absolutely not.

[Robin Garr]

In short, the very suggestion is wack. ...

Is it a problem? Yes. Should we punish the children for it? Absolutely not.

That pretty much says it all.

I am 5'7" and weigh 212 lbs currently. Most people that see me may think I am somewhat over weight, but the AMA says I am MORBIDLY OBESE. I think I'm heavy, and am going to the gym to work on it. Regardless, NO ONE, including my trainer, ever thinks I weigh 212 (and more when I first started working out) lbs. Thankfully, my body frame doesn't show it.

Now.....I have three sons. The two 9 year olds come up to my cheeck bones when standing beside me. They both have very wide shoulders, and are in men's shirts (smalls) if I can't find kids xxl's. They wear siz 6 and 6.5 men's shoes. They are going to be BIG men like my uncles and brothers (6'2"+). They both weigh right at 100lbs. They have SOME pudge to them, but not huge double and triple chins or bellies that stick out for miles. Again, according to the AMA, they are overweight, and the dr at the hospital (they both just had normal routine tests done) even brought up they are over the height range for their age (??).

My kids are active in sports. They have a huge yard to play in. We put up a pool this summer. I limit video games and computer time. I DO require them to sit on their butts for 30 mins a day to read a book (gasp!). They have chores which include doing laundry with me and yard work, etc. We are an active family......yet I get told my kids are overweight.

It is not an easy thing to deal with. MY personal doctor told me to stop eating school lunches last year (I teach) when I started my weight loss program. WHY? Because she said they are full of fat and carbs. They are. The school lunches in our county, and many others, are horrible "nuitritional" meals for our kids. There has even been a teacher in Indiana that has a blog about school lunches, complete with pictures and medical test results, as to what they did to her over the year she ate them.

Raising kids is NOT easy in this day and age. No offense to many of you, but it's been over a decade since some of you have raised a child. Today's world is entirely different for kids than it was when I was growing up. I try very hard to raise my kids close to the way I was raised. I can't tell you the last time we had pizza or other food delivered to our home. I can tell you the last time my kids had a "happy meal" because it was last Friday for their birthday as a treat because of the fat involved. I feed my kids pretty well balanced meals with absolute MINIMUM fried food. We have fruit around constantly for dessert and snacks. We go on family walks with the dog. Even with all of that, I still get told my kids are "awfully big".

It isn't cheap feeding them "good" food. I spend, on average, $80 a week on fruits and vegetables. For some people, that's their whole food budget for the week. Unfortunately, in this country, processed foods are MUCH cheaper than buying fresh produce and meats. I noticed last night (cause it was on an end cap) that you can buy *shudder* "TURKEY AND GRAVY" in the little foil pan for the oven or micro for $2.88 for the family size. First off...lck! Second, for a family on a budget it that is much cheaper than buying turkey breasts and baking it or about even with a pound of chicken breasts that then have to be prepared. Ramen noodles are CHEAP....but they are HIGH is calories and sodium. Raviolis...omg....I loved getting those cans for a treat when I was a kid. They have over 500 calories PER CAN, plus all the sodium.

My point is that a child's weight can be affectted by many aspects. Yes, it disturbs me to see a huge mother in a store with an extremely fat child following behind her. It REALLY fries my cheese to see the same pair with a cart full of junkfood. I think education, rather than removal, paired with some sort of initiative would be more effective. I do know that I think that food stamp usage should be monitored for purchases (that'll probably get me flamed). I did recently see a huge parent with really tubby kids with a cart full of junk (all processed foods, soda, chips, cookies, bakery items, ice cream, ) pay with an EBT card. I felt bad for the kids.

The last post reminded me of a cookout we went to at my nephews a couple of years back, neighbor kids came over...we had brought cold pickled asparagus...they had no idea what asparagus was...they ate the stuff like it was candy. I mean they loved it. Fun to see.

I am 5'7" and weigh 212 lbs currently. Most people that see me may think I am somewhat over weight, but the AMA says I am MORBIDLY OBESE. I think I'm heavy, and am going to the gym to work on it. Regardless, NO ONE, including my trainer, ever thinks I weigh 212 (and more when I first started working out) lbs. Thankfully, my body frame doesn't show it.

Now.....I have three sons. The two 9 year olds come up to my cheeck bones when standing beside me. They both have very wide shoulders, and are in men's shirts (smalls) if I can't find kids xxl's. They wear siz 6 and 6.5 men's shoes. They are going to be BIG men like my uncles and brothers (6'2"+). They both weigh right at 100lbs. They have SOME pudge to them, but not huge double and triple chins or bellies that stick out for miles. Again, according to the AMA, they are overweight, and the dr at the hospital (they both just had normal routine tests done) even brought up they are over the height range for their age (??).

My kids are active in sports. They have a huge yard to play in. We put up a pool this summer. I limit video games and computer time. I DO require them to sit on their butts for 30 mins a day to read a book (gasp!). They have chores which include doing laundry with me and yard work, etc. We are an active family......yet I get told my kids are overweight.

It is not an easy thing to deal with. MY personal doctor told me to stop eating school lunches last year (I teach) when I started my weight loss program. WHY? Because she said they are full of fat and carbs. They are. The school lunches in our county, and many others, are horrible "nuitritional" meals for our kids. There has even been a teacher in Indiana that has a blog about school lunches, complete with pictures and medical test results, as to what they did to her over the year she ate them.

Raising kids is NOT easy in this day and age. No offense to many of you, but it's been over a decade since some of you have raised a child. Today's world is entirely different for kids than it was when I was growing up. I try very hard to raise my kids close to the way I was raised. I can't tell you the last time we had pizza or other food delivered to our home. I can tell you the last time my kids had a "happy meal" because it was last Friday for their birthday as a treat because of the fat involved. I feed my kids pretty well balanced meals with absolute MINIMUM fried food. We have fruit around constantly for dessert and snacks. We go on family walks with the dog. Even with all of that, I still get told my kids are "awfully big".

It isn't cheap feeding them "good" food. I spend, on average, $80 a week on fruits and vegetables. For some people, that's their whole food budget for the week. Unfortunately, in this country, processed foods are MUCH cheaper than buying fresh produce and meats. I noticed last night (cause it was on an end cap) that you can buy *shudder* "TURKEY AND GRAVY" in the little foil pan for the oven or micro for $2.88 for the family size. First off...lck! Second, for a family on a budget it that is much cheaper than buying turkey breasts and baking it or about even with a pound of chicken breasts that then have to be prepared. Ramen noodles are CHEAP....but they are HIGH is calories and sodium. Raviolis...omg....I loved getting those cans for a treat when I was a kid. They have over 500 calories PER CAN, plus all the sodium.

My point is that a child's weight can be affectted by many aspects. Yes, it disturbs me to see a huge mother in a store with an extremely fat child following behind her. It REALLY fries my cheese to see the same pair with a cart full of junkfood. I think education, rather than removal, paired with some sort of initiative would be more effective. I do know that I think that food stamp usage should be monitored for purchases (that'll probably get me flamed). I did recently see a huge parent with really tubby kids with a cart full of junk (all processed foods, soda, chips, cookies, bakery items, ice cream, ) pay with an EBT card. I felt bad for the kids.

No parent should be allowed to have children way over their height range for their age. You must be doing something wrong...

i dont agree im 5,8 230lbs and work out when i was 18 i was 185 lbs my chart weight was 155 for my hight the doc said i needed to lose weight i was less than 5% body fat at that time , i ran a marathon at 185lbs at 33 years old i have friends who weigh the chart weight but couldnt walk a mile , some people are larger framed and healthy iv seen guys and girls who have what are built like modals and eat fastfood every meal smoke like trains and never workout but they are considerd healthy by there genetics that allow them to do it .

From WHAS-TV.......(bold print added for emphasis)



(WHAS11) -- The childhood obesity epidemic is once again catching national headlines.

A Harvard University child obesity expert is sparking outrage after saying some parents should lose custody of their severely obese children.

Dr. David Ludwig shared his thoughts in a piece that ran in the Journal of the American Medical Association. He said he believes children should only be removed in extreme cases, and that counseling should come first.

“Don’t take them away from their parent,” said Wendy Berkhahn, a mom and a nurse for Kosair Children’s Hospital.

“Maybe they can come up with a program that can teach parents how to feed them healthy,” said parent Laura Rothenburger.

Some restaurants are trying to offer healthier options. About 1,500 of them are now working to trim the fat from their menus by participating in a voluntary new program called Kids LiveWell. The healthier meals must be 600 calories or less.

“There’s no specific caloric amount that’s going to work for every child,” said Erin Brown, a dietitian with the YMCA. “They come in all shapes and sizes. They do all sorts of different activities, so it’s better to look at the foods you’re giving your child versus how many calories they’re eating.”

Brown also said there is a bigger picture. She said their parents also need to get them moving, and set them in motion for a healthy lifestyle.

There has been so much uproar over this article you can now read the entire article on the JAMA website for free I even downloaded a PDF and printed it out. The free read and download is for a limited time.I would add a link but dont know how on this forum.

[Robin Garr]

There has been so much uproar over this article you can now read the entire article on the JAMA website for free I even downloaded a PDF and printed it out. The free read and download is for a limited time.I would add a link but dont know how on this forum.

Bev, just select and copy the link and paste it into a forum post. You don't have to do anything else!

There has been so much uproar over this article you can now read the entire article on the JAMA website for free I even downloaded a PDF and printed it out. The free read and download is for a limited time.I would add a link but dont know how on this forum.

Bev, just select and copy the link and paste it into a forum post. You don't have to do anything else!

Thanks Robin! here is the link then

http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/306/2/206.full.pdf