Should Child Obesity Be Considered Child Abuse

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Recommended: Childhood obesity and parental responsibility

In recent years child obesity has become a controversy; there has been cases reported that children have been removed from parent due to the belief that child obesity can be threaten to their life. It is my belief that the removable of the child is appropriate in severe situation. For example if the child is morbidity obese and his or her life is at stake (Ogilvie).
Severe child obesity is life threatening and if it is a form of child abuse that justifies removing a child from their parents. Child obesity has also been linked to psychological and emotional problems. Most of the children, who are obese, are victims of bullying and in many cases the child becomes isolated and may even develop depression and anxiety.
Children who are obese also develop long term disease, for example, high cholesterol, elevated blood pressure, high triglycerides, raised insulin, liver dysfunction, respiratory problems joint disease, sleep apnea, diabetes, heart disease, certain cancer, among many others. Currently over 35% of children in the U.S are overweight and of these children close to 20% are severely obese with life threatening diseases (Ogilvie).
It is my belief that in severe cases of child obesity the removal of the child should be considered, but only after parent have been given the tool and resource to help their children. The parent should be providing with the tools to help their child and be held accountable for their child's progress. If all the resources given to the parents and they fail to make a change in their child’s life then the removal of the child should be imminent.
The removal of the child can be quite controversial but I believe that removing the child from a parent is the only choice in order to give them a chance to su...

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...ing our next generations the tools to a healthier lifestyle and stop the chain of obesity. Some parents argue that obesity is genetic and that there is nothing they can do about being fat because it runs in their genes. I believe this is just a poor excuse; obesity is not only a country wide epidemic but also a parent problem that can be changed with parent support. Parent need to stop blaming obesity to society and begin taking responsibility for their actions.

Works Cited

"Morbidly obese boy's death sparks inquest." - Medical Observer. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Apr. 2014. .

Ogilvie, Jessica "Viewing obesity as child abuse; morbidly obese kids face great risk. Is that a reason to take them from parents?" Los Angeles Times [Los Angeles, Calif] 30 April. 2014. Print.

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