Last Thursday, South Carolina mother Jeri Althea Gray was arrested in Maryland, accused of taking her 14 year old son, Alexander and fleeing their home state after accusations of neglect were leveled against her.
The specifics of those accusations are hinted at when you look at a picture of Alexander, who is obviously quite big for his size. At the young age of 14 the boy weighs 555 pounds- that is right, 555 pounds.
You may think that the child’s weight alone is grounds enough for a parent to be accused of neglect, but the story isn’t that simple. The South Carolina Department of Social Services has stated publicly that the child’s weight- while a point of concern- is not enough to warrant charging a parent with neglect or removing a child from its home.
Because of privacy laws, the specifics of the case remain unknown to the public, however DSS has stated the concern for the boy stems from a medical condition- its likely Alexander has a few negative side effects health wise, from his weight, including but not limited to a shortened life expectancy, heart disease, high blood pressure and blood cholesterol, diabetes, sleep apnea and asthma.
It may seem outrageous that the weight alone is not enough to constitute neglect, but Newsweek points out these details:
It’s neglect if a mother isn’t giving her sick child proper medication. But what if she’s missing doctor’s appointments for a chronic condition? Not feeding a child is neglect, but what if a father only feeds his son donuts and soda? There’s clear precedent for the state to step in if a parent isn’t doing anything to stop cancer that could kill a child in six months. But what if a parent isn’t doing anything to stop the onset of type 2 diabetes, a condition that could cause serious lifelong problems and eventual death?
What do you think?
Not having all the details, it’s hard to say if it is a case of neglect or not. In rare cases, people can become morbidly obese due to an underlying syndrome or condition.
It begs the question, how on earth did this happen, and did he have to be 555 lbs before anyone picked up on his weight problem?
This did not happen to the child overnight, he has probably been steadily gaining weight since early childhood. If this boy was seen regularly by a pediatrician for well-child check ups and his height and weight were documented, the doctor would have had to talk with the mom about the child’s obesity and the impact that it will have on his health. Not to do so would be malpractice. He and his parents should have been referred to a nutritionist, and possibly to a physical therapist as well. If the mother was duly informed about the havoc this weight will wreak on her son’s health, and she did not take steps to help him lose weight or follow up with referrals, I would say that she is neglecting her child’s health.
Has he been able to go to school, attend any social events, play with others? Seems his life would be pretty limited.
I feel like some mothers have a nurturing tendency that gets very messed up. They may have every intention of loving and caring for their kids, but overfeed them due to some emotional problem of their own. They can’t see that what they are doing is harmful, and need help. If she can’t help her child become attain a healthy weight with counseling for the family, a nutritionist and physical therapy, then he probably needs to live elsewhere to see if he can reach a normal weight away from his mom’s feeding practices.
The whole family would need to be included in any therapeutic intervention. I wonder if the boy has siblings, and what is their health like. Is this child singled out by the mom or others to be overfed? What else is going on in the home?
How on earth did this happen?
I agree we do not know exactly all the details in this one. If it is a condition that child has it is difficult to prevent these types of things from occuring. But, if it is simply due to the fact that the child consumes too much food combined with lack of excersise and other pysical activities and linked to a long family history of obesity. The child isn’t purchasing all the food himself as well as bringing it to himself from the kitchen. Someone is supplying this boy with endless amounts of food for comfort, or insecurity reasons, etc. Again, if the boy has no syndromes or conditions that lead him to this obesity, I think we need to take a good, hard look at the source of the childs food supply.