Current Affair Forums

Posted: 26 February 2007 at 11:15am | IP Logged

This story is on Yahoo news (also been discussed on TV loads) What do you think? Is the mother to blame? Should the child be put into care? Should the doctors/social services be doing more? I was just curious about your thoughts?

An eight-year-old boy who weighs 14 stone is waiting to find out if he is to be taken into care.

Connor McCreaddie from Tyneside is so overweight he can hardly walk and social services are deciding whether it amounts to child abuse.

His mother Nicola McKeown, 35, has blamed doctors for failing to help the family.

Connor weighed 15 stone 8lb - four times the weight of a healthy child of his age - before Christmas but has lost 1 stone 7lb since beginning an intensive exercise regime and swapping junk food for healthy alternatives two months ago.

Ms McKeown, 35, sought help from professionals and the family have been getting assistance from health workers and a dietician.

The family face a child protection conference with North Tyneside Council to discuss Connor's progress in losing weight.

The last resort would be for social workers to place him in care but his mother is hopeful this will not happen.

She said she had received little help from doctors and urged social workers to allow the family to look after Connor.

She said: "I think it's really terrible. They've tried to say that I've neglected Connor and he should come under the child abuse Act, and I think it's really disgusting.

"Through Connor's weight gain there's been no-one there to step in. He's been going to doctors and stuff, he's been getting weighed, and no-one's actually stepped in and said `Look, there's a problem here, we have to get it sorted.'

"So I asked for help and it's been offered but it hasn't been given yet."

She said removing Connor into care would be "disastrous" for him.

"Taking him away from his family when he needs them to help him would be, I think, disastrous for Connor. I think it would make him worse."

Posted: 26 February 2007 at 1:56pm | IP Logged

Just seen ths on the news

A boy of 8 weighs 14st and his mum is saying it is not her fault its his doc's fault.  At 4 years old he was 9st.  She says he is always hungry and if she dosent give him all the crap he wants to eat he throws a strop and hovers round the kitchen opening and closing the fridge.  SO WHAT! all kids will throw a strop if you wont feed them chocolate and crisps 24/7.  She just gives in and gives it to him.  Social services are now considering taking him into care.

Love Trudi.  xx

Posted: 26 February 2007 at 2:43pm | IP Logged

Thanks for doing that Flip.

I think more help needs to be offered to the mother but at the end of the day it should be her responsibility to keep her sons eating in check. It seems as though he is eating for the sake of it, through boredom or habit and the trick is to break the cycle, keep him away from food (lock the fridge if needed).

Most of you will have read my article on Prader Willi Syndrome and I think the mother in this case could have a lot to learn from parents who's children suffer from an illness which forces them to behave in this way.

Posted: 26 February 2007 at 6:50pm | IP Logged

I read this earlier on the BBC website and the mother apparently took him to the doctors a few times, concerned about his weight but the doctor didn't do anything - which I find really worrying.

I agree with Rhona that surely they should be educating the parents, not taking her child away.

On the BBC site she said he took one bite of an apple and didn't like it, so she gives him processed food. She knew that the weight was a problem, so went to the doctors - why wasn't something done then?

Its good that he's lost 1 1/2 stone so far, lets hope that the media attention and the work thats been started continue to help this poor lad.

Posted: 26 February 2007 at 7:21pm | IP Logged

Well i do blame the parents. I don't believe the boy should be taken into care not at all if they are doing something about it. Wether a child is having a paddy or not they shouldn't give in if its becoming a problem. I find this is the problem with society today. ppl give in far too fast when it comes to saying no to their children.

This woman obviously needs more will power and support. It can't be much of a life for the poor boy.

This is just my opinion. But i feel the parents should have control over the child and not the other way around. xxxxx