About a month ago in Cleveland Heights, the Department of Child and Family Services of Cuyahoga County removed a 218- pound 8-year old third grader from his mother and placed him in a foster home because of the imminent danger to the child’s long-term health. The child appeared on the County’s radar screen in early 2010 when his mother took him to the hospital when he was having difficulties breathing at night. He was diagnosed with sleep apnea, which can be weight related, and outfitted with breathing equipment to help with the situation. The agency said that the mother was not following doctor’s orders to control the child’s weight gain and took him from school on October 19th. The mother has visitation rights that amount to one meeting a week for two hours.
Wow. I’ve worked with abused children and I understand fully the health issues related of obesity...though I’ve never thought to put them together in the same sentence. The PD article reports that children are normally only removed from their homes when there is evidence of physical abuse, neglect or under nourishment. It also pointed out that the State Health Department estimates that 12% of Ohio’s third-graders are severely obese...which would put the number in Cuyahoga County at a little over 1,400 kids. So you have to ask yourself...is the County really in the best position to begin this invasive government trend? Can we afford to take apart that many families? Are there that many willing foster homes? Bear in mind that the thinking of the current U.S. Congress is that pizza and fries should be reclassified as vegetables so they can be kept on school menus every day of the week throughout the land...take THAT childhood obesity! AND...I could have kept them in my Paleo Diet...and I could still be 30 pounds overweight! Government intervention? Well...you can never get too much of a good thing.
As I read further, I found that the child was on the honor roll, participated in school activities, and had no health issues other than the sleep apnea. Again...I believe that the obesity is a huge health issue but what about the psychological impact on an 8-year old removed from his home, family, friends and school? Naturally, the mother has an attorney and will be fighting this action. The child, in the meantime, is in a foster home where they are having difficulties getting him to all his appointments so he may be moved again...to a home with a personal trainer!! I don’t have the answer...which I guess makes me part of the problem...but I recognize crap when I see it...and this is crap.
I hopped on the trainer and watched the last two episodes of Season Two of the Soprano’s...which is another way of saying I rode that crazy sweat machine for two hours. My knee was a little sore early in the ride, but the lubrication of over 1,000 pedal revolutions seemed to loosen it up.
Bike workout: Two hours.
Training Heart Rate: 130 bpm.Calories burned during workout: 1700.
Pulling him out his home is absolute insanity. As a hone schooling mom, I read horror stories about government intervention. Could they not work with mom within her own home? I agree 100% with your assessment, John.
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