As childhood obesity rates are on the rise, one question is being asked- should the parents of obese children lose their custody rights? One provocative opinion piece in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) seems to think so. In several child protection cases so far in both the United States and the UK, the child’s obesity has been a factor.
“Despite the discomfort posed by state intervention, it may sometimes be necessary to protect a child,” says Lindsey Murtagh, a lawyer and a researcher at Harvard’s School of Public Health who co-authored the article with Dr. David Ludwig, an obesity specialist at Children’s Hospital Boston.
To read more, check out this article in the LA Daily News.
