Eight-Year-Old Weighs 218 Pounds, Eats Every 20 Minutes

Feb. 28, 2007 — -- Without a doubt, childhood obesity has damaging health effects, but could it be considered a form of child abuse?

British child-welfare officials are grappling with that question in the case of Connor McCreedy, an 8-year-old boy who weighs 218 pounds, nearly four times the average weight for his age.

His bulk, which has broken four beds and five bicycles, has many wondering whether Connor's weight is the product of biology or bad parenting.

Despite their doubts about the parenting of Nicola McKeown, Connor's mother, authorities decided Tuesday not to take him from his home. Some child advocates disagree with that decision.

"The child should have been taken to [a] hospital and put under the 24-hour surveillance of doctors and nurses," said Tam Fry of the Child Growth Foundation.

McKeown asserts she's trying to control when her son eats.

"I just keep telling him to get out of the fridge [and] wait until meal times," she said.

But McKeown refuses to put a lock on the refrigerator and won't stop feeding him junk food, which has some members of the British government up in arms.

"We've got a boy whose life and health is already being shockingly damaged," said British health secretary Patricia Hewitt.

Connor isn't the first obese child to draw attention from health officials and the media.

"Good Morning America" profiled an overweight New Mexico toddler who had been taken from her parents by officials who suspected child abuse. Their suspicions were wrong. Now age 10, the child has baffled doctors with her continued growth.

Whether Connor will live with his mother for the rest of his childhood remains to be seen. He has lost weight in her care. Before Christmas, he saw a dietitian and dropped nearly 20 pounds.

But Connor still likes to snack every 20 minutes and can eat four bags of chips and three bags of cookies in one day. Though he probably doesn't know it yet, his appetite could kill him.

"He was born hungry. He's always been hungry," his mother said.