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Mom keeps custody of 'born hungry' 8-year-old

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published February 28, 2007

LONDON - A mother who feared she might lose custody of her obese 8-year-old son unless he lost weight was allowed to keep the boy after striking a deal Tuesday with social workers to safeguard his welfare.

Connor McCreaddie of Wallsend in northeastern England weighs 218 pounds, four times the weight of a healthy child his age.

Connor and his mother, Nicola McKeown, 35, a single mother of two, attended a child protection meeting Tuesday with North Tyneside Council officials.

Afterward, the Local Safeguarding Children Board issued a statement saying it "was able to confirm that its hope and ambition is to enable this child to remain with his family. In order to move this matter forward, we have made a formal agreement with the family to safeguard and promote the child's welfare."

The agency provided no details about what Connor or his mother would have to do to fight his obesity.

Childhood obesity is of particular concern because it greatly increases the risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, skeletal disorders and strokes. Certain cancers are also associated with obesity, and obese children have a higher chance of premature death.

It remained unclear whether doctors had determined whether diet and lifestyle were the only cause of Connor's obesity.

Sky TV showed footage of Connor's mother serving him meals of french fries, meat and buttered bread.

"He'll hover around the kitchen for food. He'll continually go in the fridge," McKeown said of her son. "I just keep telling him to get out of the fridge, wait until mealtimes and stuff. But at the end of the day, he was born hungry. He has always been hungry."

[Last modified February 28, 2007, 01:34:41]