Sherry Colb, “Child Obesity as Child Neglect: Is the Standard American Diet Dangerous?,” FindLaw.com, July 22, 2009

Cornell Law School Professor Sherry Colb discusses the recent incident involving the removal of a morbidly obese teen from the custody of his mother for child neglect. Colb questions the wisdom of South Carolina’s decision to place the child in the state’s protective custody, suggesting, “the government could spend considerably less money providing [the mother] with healthy food and information about nutrition.”

Noting that the mother works long hours at more than one job and relies on fast food to feed her child, Colb points out that she only lacks resources, “not love or concern for her son.” She considers whether the government could take custody of a child with anorexia nervosa and thus, “needlessly add psychological trauma to an already fragile child’s life.” She also considers the typical diet offered in the nation’s school lunch programs, involving high-fat and processed carbohydrates.

Colb concludes, “We should not be arresting people and taking away their children for simply following the pack on dietary matters. What we should do, instead, is educate everyone and demand that government—in the form of public schools—begin to serve as a model for healthful nutrition, rather than as a parody of American over-indulgence.