Should a parent give liposuction to their over-weight child?

I don't know since I'm not a doctor, but it seems like that would rather dangerous since their bodies are far from being done growing and changing. Personally I think a better choice would be to teach them good eating and exercising habits and then let them make the decision when they are older. Of course teens are awfully cruel to the overweight...

Yeah, I know, I'm kind of surprised that it was so close- especially since the voting on the website said "15-year-old child"! Every parent may be different but this can obviously turn either way.

If the parents don't work with the kid to change their eating/exercise habits, the fat sucked away last year will be back this year. 

it seems rather ironic that a parent would 'care' so much about their childs appearance/health to perform such a procedure as liposuction, whereas if they really cared to begin with, they would never have let their child get into a state where liposuction would even be dreamed of.

I'd say no, as Muggaz said parents should have never allowed it to get that far. All of a sudden they care? I am curious though. Don't know much about how these polls work, how they are calculated, but I find it weird that i now claimed to be 50/50 when it had 174 votes for yes and 171 for no. How is that 50/50? Oh well.

For the most part, I would vote no. As others have said, if the child doesn't learn how to control his/her weight through other means, the fat will just come back. Also, if the child has become obese, chances are the parent doesn't know how to teach the child to control his/her weight. After educating parent and child, if they make an honest effort to lose the weight and it doesn't help, then more extreme measures might be considered after consulting a physician. However, I was reading an article in a science magazine at my friends' house about trying to use liposuction to remove abdominal fat to try to reduce insulin resistance in diabetics, and the results of the article indicated that in at least some cases, the patients' health just got worse. So, we still don't have all the answers.

Liposuction, to my knowledge, is mainly designed to target "problem areas", not to take someone from obese to slim. As far as I know, removing that much fat in that way is actually dangerous.

Besides, lipo doesn't address the root cause of the problem.

Childhood obesity is actually a concern for me since my middle child has been putting on weight. He has always had a husky build, but I have noticed lately that he now has a double chin and cellulite on his tummy.

He is very active, but he also loves snacks and would eat all day long if he were allowed.

Something I read said that prior to adulthood you actually develop new fat cells whereas after adulthood the ones you have just swell, so childhood obesity, even if temporary, could set a child up for a lifelong struggle with weight issues.

I am working with my child on keeping up with healthy habits, although I'm sure it doesn't help that I am overweight myself.

Taking a chance at getting insulted for quoting you here, I am happy to see that some people actually care enough to do something about it. I won't deny being guilty of supplying my kids with some goodies that could lead to weight problems. I do however point that they do not eat them in excess or everyday, only once or twice a week. I guess it helps to be broke sometimes, lol. Anyways, I am trying to make curve their taste for coca cola, something I am addicted to. I do my best to keep the juices they like most around and telling them to drink water when ever they are thirsty. Thankfully they are both still thin, but then so was I till after my 18th birthday where I was free to do what I wanted and now I have several pounds too many as a gift for my freedom.

Juice is mostly sugar and has far less nutrition than fresh fruit. I think most parents (myself included) tend to think of juice as a healthy drink, but it is better to do like you have suggested and push water and save juice for a treat.

Agreed, I try to keep natural stuff around as often as possible, apple juice, orange juice, but sometimes I can't escape kool aid, Hawaiian punch and tang. But as oppose to coca cola and pepsi, I think it's a better alternative, but yess water as much as possible.

I discovered a fruit stand not too far from my house and wow the prices are incredible compared to the supermarket. I bought $16 worth of fruits that lasted a long time. My older sone loved apples and my younger one likes strawberries, grapes and oranges. I try to keep some around as often as possible. I also am cutting back on sugary cereals and replaced them with Cheerios and Kix. My kids love them as well. I guess I'm a lucky dad.

My kid loves fruits and veggies, but cookies too. So it's really easy to get him to eat healthy. But he's less than 2, so who knows what will happen when he discovers soda and other sugar-heavy things?

I avoid really heavy sugary food like Oreos and Jello Pudding as much as I can but I let my kids indulge once in a while. I usually get stuff like animal cracker and butter cookies that will still full of sugar are still less messier and they only eat so many.

It's hard to avoid soda considering that fast foods have them, places like Chucky Cheese have them, their cheaper than juices, and more likely to find them in vending machines.

Get water at fast foods, don't go to Chucky Cheese, and there's also a water vending machine near most soda ones. Of course, it's better to find a bubbler.

mmm, tasteless, spongy, uber-sweet, uber-soft store-bought, preservative-laden, nutrient-stripped, pasty-white CRAP that's sold as 'bread'... it's so yummy.

Actually, the nutrients in whole milk are really good for the toddlers... helps in brain development, iirc.

Apart from that, we try to go a healthier route, but we have our own tastes, too. Like white bread. But I'm becoming more able to enjoy heartier breads, too.

Hey, I have an idea... a parent shouldn't GIVE their over-weight child liposuction. They should EARN their liposuction themselves.

What do you mean...like by doing odd jobs around the home?

I think obesity is a by-product of all the processed foods available today, but really, how do you fight this?

Like going to work after school to make their own money.

I agree with LW about shaping a child's palate. Not that I can brag about what my kids eat because we generally eat like crap (although, they do drink tons of water and we don't do kool-aid).

Kids under 2 need whole milk (or breast milk), but after that they can switch to 2% or less (or breast milk, heh, if mom wants to keep pumping).

And I think my original point got ignored, so I will say it again (haha):

Liposuction does not address the causes of obesity nor is it a safe way to treat obesity. It is primarily designed to target "trouble spots" where diet and exercise have failed to take a pocket of fat off. You can't suck out a hundred lbs of fat and have a healthy (or alive) child.

Not to mention the fact that it will leave a whole bunch of loose skin hanging around (literally) which is a lot more disgusting than being a lil' chunky, if you ask me.

Young people snap back easily from this kind of surgery. People over 35 have more problems with stretched-out hanging skin.


Back to the original question: why not teach him to stop stuffing his fat face?

Also, as a parent, stop ENABLING him.