Why Would Parents Allow Their Kids To Go Hungry?

The concept of severe abuse by parents is a complex and difficult-to-understand phenomenon in psychology. The Turpin children, David and Louise Turpin, face sentences of 94 years to life due to their severe abuse. Research has found that children are more at risk if domestic violence has been present in the parental relationship. Many murders of children by their mothers and fathers are at the root of domestic violence.

Research into this phenomenon may reveal some possible answers, including a case series of 28 children in the United States suffering from intentional starving. Twelve of the 13 children at the Turpin home were tortured and starved by their parents, prosecutors said. The intentional starving of a child is so rare and its results are so devastating that even experts in the child-abuse field find it shocking. The most common reason for intentional starving is that the parent’s needs were neglected as a child or they felt neglected. Generosity comes from being treated with kindness.

The “Cinderella phenomenon” occurs when one child in a family is singled out and abused while other children are not. When such crimes occur, particularly at the hands of a parent, they are considered to be caused by mental disorders or personality disorders. Risk factors for intentional starving include being abused as a child, mental illness, and addictions to alcohol or drugs.

In summary, the “Cinderella phenomenon” is a phenomenon where one child is abused while others are not. Understanding the motivation behind these crimes is crucial for understanding the impact of domestic violence on children.


📹 Interrogation of Mother Who Admits to Starving 10-Month-Old: ‘I Didn’t Think She Would Die’

Tatiana Fusari was questioned by police after her daughter was found dead in 2018. Police said the child, Mary Welch, was found …


What are the 5 signs of emotional abuse in children?

Emotional abuse can manifest in various ways, including lack of confidence, emotional control issues, extreme behavior, relationship difficulties, and inappropriate behavior. It can affect any child, but some may be more vulnerable. Families experiencing hardships like relationship problems, financial difficulties, or mental health issues may struggle to maintain a loving home for their child. Some signs of emotional abuse may be mistaken for normal teenage behavior, making it difficult to identify if a child is being emotionally abused. Children may not understand or talk about it, so it’s crucial to be aware of these signs and their behavior.

What are the three stages of starvation?

The body undergoes three stages of starvation: skipped meals, prolonged fasting, and depletion of stored fats. In the early stages, the body relies on glycogen stored in the liver, which shrinks before turning to fats and muscles. This leads to a gaunt, hollow-cheeked appearance, as the body turns to bone and muscle for energy. The third stage, often fatal, occurs when all stored fats are depleted, causing the body to rely on bone and muscle.

Why does a parent reject a child?

Parents often feel threatened or invalidated when their child’s abilities and traits differ from their own, leading to a lack of connection and push away. This invalidation can lead to a child believing they are insignificant and unworthy of love and appreciation. The side effects of growing up dismissed or invalidated include pain, issues, and difficulty in resolving shared relationships.

Is it okay for a parent to tell their child to shut up?

It is a common parental preference for children to refrain from using the phrase “shut up” in their interactions with them. Therefore, it is not advisable to teach this phrase to children. If one is not at ease with the prospect of one’s child employing this term in reference to oneself, one’s acquaintances, or one’s educators, it is advisable to refrain from incorporating it into one’s own lexicon.

What is it called when a parent doesn’t feed their child?

Neglect is the continuous failure to meet a child’s basic needs, often resulting in physical, educational, emotional, and medical neglect. It is the most common form of child abuse, causing a child to be left hungry, dirty, or without proper clothing, shelter, supervision, or healthcare. Neglect can have long-term effects on a child’s physical and mental wellbeing. There are four types of neglect: physical neglect, which involves not meeting basic needs like food, clothing, or shelter, educational neglect, which involves not providing education, emotional neglect, which lacks nurturing and stimulation, and medical neglect, which involves not providing proper health care, including dental care.

What happens to brain when starving?

Brain activity is impacted by even modest dieting, and malnutrition leads to inadequate fueling, causing difficulties in decision-making, problem-solving, and emotion regulation. Restricted eating, malnourishment, and excessive weight loss can result in changes in brain chemistry, leading to increased symptoms of depression and anxiety. This can skew reality, especially for individuals with eating disorders, who experience fear and anxiety about body shape, weight, appearance, and eating. Research indicates that a starved brain does not function properly, making regaining it a crucial first step in treating eating disorders.

Is not feeding a child considered abuse?
(Image Source: Pixabay.com)

Is not feeding a child considered abuse?

Neglect, physical abuse, psychological abuse, and sexual abuse are all forms of child abuse. Neglect involves inadequate healthcare, education, supervision, and unmet basic needs. Physical abuse includes beating, shaking, burning, and biting, with rib fractures being the most common. Psychological abuse involves verbal abuse, humiliation, and acts that scare or terrorize a child, potentially leading to future psychological illness.

Sexual abuse involves dependent, developmentally immature children and adolescents engaging in sexual activities they don’t fully understand, cannot give consent to, or violate family taboos. Some cases don’t require oral, anal, or vaginal penetration, and may involve exposure to sexually explicit materials, oral-genital contact, genital-to-genital contact, and genital fondling.

What happens if you don’t feed your child?

A deficiency in nutritional intake among children can result in an increased prevalence of health issues, including anemia and asthma. Low wages and high housing costs present significant challenges for families in terms of affording basic necessities such as food and rent. It is evident that Black, Latino, and Native American communities are more prone to encounter obstacles in accessing food, underscoring the necessity for augmented efforts to tackle these concerns.

What can starvation make a child to suffer from?

Hunger crises cause children to experience “wasting”, where their weight and muscle mass are disproportionate to their height due to severe malnutrition. This stunts growth and damages physical and cognitive development. A severely malnourished child is 11 times more likely to die than a healthy one, and these conditions reduce their ability to recover from mild illnesses. The impact on future generations is significant, as new mothers may struggle to pass enough nutrients to their children during breastfeeding due to their malnutrition.

What is toxic parenting?

A toxic parent creates an unhealthy environment for their child through negative behaviors such as constant criticism, manipulation, emotional neglect, or physical abuse. This results in a harmful and unhealthy environment for the child.

Is telling a child to shut up abusive?
(Image Source: Pixabay.com)

Is telling a child to shut up abusive?

Parents often want their child to stop backtalk, complain, or simply listen to them. However, saying “Shut up” is rarely helpful and can lead to a power struggle that the child may not be willing to lose. James Lehman, MSW, created The Total Transformation®, The Complete Guide to Consequences™, Getting Through To Your Child™, and Two Parents One Plan™ from his professional and personal experience. Lehman and his wife, Janet Lehman, developed an approach to managing children and teens that challenges them to solve their own problems without hiding behind disrespectful, obnoxious, or abusive behavior. Empowering Parents now brings this insightful and impactful program directly to homes around the globe.


📹 Vegan Babies Starve | House M.D.

A young couple are arrested for child endangerment after putting their baby on a vegan diet. Stream full seasons on Peacock: …


Why Would Parents Allow Their Kids To Go Hungry?
(Image Source: Pixabay.com)

Rae Fairbanks Mosher

I’m a mother, teacher, and writer who has found immense joy in the journey of motherhood. Through my blog, I share my experiences, lessons, and reflections on balancing life as a parent and a professional. My passion for teaching extends beyond the classroom as I write about the challenges and blessings of raising children. Join me as I explore the beautiful chaos of motherhood and share insights that inspire and uplift.

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  • The father is an absolute narcissist. “They want me, they knew by looking at me they weren’t getting anywhere”. Don’t get me wrong, she’s guilty af, but he’s definitely one of those who thinks he’s smarter than everyone else & knows the “real truth” about everything because he’s watched some YouTube articles.

  • I’ve seen this case before. Regarding going from hospital to home birth, their first baby was found to have drugs of some kind in her system at birth. This caused them to have to deal with CPS etc and the home birth wouldn’t involve any such screening/tests. I dare say that’s the real reason for the change.

  • This is crazy my son refuses to eat one meal out of the 3 a day and I have massive anxiety. I don’t know how as mother you can’t do the bare minimum. I understand depression, I am a therapist and a mother that struggled with post partum depression BUT you do the bare minimum feeding your child is the bare minimum….

  • Normally, when you breastfeed as the main source of meal, your infant will have a stool every time you have fed them, especially in the first few weeks as I breastfed and my baby boy passed a stool every time he was fed and he flourished and was a prem baby on top of it all this baby was purely neglected by all means 😢just so much cruelty to a inocent baby rip little one u did not deserve such neglect

  • 🇦🇺The only excuse for this to happen is the parents were concerned that CPS would take their children. The mother is more to blame because of her education. Now because of their own self preservation their child is dead and their other children don’t have a mum and dad. Condolences 💐 to the siblings and may the little one be at peace.

  • I haven’t had my own children yet but I had two step kids in a past relationship. Those babies were the first to eat before anyone, even if it was the last thing we had in the whole house. Hearing that this baby was completely starved for weeks is infuriating. My boys would come up and ask for something to eat all the time even if they just ate lunch or dinner and sure enough they are getting a snack. It’s mind boggling that they just didn’t care.

  • The GALL OF THIS WOMAN CRYING….she had no problem finding her own way to the refrigerator! I had 3 sons born @ 7.8 lb, 9.1 lb, & 10.2 lbs this innocent Angel was 8 pounds @ 10 months old! She has a degree in early childhood education I wouldn’t believe that unless I got it straight from the school she went to….Disgusting excuse for a human that poor baby must have screamed from hunger day & night! So sad…..why don’t they give these babies away to someone that have so much love to give them!

  • Off topic of the loss of the child. But home births being questionable is ridiculous. For literally 1000’s of years babies were born at home. Criminalizing it or making it something weird is just another way Dr’s and hospitals have increased their revenue. The government involvement in our healthcare and children has gone so deep that we will actually defend this.

  • With my first baby, it was around this age that I began to provide her with infant cereal. An experienced mother suggested it to me because I was a first time mother and didn’t know much but infant cereal is finely ground grain. Rice is most gentle. I did have to alter the bottle for both formula and cereal. I figured, if I can’t pull nutrition, neither could my baby. Those holes are very, very small.

  • Religious delusions. Im guessing that the husband was the catalyst and he may be the dominant in the marriage. She barely mentions him in regards to the care of the children. If it hasn’t happened yet, their children will be removed from their care … and hopefully, not left with the grandparents who also did nothing.

  • Detective was slick asking if they’d be home so they could return the phones. Like, I’m not going to be able to call you guys, so you’ll be home right? Not at your parent’s house? They knew they’d be there to arrest them. It is a smart play though because of the crime, it’s not like they’d be worried about them becoming fugitives. They got a little more time to get facts for the arrest warrant. Interesting case, but they knew they were wrong. Just confused the actual reason they let him his happen. It doesn’t seem to be religious reasons? Man seems like he has disdain for authority figures and guess that includes doctors.

  • In the US, hospital births are statistically more risky than home births under healthy circumstances (both mom and baby), as long as they’re trained, credentialed and well-practiced, with a connected hospital. Midwives were the way all women were assisted in birth until men took it over from women and began to treat it like a medical condition, about 100 years ago. In first world countries where midwifery is widely accepted, and overall, the US rates poorly by comparison in childbirth outcomes, especially mortality for both mom and baby.

  • Something important this clip left out was that the parents made bail and came back to talk to House. They told him they consulted with a nutritionist about the diet she was on, who turned out to be the mothers uncle. This was enough to have House order more tests. Turned out the baby had a genetic disorder which caused her thymus gland to wither away, which was the real reason she couldn’t gain weight. He brought this information to Cuddy and she called the police and social services and had all the charges withdrawn.

  • Honestly really love how House cares so much for kids, like the kid on the spectrum or when he threw away his cane to run to save a child when usually he will just call someone else to do it even if he is in the room (adults lie and are evil so according to his misanthropy but kids are of the utmost importance and still protects the innocent and shows that he cares way more that he’ll ever admit)

  • Parents: feeds their kid Parents: notice things are wrong and brings kid to the hospital Dr: Change your feeding habits. Parents: absolutely! Kid: gets better Hospital: has parents arrested for neglect and abuse Meanwhile, a child two blocks away is beaten and starved for attention and CPS refuses to remove them from their home.

  • I’m seeing a lot of comments about how House has a soft spot for babies and children, and given his backstory I think that was a good call on the writers’ part. In “Three Stories” we find out about how he got his limp, and that 1) he didn’t listen to the doctor’s advice and wanted a very risky surgery, which he seems to show regret for (hence why he says all patients are idiots because he’s including himself), and 2) the decision was ultimately made by someone else. His right to refuse certain treatments was taken from him. Children are in a similar position where they can’t make their own medical decisions (which they shouldn’t. They’re children. They don’t know what’s best for them yet.) but the one who is making the decisions can sometimes be an idiot. House may not be able to give all children a choice, but he knows what it’s like to have your fate in the hands of another person, so he does the best he can: educate the caretakers, and keep the child alive until they can make a decision for themself.

  • What I find funny is that in this episode Cuddy calls CPS immediately without all the facts but in the episode where the dad’s body wash was putting his young children through very early puberty, and they discovered the girl’s menstrual blood covered shirt in the vent, Cuddy ordered Cameron to do a full body examination of the girl to look for signs of potential abuse. She did her due diligence with that one but acted very swiftly based off concerned nurses in this one.

  • I have to give a lot of credit to the actors who played the parents. They did a fantastic job of portraying people who didn’t know they were harming their child. They did a fantastic job of showing people who now understand and will change their behavior… until they were arrested. Serious props to those actors!

  • As a former foster parent, the whole scene where the police come in, arrest the parents and the social worker takes the baby is Hollywood drama. That isn’t how it happens. In the 16 years I was a foster parent, only once did I ever hear of a situation where the police actually broke down the house doors and took the children in custody. (Trust me, it was definitely needed). More likely than not, the parents would have been interviewed by a social worker and then offered family preservation services. Rarely is taking a child into custody the first step and the child has to be in “immediate” danger. Lastly and I know this is nit picky but if they are trying to say that child is starving, they should actually have a child that looks like she is starving. This is clearly a healthy baby within a healthy weight range. I have seen children who are way under weight and this child is no where near what that looks like.

  • When my son was considered failure to thrive twice (2½ and 7 months) I honestly was terrified of this happening. I was doing everything I possibly could. He had such severe reflux he just couldn’t keep anything down. He was seeing a specialist 2-3 times a month 2½ hours away though to get all the care he needed. He’s now 3 and healthy weight. No longer needing medicine.

  • “Those parents weren’t abusive, they’re idiots!” Which explains so many cases of endangerment, or neglect and why I truly believe it should be a mandatory requirement that all potential or new parents take courses on caring for a baby. Too many idiots having babies that have no idea how to take care of them, or go to unreliable sources and end up harming or even killing their children.

  • I am vegan and I agree with House. He never said the baby needed meat or dairy. He used the right words: fat, protein. I know that later we see the diet was not the problem but the doctor is actually being great here by saying that we need nutrients not products. Each individual has particular needs so we also need diet that take that into consideration. You may be vegan and not eating everything you need and eating things that don’t agree with your body and the same with non vegans Also they are not just vegans, they are Raw.

  • Vegan here. Don’t put your baby on a vegan diet. Their underdeveloped digestive system can’t handle it. Breastfeeding your child is best. When they transition to solid foods you should speak with your pediatrician about proper diet. Also, don’t force veganism on your child. Educate them on the advantages and the reasons for a plant based diet, expose them to plant based or plant rich meals at home, but don’t chastise them if they make different lifestyle decisions from what you would prefer.

  • While House was probably annoyed at the vegan diet from a medical standpoint I don’t think it truly mattered. He mentioned the meat thing because: 1) it’s House 2) the baby lost a considerable amount of weight in a month. The weight loss is nothing to overlook as she has a compromised immune system from the pneumonia so the weight loss would be an added blow that would cause severe damage if it wasn’t addressed. House suggested the meat thing because it would be something that would quickly get her weight back up. I haven’t seen this episode for a while, but the parents werent overly “preachy” like other couples House has encountered. They explained their diet, House suggested the meat thing, and they didn’t argue with him. They agreed. While it can be argued that she would’ve gotten the right nutrients on the current diet, one of the issues was that she wasn’t getting it that’s why she got sick and had the weight loss. It wasn’t because of a starvation diet it was due to an underlying illness. The reason why CPS got involved was bc the weight loss was dramatic. Again, I forgot most of the episode but the point was that medical staff are mandatory reporters. House didn’t do anything because he examined the baby and saw no abuse. But the medical staff are responsible, and by law they have to report it or be guilty of child endangerment. People can argue one side or the other about the diet. Personally if I was following that diet I would introduce it gradually. My infant cousins all have had lactose intolerance, and drank almond milk when they were young.

  • When I saw this episode when it first came out, I didn’t have the social services experience I do now. Seeing it now makes me realize how outlandish it was that they arrested them to begin with lol. I consulted on a case recently where the baby fell into a coma and CPS made assumptions pretty rapidly before it turned out to be a case of diabetes they hadn’t known about, and I considered THAT an overreaction by CPS (the parents weren’t arrested or charged but the investigator was kind of already verbalizing assumptions of abuse in the first day or two after the coma before all test results were back).

  • Eating a whole foods, plant based (wfpb) diet is one of the healthiest ways to eat. Most people can get everything they need from plants, since all vitamins, all minerals, first come from plants. Most starving kids eat animals. It is not a wfpb diet that starves someone. It is usually a psychological concern (of the kids or parents) or a physical condition.

  • “You made the wrong one” Cuddy is an idiot, she hasn’t been a real doctor in years (they said so in the show and she later on admitted it), it’s very easy for someone in any profession to look at a chart or any piece of data and say whatever they want without knowing any context. Cuddy was proven to be wrong since the baby had a genetic disorder which caused the weight loss, also you don’t call child services and the police without at minimum talking to the parents, very unrealistic situation. Cuddy just saw a chart, saw the doctor was House (assumed he was being lazy) and called the cops? Very irresponsible of her, she legally wasn’t in the wrong since the law requires that you report to child services if you suspect abuse, problem is that she wasn’t the attending physician and she wasn’t in any place to be suspecting abuse. It was Houses call and he made the right one.

  • I think this couple was dangerously ignorant, but at least these parents (unlike most) took this advice to heart and decided to change what they were doing for the welfare of the baby. Dangerously ignorant, yes, changed for the better, yes. (Social services should actually go for actual abusers–like child molesters and child abuse.)

  • As a vegan parent with a vegan 3 YO, just thought you’d like to know she is 95th percentile for height and 85th for weight 😉. The important thing is eating a balanced diet, whether vegan or not. As a side note, it turns out in this episode the weight loss is caused by another underlying problem, not her diet.

  • If the baby was already at the 25th percentile for weight, why the hell were there no interventions put in place by the pediatrician? This baby should have been seen by the pediatrician once a week to ensure it was gaining weight. Why didn’t the parents take the baby to the pediatrician? They had to know she was getting thinner.

  • I took my son to a check up at his 1 year appointment and they give you a paper to fill out, I answered all the questions. Including that I was nursing my son. I guess the doctor was in a hurry and didn’t read the paper or something. She asked if he takes a sippy cup. I said yes and that he gets water in it and the occasional juice. She said he should be given cows milk too(they can quit nursing and formula at 1yo). To which I replied he doesn’t need cows milk. She looked at me all upset and said yes he does need it… Confused I said he’s already getting water and juice, in his cup there’s no need for the extra calcium when he’s already getting so much nutrients. She started to explain that isn’t nutrients… Even more confused I said well breast bill is extremely nutrient and since he eats 3 meals a day with snacks too I don’t think he needs the additional whole fat milk. You can imagine the awkwardness as she explained she skipped over the paperwork, and apologized for the mistake.

  • Funny how people in the comments are bashing vegan parents, but I guess you haven’t watched the whole episode, bcs it turns out, they were actually doing this according to a licensed nutritionist and it turns out the baby had some kind of medical problem digesting correctly, which lead to this…. but it wasn’t the diets fault…. Yes, the problem is mostly vegans don’t actually stick with the diet correctly and get lazy after time, which might be ok with them but not with babies and children, but still, if you do it right, if you get help from nutritionists and are able to make compromises then it will be fine….

  • Had a similar experience at a former place of work. Worked at a casino that doubled as a hotel and I worked the night shift hotel counter as an audit. Had the police show up because apparently this couple left about six or so minors ranging from 15 to 2 years old. The couple wasn’t even on the property, they had left the hotel and let it slip about the kids after being pulled over on the highway by law enforcement (something’ along the lines that needed to hurry because their kids were alone in the hotel room). Child services took in the kids and the couple was arrested, that’s as far as I know of what happened but this was a clear sign of either neglect, stupidity and/or an actual attempt at abandonment (and that last one has happened before, but with an elderly woman with sundown syndrome; she was stuck at the casino/hotel for a week).

  • What pisses me off is the fact that the parents were honestly trying to do the best for their child. They didnt even try to argue about the diet and they listened to house as the doctor. They prioritized their baby over the pride and were concerned with her first and foremost. God. But this just pisses me off. A lot. Its never the Actual Abuse that they go after, its always these kind of issues. Ugh.

  • This reminds me of a episode of Unsolved Mysteries. A baby is suspected of dying by antifreeze poisoning. The parents were arrested and charged. The mother was pregnant and had supervised visits after the birth. But the 2nd baby started showing signs of antifreeze poisoning. After a full examination and a certain test, did they find out both babies had a disorder. (Can’t remember what it’s called).

  • CPS and the police do not arrest people for being ignorant. They might take the baby into custody until they could do a wellness check in the home and make sure the parents have had some education. This whole thing reinforces the “CPS is punishment” attitude rather than “CPS steps in when the child is in danger”.

  • “The nurses were concerned -” Ok, I know everyone likes praising nurses because they apparently do twice the work of doctors for half the pay, but here’s the truth; nurses get half the pay because they’re NOT ACCOUNTABLE for the patients. What happens to the patient, good or bad, is on the doctor. Nurses have the benefit of not being accountable. And, in my experience working with them, they have a tendency to always pass blame onto others. I got blamed because a nurse didn’t know how to do her job.

  • I have 3 kids that are now adults, they grew up in a vegan and organic household, it’s not abuse if you want your kids to have a healthy diet and lifestyle.. I rather have my children be healthy than eating candies, chocolate, sugar, meat, and fats, and get diabetes or other health problems.. I’m expecting baby #4 and a grandchild this year and we are going to raise our kids the same way I raised my eldest children

  • My sister’s first baby was a failure to thrive and they took him to the hospital. The hospital immediately notified CPS. It turns out that the only reason he wasn’t eating properly is because he didn’t like the way the bottle nipple was sitting on his tongue. Unlike the way it was supposed to sit, he liked it with the flat side of the nipple upside down and he would drink it just fine. Even then CPS workers still came around for a couple months after.

  • Randomly stumbled upon this article and I am BAMBOOZLED at this kind of commentary going on in the comments section?! I’m currently 6 months pregnant – plant based for 4+ years and plan to raise my family the same way. My midwives/family doctor have zero concerns about me, regularly check my blood work, all of my check ups and test results are consistently healthy and within appropriate limits. I’m shocked so many people not only don’t know plant based eating is healthy and sustainable but actually think it’s… abuse?!

  • The fact they were arrested for starving a child is actually understandable, I cannot stand vegans who try to force “veganism” on me or others, we choose what we want to eat, and the fact they did not know that babies should not be on a vegan diet shows how bad some species cannot handle being vegetarian and such, I eat both meat and plant based meals, but more meat.

  • Honestly I think a lot of the comments are missing the point. The baby has a genetic disorder, and was actually eating healthily. The parents had spoken with a nutritionist beforehand. They were doing things right, and even then they immediately went to the hospital when things went wrong and readily accepted that they needed to change their baby’s diet when told. A far cry from many actually abusive/idiotic parents who assume a vegan diet is fine without specialist knowledge, reject modern medicine and go for ‘alternative’ treatments when they start to notice problems, and when they do see doctors, they argue with them and don’t take their advice.

  • You can get adequate fats and proteins in a vegan diet from things like nuts and nut butters, avocado, olive oil, legumes, algael oil, etc. The real risks would be things like potentially too little B and D vitamins, incomplete amino acids, inhibition of zinc absorption,stuff like that. Anyone who wants to be vegan but doesnt want to end up with a thyroid disorder, mood and hormone problems, low hemoglobin prosuction, needs to consult their doctor AND a qualified nutritionist.

  • I had a classmate who was vegan all throughout his life and turned out fine. He was able to eat everything vegan and not as strict besides not consistently eating candy and junk food. I have non-vegan friends and family who were lactose intolerant at birth so only drank alternative which was fine before gerber came in.

  • Isn’t breast milk and even formula still an animal product. A mother’s breast milk comes from her, a mammal. As far as I can tell, the vegan baby formulas aren’t recommended to babies under 1 year old, but I would still feed them meat or animal products because they’re growing babies. We needed to be fed every 2 hours back when we were infants because we use a ton of energy just to grow. So, to all vegan and vegetarian parents, wait until they can consent to your diet too.

  • So i understand where House is coming from and I completely agree. However anyone who works in healthcare knows as mandated reporters, by law when something like this happens, you have to report and let social services investigate. Its unfortunate at times and sometimes you don’t want to call, but you have to. Fortunately in this case it was not abuse, but you would be surprised how often it is.

  • if i remember this episode correctly (i could be wrong) later in the episode it was shown the baby was suffering from a genetic disorder and that’s why it was losing so much weight that being said i don’t think forcing anything to conform to your eating habbits is the right thing to do one should always be allowed choice

  • This is so poorly written. I raised my kid on an omnivorous diet, organic when we could afford it, and we were surrounded by vegan kids. As long as the diet has a balance of nutrients it’s healthy. There are diverse diets all over the world. Americans always think they’re correct, even when science and most other majorcountries use our diet as the standard to avoid. SAD

  • Almond milk and tofu are not raw. Also, they are both high in protein and almond milk has fats and is often fortified with all the vitamins that might be difficult to get in an unplanned vegan diet. Tofu has a complete protein of all the essential amino acids and has more protein that animal products and is a staple protein of almost half the human population. Hemp seeds too are just as nutritious. House is obviously not a nutritionist. The show is just exploiting the stereotype that vegans are idiots and that a plant based diet doesn’t have science on its side for ratings. I wonder if there is ever an episode where somebody is arrested for child abuse for feeding their children a fast-food diet of happy meals and big macs and slurpees and soda pop and getting diabetes?

  • I guess the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (formerly known as American Dietetic Association) is wrong then: “It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that appropriately planned vegetarian, including vegan, diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits for the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. These diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes.” There are (sadly) plenty of non-vegan families with stories like this too. Bad parenting should not be conflated with a philosophy of non-violence. They are two very different things.

  • The reality is that when a child (baby to munchkin ae under 15) goes to the hospital depending on what it was SS can and most likely will be involved (case by case really). For example in my case I was under 2 years old and somehow my right leg was broken (I had a cast) the doctor called SS and I was taken away from my bio mom (who said she didn’t even have me when it happened I was with someone she trusted while she went food shopping). But here it seems they were first time parents who live healthy life styles that didn’t have a clue but when they found out they were wrong was ready to fix it for the sake of their daughter. I get why the nurses were worried but why at any point they didn’t talk to the baby’s doctor.

  • Please don’t take dietary advice or how to raise a child from a TV programme. I can’t remember the episode but they used an instrument called a TMS, transcranial magnetic stimulation, to help with migraines the “Dr” rubbed the probe around the patients head and said there you go cured. Made me cry with laughter… they completely misused TMS, and their advise about raising a child vegan is also laughable. A vegan diet is not only healthier than the alternative, it is a much better diet for new borns and toddlers and upwards.

  • “It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that appropriately planned vegetarian, including vegan, diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits for the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. These diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes.” It’s not that it was vegan, it’s that it wasn’t appropriately planned. Obviously a baby needs more than vegetables. Potatoes, beans, oats, bananas, bread….these are all vegan foods. A growing baby needs calorically-dense, carbohydrate-rich, satisfying things to eat.

  • We went from “you have to finish your veggies” to “you have to finish your meat” in one generation kinda crazy. But yeah let the kids have a varied diet, don’t push your beliefs on your kids. Give them the information they need to grow up and if they want to be a annoying vegan in the future, you let them.

  • “Technically Alexander Fleming, he developed antibiotics”. My sister got preagnant through IVF, her pregnancy was smooth and uneventful and she gave birth to a healthy baby boy, now two years old. Whenever she attributed the birth of her son to god I would feel a strong urge to literally throw this line to her face.

  • I mean… personally I would let me child decide what kind of diet they want to have once they grow up but I don’t think all vegan babies necessarily starve. As long as the parents get them enough protein and give them higher portions of food. I had a friend who kept their baby vegan and the baby was even overweight. Also I definitely think breastfeeding is important either way**

  • If eating meat is wrong because animals have feelings, then is it wrong for animals to eat other animals instinctively? Plants have been studied and it’s been conclusively proven in several cases that they are sentient enough to be considered a conscious form of life, they have feelings and exhibit them through the release of pheromones that serve to communicate a variety of messages to other plants in the area, they experience pain and fear and contentment just like animals do. So shouldn’t it be just as wrong to eat plants as it is to eat animals? Or are we placing the importance of animals above plants because a plant doesn’t have a face to smile back at us with? There are plants that actually eat small animals, there’s actually a whole list of them. Are the plants wrong for eating meat?

  • Ok, as much as I am not a fan of vegans or their attempts to force their life style on their children, I do get annoyed with these clips specifically. Because in the show, it turns out the diet was fine and approved of by multiple nutritionist experts. And that the real problem was a sickness within the baby that made her lose weight.

  • Not to say that the parents dont deserve any kind of punishment, but it hard to say its they were abusing the baby, i mean technically yes, however think of it like this, if a parent gave their kid something and the child gets a allergic reaction from it, yet the parent didnt know the young lad had allergy to it, would you count that as abuse?

  • If you have to take manufactured supplements along side your diet you are not eating the correct food, this is why vegans should not try to impose their eating disorder onto other people. If you want to be vegan then be vegan but don’t verbally attack or try to chastise me because I choose not to be.

  • What really sucks about this is that the parents were trying their best and trying to learn. It’s ultimately the hospital that was idiot and they’ll probably get their baby back just fine when the facts are presented. The truth is that House had an abrasive personality and poor communication skills. If he had good report with his team and communicated the full situation, the police would never have been called

  • Parents: *Speak with a nutritionist, take baby to a doctor when something goes wrong, immediately change their ways and plan to feed her without accordance to their own beliefs once the very idea that it was hurting the health of their baby came up, clearly show they’re willing to make lifestyle adjustments and want to give their kid the best life possible* Social Services: Let’s put it in the foster system… No abuse there, right?

  • LISTEN THIS IS CLOSE TO HOME FOR ME CUZ WHEN I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL HAVING MY THIRD CHILD THE NURSES CALL DCF ON ME AND TOLD ME I WAS NEGLECTING MY NEWBORN AND YELLING AT HER WHICH WAS BEYOND RIDICULOUS AND NOT TRUE I HAD MY NEWBORN BABY WAS REMOVED FROM MY CARE FOR A MONTH AND I DIDN’T EVEN GET VISITS .. THERE SO WORRIED ABOUT TAKING PERFECTLY HEALTHY CHILDREN AWAY FROM GOOD FAMILIES THEN WORRYING ABOUT THE CHILDREN WHO ARE ACTUALLY GETTING ABUSED AND MISSING CHILDREN IN DCF CARE I DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW THEY ARE STILL RUNNING THIS COMPANY THE WAY THEY ARE AND THE GOVERNMENT LET THEM GET AWAY WITH IT

  • There was a story a few years back about a vegan that fed her cat nothing but plant life since she saw cats eating grass and took that to mean that means that cats are omnivores. Poor kitty starved to death and she was arrested for animal cruelty. Most people get the definitions of “herbivore” and “carnivore” wrong. They think “herbivore” means “only eats plants.” What it actually means is “can’t live without a mostly plant diet.” Even though it’s mostly on accident, some herbivores do eat meat like when a cow eats the occasional ant, grasshopper, or fly that gets on the blade of grass it’s eating. Or when a panda eats a bamboo rat. They think “carnivore” means “only eats meat.” What it actually means is, “can’t live without a mostly meat diet.” Some carnivores do eat plant life occasionally, like when cats and dogs eating various fruits, grasses, and flowers, but they can’t live off of them. Yet they seem to know that “omnivore” means “can live on plants, meat, or both.” The point is that just because certain creatures occasionally eat things they normally don’t, that doesn’t mean they’re omnivores.

  • house: those parents weren’t abusive, they’re idiots cuddy: you made the wrong call. me: eh no, house made the right call. my mom: no cuddy made the right call. my gf: no house made the right call. my bestie: no cuddy made the right call. my music making friend: no house made the right call my stoner friend: laughs no matter how you look at this scene, theres gonna be debate.

  • In reality, what should happen if new parents are (accidentally) starving their child (I know that wasn’t the case here) is that social services should check in with them and keep an eye on things. If the parents refuse to change the diet or say they will but the child continues to deteriorate, that’s when you look at removal of the child. Jumping straight to removal is a terrible decision. I don’t know if this is what would actually happen in the US or if they just needed to add some drama.

  • I was a little confused on why House didn’t call child welfare and just said the parents were ignorant. Turns out, House is right, the parents didn’t abuse or neglect the child and they aren’t guilty of negligence either. Abuse is a deliberate act to cause harm (physical, emotional or sexual), which can obviously be repetitive. Neglect is not providing for someone needs adequately by not being concerned for them. Negligence is having internal access to relevant facts and not using them to make an informed decision. Ignorance is not having the relevant facts. So, in essence, the parents weren’t abusive, neglectful or negligent because they were trying to do the best with the facts they had.

  • That’s the problem I have with this my aunt is a vegetarian the problem with this is that it’s not the best for a baby unless said so for medical reasons and my cousins have suffered lack of iron and nutrition despite what she is feeding them they need meat but she won’t give it to them she just thinks a pill will fix it.

  • Surely this clip was set to spark concern… Overall thought, they are not bad parents, only not so informed ones, for three reasons: 1) They were adviced by their uncle which is a certified nutritionist (they told that to House later in the episode) 2) They apologized to House on the insufficient diet, it is shown here. They truly care. They just, well… Screwed up. Every parents fear in everything. 3) Even with proper diet, the baby has DiGeorge Syndrome, which obstaculize the child’s growth. He later fully diagnoses in the same episode. This subplot in the episode is respectfully well made. But the way this website set the clip, worries me… Keep your eyes open.

  • I don’t know much about vegans but considering the mother fed the child herself until birth, the baby had to be used to a certain extent with veganism. To be fair they had read up on the matter and believed they were doing the right thing. This was not child endangerment, baby was brought to the hospital to be checked. Was’nt ignored. That karen doctor is always to swift with her judgements and misdiagnosis. Social services were also too quick of the mark. While a child is in hospital they are safe. They should have waited til all tests were complete and diagnosis confirmed before rushing in. Seem to have a complex with the good guys, but ignore the bad guys.

  • In addition, yeah, the baby had a condition that slowed down the absorption of nutrients. Me and my twin technically did too. We were not ever vegan or vegetarian, fed the proper baby’s diet, yet still were majorly underweight. The point is, would a vegan diet do any help? It certainly would exacerbate the health problem already. Being fed all the fats, proteins and calcium we needed at least decreased our underweight issue’s severity. Next thing, we had to eat supplemental formula that did catch us up to a healthy weight, and that definitely wasn’t vegan. So yeah, these parents were idiots thinking their baby could eat the same things as them.

  • I live in Australia, last year there was a news story of a baby dying in its first few months of being born because the parents were vegan. It must of been heart renching for them, but also you know it was also kind of stupid. I hope they learn humans can’t sustain themselves (specially growing humans) on nut milk, fruit and vegetables.

  • As much as I hate the whole veganism thing (and moreover when they try to force it on others), I feel like these people truly didn’t know they were hurting their kid, let alone had any form of premeditated or malicious intent. They were idiots for sure, but they were more than willing to learn from their mistakes. You don’t take the kid away and arrest people like that, you help them LEARN. Meanwhile, kids who are in obvious and intentional abuse situations get overlooked constantly. Gotta love the system! 🙄😑 Also, yes, I understand this is “just a show,” but it’s unfortunately quite realistic how something like this would and DOES actually happen…

  • If the attending physician thinks parents did something that severely harmed their child, I think CPS should be called in until it’s proved otherwise. If the parents turn out to be safe with the kid, the kid’s still alive to be returned to them after the investigation. But if not, the kid might not be alive by the time the investigation has conclusive results. CPS in the movie act pretty dramatic. But she kind of had to call them. Also, a raw vegan diet is extremely hard to survive on. Healthy, balanced vegan food involves some cooking. An infant fed entirely on raw foods is reason for CPS to come in asking questions.

  • My husband’s niece is a very strict vegan and her baby is super tiny and a bit under weight. She looks healthy and there’s fullness to her But she is super small for her age. My neice said she’s trying to eat some meat while nursing but she hardly ate at all at my house except some veggies and hummus I had out. She didn’t eat the roast I made for dinner. That is all she had… Her baby cried the entire she was her- 24 hours with a few moments of quiet and smiles. If she were my niece by blood and easy to take advice I would talk to her but it will cause a Firestorm in the family. Even my husband isn’t comfortable saying anything bc of our past issues with his sister mom and niece. But this really hit home…. We have to just step back and let them make their own mistakes. Apparently her baby’s dr said something to her and that’s why she’s trying to eat meat. It’s not just that’s she’s vegan but also anorexic I believe. So there’s that. Ugh these young hipsters there days🤦

  • Mas vcs nem colocaram o trem todo neh, pq eu lembro muito bem que no fim o problema da criança n tinha nada a ver com a dieta dela. Mesmo assim, dietas veganas cruas são muito difíceis de serem feitas para crianças, não recomendo não. Dietas veganas normais são de boa, porém, só tem que conseguir a quantidade certa de proteínas, gordura, carboidratos, vitaminas, fibras e minerais.

  • I don’t think they are bad parents, they simply lacked knowledge. Yes they could of done better research when giving their child a vegan diet however considering the fact that when House told them that she needed a diet that wasn’t aligned with their vegan values they immediately accepted it. It’s difficult for people to abandon their values or to alter them to some degree although they were more open to doing so. I see no issue. People make mistakes all the time and they were ready to correct it. Most Karens on the other hand refuse to give their child vaccines putting them at risk of dying to influenza/the flu, one of the most common diseases accross the globe. This is still not mentioning that having the gouvernement take care of your child is even worse. A lot of people do not value how important not only a child being raised by their real parents but both of them truly is. Most children with both parents do better overall than children under a single parenthood(and yes most not all, there are people who grew up with single parents and became successful which is why I stated mostchildren) and the gouvernement are removing both(thats not even mentioning many other issues). Don’t get me wrong, there are bad parents out there, as there wil always be especially seeing our society in its current state, but these aren’t bad parents. Its clear that they love their child but has made mistakes..

  • This comment section is wild. Should the parents go to some parenting classes and start regularly seeing a nutritionist for their child? Yes, absolutely. But they shouldn’t have been arrested and their child removed from their care… Intent has a big factor in this situation. They obviously had no intent on hitting their child, in fact quite the opposite. And they were obviously attentive enough to notice that something wasn’t right with their child and got her medical care. They obviously care for and love their child and want to do what is best for her. They obviously need more education on parenting and nutrition as new parents but this is far from them being abusive to their child.

  • A healthy plant based diet is 100% healthy for a baby. The issue comes when you don’t feed your baby enough of what they need, which can happen on any type of eatting lifestyle. A baby that small needs breastmilk still. She was probably lacking in fats and protein that she would have gotten through the milk. They’d need to pay extra attention that she got enough in her food, no matter if she was an omnivore or eatting plant based.

  • CPS where the child carries a higher than 70% chance if they even survive the experience to be sexually assaulted, homeless and or drug addicted by the time they are 21 Not to mention the 100% chance of trauma that goes along with even the most necessary and early adoptions if the baby were even adopted to the highest bidder. We need to center ourselves instead of always doing the most extreme. Like if a parent claims religion as the reason they can legally allow their child to die from completely curable and preventable issues for their version or god. Meanwhile without intent of murder or harm as in the god example a parent can lose their child for taking the wrong advice or not having a ton of $ but the system will happily help the fosters with money even enough to buy the baby.

  • When they claimed the vegan diet is healthy, I had to pause right there. Carbs and sugars are also vegan, yet a lot of that is not healthy. It’s the reason my mother is diabetic and why I’m pre-diabetic. Not because of meat, eggs, oils, etc. But then they never listed any carb-filled foods, so I could be wrong. And I know that different bodies have different health needs, so maybe the couple can eat more carbs in place of the proteins. My family, on the other hand, can’t have too many carbs, and our genetics are different. I’m pointing this out because we don’t know how the baby will react to certain foods, and at least when she gets older, they must be feeding her a lot of carbs as the big energy source. But yeah, many carbs and sugar IS vegan, which does cause hell for a good number of people.

  • I think calling child social services was wrong even if a parents made a mistake not ever parents going to raise their children’s the right way even the first of parenthood not all parents are abusive their just learning mistake to make sure they don’t repeat those mistake in the future, even the parents is raising a disabilities child not all parents is going to raise them the right way but as long it the child is care and growing up with a lovely family.

  • Vegan babies don’t starve if fed appropriately. A soy based infant formula is perfectly adequate for infant nutrition then the child can be started on cereals, veggies, fruits just like all kids at 4-6 mos. The only difference would be not starting on meat but rather making sure the child got other protein foods such as beans and soy-based products. This infant was on a raw food diet and only receiving almond milk and raw fruits and vegetables…big difference!!! A vegan diet can be done safely for infants and children IF parents make sure they follow proper nutrition recommendations for the child’s development and health.

  • When you have a baby, whether you’re a vegan,vegetarian or carnivore, you need to nourish your child. That doesn’t necessarily mean put the baby on vegan or vegetarian diet,just because it’s your diet! I’ve been a vegetarian/vegan for 35 plus years. I have 2 kids now grown. I didn’t feed them my diet. Because I’ve always lived with carnivores,my whole family,I chose to raise them this way . Although now as grow people they actually like my vegan/vegetarian diet and eat a lot of what I do. They’re still carnivores,but they both admit they’ve always loved my vegetarian cooking. My 2 At 39 and 31, will now admit it.

  • They deserve to get arrested. It is universal that babies need milk which contains what Dr. House mentioned. Pretty much everyone should know that especially this modern era. It is not an excuse for them to not feed the baby any milk. It didn’t matter if they did sent baby to hospital to check. If they really did love the baby, they should had taken it seriously rather than “I want my baby to be vegan like us”.

  • This happened in real life in Australia four years ago. Parents put their child on a vegan diet from infantry after breastfeeding until 2 years old when they went to the doctor and asked why thier child was suffering from bloating and hadn’t gotten any teeth yet. Well, they were charged with child endangerment and lost parental custody of the child and other older children they had in their care as well due to, the older children only gotten thier first set of teeth and hadn’t gone through to have their adult teeth like other children. It is very sad. Veganism isn’t healthy. Why can’t anyone see or understand that? First children raised veganism and now some people are trying to make dogs and cats vegans. So wrong. To see that this truth. Look up fighters against child abuse Australia. It is a organisation that fights for abused and neglected children. And spreads the word to help future victims from becoming a victim by showing the faces of the abusers.

  • The funny thing about this thing to me, at least is this is another time where social services appear in a case of child abuse What’s funny is this time?It’s for a fifteen year old who was M0lested by her father, No arrests were made that time, she even Chastises Dr. Cameron for Expecting he to be able to do anything.

  • lol people in the comment section acting like once a baby is born parents automatically knows how to be perfect parents. Of course there are def. horrible parents but all parents were babies once, and although there are books, programs and whatnot to teach parents how to be parents, people learn to be parents as their baby grows up and learn to be a person too. I’m not saying whatever parents do while learning to be parents are all acceptable and should be forgiven and such but there is a difference between loving parents learning to be parents and just horrible parents. (my personal opinion)

  • Also, isn’t it dangerous to eat too much soy product? Due to the fact that it increases estrogen levels, it has strong links to developing cancers such as breast cancer, and in a child, it can cause early puberty while potentially stunting growth. That’s of course only if you have too much. But since these parents are vegan, they certainly are feeding their baby a LOT of it, such as the tofu. You would think it’s basic logic that a baby would not have the same exact diet as full grown adults.

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