Eight Years Old and 217lbs: Connor McCreaddie's Struggle

They've always got the child's best interests in mind, or do they? At what point can someone who, by profession only, come into your home and remove a family member based on their opinion and definition of child abuse. For British eight-year-old Connor McCreaddie, this is a real concern.

Clocking in at 218lbs, three times higher than what it should be, McCreaddie already has a difficult time walking from the strain on his knees. It's symptoms like this that have some crying "child abuse".

Being taken into protective care is said to be a last resort, but according to an unnamed health official, the family hasn't been taking the necessary steps to prevent it. Missed appointments with social worker, doctors and nutritionists have largely gone unattended.

According to Dr. Colin Waine, the director of the National Obesity Forum in Nottingham, England, Connor is at risk of developing diabetes in his early teens, and cardiovascular and nervous system problems in his twenties.

"He's really at risk of dying by the time he's 30," Waine said.

The problem is easily diagnosed. McCreaddie's diet is anything but healthy. It consists almost solely of junk food such as chips and chocolate. According to Nicola McKeown, Connor's mother, the kid just won't eat anything healthy. In fact, fruits and vegetables are Connon's kryptonite.

This brings us to a new point- Nicola McKeown's ultimate roll in all of this. She loves her child so much and has done almost everything she can within the boundaries of her heart. However health officials have classified her actions as possible neglect. She claims that pleas for help have been heard but not followed through.

"Taking him away from his family when he needs them to help him would be, I think, disastrous for Connor. I think it would make him worse."

Finding help for Connor goes beyond his physical needs. Mentally, he's had to deal with self-esteem issues as well as routine abuse from fellow school kids. Behavior like this has led some adolescence deeper in self-destruction, and sometime suicide.

Connor's exercise routine is non-existent.