New Justification for State Child Removal: Obesity?

Dr. OZ: From Fan to Fear of His Fanaticism 

I've been a huge fan of Dr Oz. I have watched his show most days and been enthusiastic fan of his efforts to improve people's health through healthier diet, exercise, and his advocacy for alternative or integrative modalities and healing herbs etc.

Yet the more I watch, the more I have witnessed misinformation or incomplete information being passed along to audiences on his fast-paced audience interactive show watched by an estimated 3.7 million viewers.  For instance, he was criticized on Huffington Post and by others for saying that "Type 1 is also called juvenile diabetes and you are born with it" neither of which are true and would certainly need a qualifier to say it effects people of all ages.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, a cardiac surgeon, Vice Chair of the Department of Surgery at Columbia University and medical director of the Integrative Medicine Program, got his start like Dr. Phil: on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Oz, a long-time proponent of alternative medicine who a decade ago brought reiki masters into the operating room, has been criticized by The Times for his connection to the website RealAge.com, which The New York Times has criticized for its pharmaceutical marketing practices, which is odd considering he is very negative toward pharmaceuticals. The site solicits medical information from visitors to determine a visitor’s biological age and then uses the visitor's medical profile for pharmaceutical marketing purposes.

Val Jones, MD, GetBetterHealth.com, joined the crusade against Dr. Oz, saying that he’d descended from “competent and caring cardiothoracic surgeon whose research interest was reducing preoperative stress” to “America’s chief snake oil salesman.”  And, he's been attacked from the far left. Medical marijuana supporters were very upset with his mid-ground statement that it's not "all-purpose healer."

Today's show, however, sent me over the edge:

"If you knew a child was being abused, it is quite likely that you would say something or take action, right?" he asks questioning whether or not Child Obesity, an epidemic of our time, is child abuse or not. 

While trying to appear neutral, Oz clearly gave voice to and supported those advocating having mothers of obese children charged with child abuse and removing their children if they did not avail themselves of help.

His "experts" consisted of someone named Meme Roth, self-proclaimed "public figure" - or as she is often referred to: "Writer, Speaker and Anti-Obesity Advocate MeMe Roth." She is affiliated with [read sole owner, president of] the National Action Against Obesity. And, Ms. Meredith Roth, who prefers the narcissistic abbreviated version of her name: MeMe, was was viral on the Oz program.

 Her facebook page reveals proudly of her invitation to the show: "The producers feared all the experts would be 'too polite' to the parents... They wanted MeMe Roth. as the "matchstick..!" She was a fire-bomb making blatantly incorrect statements such as genetics is bullshit. Note, however, that neither her FB page nor her blog provide any credentials whatsoever. This, in and of itself does bode well for Dr. Oz.

The National Action Against Obesity website, which names Roth its president and founder, is suspiciously silent on the topic of Roth's qualifications to hold forth on issues of health. While Roth's bio page refers vaguely to "members of the NAAO community" who are "physicians, nutritionists and sports trainers, in addition to chefs, film-makers and students," she subsequently admits that, "for the most part, we all consider ourselves concerned citizens." But "we" seems to be MeMe and only MeMe.

Dr Oz's expert meme is not a doctor; not a dietitian or nutritionist; not a medical researcher and may not even hold a bachelor's degree! Shame on Dr, Oz for allowing this young woman to judge mothers and their mothering and tell them their children should be taken away from their for their abuse! My heart was breaking for the children also invited into this circus to be hear this!

His other guests today were pediatrician Dr. Alan Greene of Dr Greene.com, author of "Feeding Baby Green” and Dr Corey Hebert, a practicing physician and talk show host who touts himself as a "renowned healer and motivator" flat out said it's the parents' FAULT.

In addition to my horror at the suggestions of MeMe and Dr. Oz that children's obesity should used as proof of their mother's abuse of them, and they should be removed when all else fails...as if that is not and enough...I have yet another concern about Oz, MeMe, Dr. Herbert and others' hyper attacks on obesity:

Where is there concern for the backlash of eating disorders, another EPIDEMIC facing youth and others?  Never have I heard one word from Dr. Oz, whenever discussing obesity as a health risk, mention the opposite health risk of being too thin, though he did exploit the topic by having on the world's thinnest man and the world's oddest eating disorders, such as chalk eaters!  It's a freakin' side show!!  Bet he'd love to book the "tree man'!

Interestingly enough...Ms. MeMe admitted on the Alan King show that she herself has an eating disorder! BINGO! That explains her extreme obsession with FAT and obesity! Do Oz's producers vet their guests at all?  Obviously they are far more interested in ratings than the health of their audiences! Shame, shame!  No surprises, but shame.

Oz, I believe. like any politicians, started out with good intentions. But he has allowed those who hold the purse strings of his show - and apparently his puppet strings, as well - to turn him into nothing more than the SHOCK JOCK of daytime TV!

AND...there's a poll asking: Is It Child Abuse to Have a Child Who Is Obese?

The NOS are currently ahead by a small margin: 54% to 46%. So cast your vote!