A controversial Puerto Rican bill that is proposing to fine parents of obese children has sparked outrage, with obesity researchers describing it as "unbelievable" and "unfair."
The bill, which would fine parents up to $800 if their obese children fail to lose weight, aims to improve children's well-being and help parents make healthier choices, Sen. Gilberto Rodriguez said in a statement issued on Monday. Public hearings for the bill are scheduled to begin Friday, NBC News reported.
"What's next? Will they be fining parents of children suffering from other diseases? Maybe diabetes? Maybe cancer? Maybe something else?" said Nikhil Dhurandhar, who chairs the department of nutritional sciences at Texas Tech University.
In an attempt to curb obesity in Puerto Rico, the bill will require public schools to find children who are obese and refer them to a counselor or social worker, depending on the severity of the case.
After the potential obesity cases are passed onto health department advisers, officials will then have to determine the cause of obesity, meet the parents, formulate a diet and exercise plan and follow up every four weeks to ensure that it's being followed.
Following a treatment of six months, parents can face up to $500 worth of fines if the "situation" continues to persist, according to the bill, ABC News reported. If a third progress report six months later still shows no significant weight loss, the parents can be fined up to $800.
However the bill's main problem lies in its assumption that obese people can simply choose not to be obese anymore, Dhurandhar said, adding that his own research has shown obesity can be caused by a multitude of factors, including the environment in a mother's womb, too much or too little sleep and chemicals in the environment.
"There's more to losing weight than eating less and moving more," he said.
"This proposal is very unfair and inappropriately penalizes and stigmatizes parents," said Rebecca Puhl, deputy director of the Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity at the University of Connecticut. "Childhood obesity is a highly complex issue, and while the home environment is important to address, much broader societal changes are required to effectively address obesity."
The fines this senator has proposed "drastically oversimplify obesity and are more likely to be harmful than incur any benefit," she said, adding that policies that support parents would be much more helpful than policies that penalize them.
Meanwhile, more than 28 percent of children in Puerto Rico are considered obese, compared with some 18 percent in the U.S. mainland, where childhood obesity is defined as having a body mass index or above the 95th percentile for children of the same age and sex, according to the Associated Press.
