Sarah Anne Markham, 23, is facing charges of child neglect after she allegedly refused to take her newborn baby to a hospital despite the child being dehydrated and underweight. The police reported that the reason was that Markham is a vegan and objected to the formula prescribed by the doctors.
The arrest was triggered by a report from a pediatrician who told Markham that her baby needed to be hospitalized for treatment to address the low weight and dehydration issues. Markham instead went home and then refused to open the door when police arrived. According to the police report, the officers proceeded to call a locksmith to enter the apartment where they found Markham who insisted that she wanted to get a second opinion form a “vegan doctor.” Police also report that Markham said that she would not give the formula/medicine that the doctor provided because she believed that some of ingredients came from animals. She is also quoted as saying that she purchased organic soy formula and, when asked by the officers how she knew that it was safe for a newborn, she allegedly said that if Whole Foods Market sells it then the formula doesn’t contain any animal parts and, therefore, must be safe.
While she agreed to take the baby to the hospital, police said that she waited an hour and was then placed under arrest. Her baby was placed into state custody.
The case could raise the question of where to draw the line between parental authority over nutrition and child welfare. Presumably, a child can be raised on a vegan diet and develop in a perfectly healthy way. The courts tend to accept the view of doctors when they concluded that a child is at risk. However, vegans insist that babies can be raised on a vegan diet. I would think that vegan parents have a legitimate objection for prescribed formula on the grounds that the product contains animal residue or ingredients — just as religious diets are given accommodation. In this case, the report of the hospital will be key to any prosecution and there could be a contest of experts on the degree of dehydration and underweight readings.
Source: ClickOrlando
I’m with Amy regarding a vegan diet for infants. In addition to being deficient in B12 and other vitamins, vegan babies also become deficient in fatty acids.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19748244
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/21/opinion/21planck.html?_r=0
That said, the mother in the story should also be tested for fatty acid and micronutrient deficiencies to see if such things are affecting her. I hope she gets compassionate treatment.
There was a mother, well she gave birth anyway, who killed her 5 kids. This was maybe 10 years ago? She tried to blame it on depression. The jury didn’t buy it.
Huntsman in 201 with two unidentified individuals, has reportedly admitted to giving birth and strangling or suffocating all of the children between 1996 and 2006 http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2603887/Mother-accused-killing-seven-newborns-storing-bodies-boxes-garage.html
Nick – post-partum depression is a real thing and dangerous to the children.
The issue of veganism specifically came up for two reasons:
1) the mother insisted on one particular kind of formula because it had to be vegan. She was not open to trying different formulas until they hit on one that worked.
2) she refused to take her infant to the ER because she wanted to get a second opinion from a “vegan doctor”. You don’t need a second opinion about serious dehydration in a newborn. It’s pretty difficult to misdiagnose that.
Although her infant was so dehydrated she was instructed to get her admitted to an ER within the hour, the mother was still insisting on one vegan formula and consulting a vegan doctor.
It made her appear like she cared more about avoiding animal products than making sure her infant survived.
It has been pointed out that the birth might have triggered some psychiatric issue, or post pardum depression. Something isn’t right, and I hope they find out what’s wrong.
If cows could, they’d give milnot.
In this particular case, it doesn’t sound as if the infant was receiving ANY nourishment, let alone vegan nourishment.
Here’s the key: If a Vegan diet will work for an infant, it needs to… you know… WORK. If it doesn’t leave the baby undernourished and dehydrated… NO FOUL. Yeesh, how hard is that?
What happened to this infant is tragic. However, the only reason it’s getting so much attention is because of the vegan aspect, which is unfortunate, because this really seems to be an issue of poor postpartum support. Based on the descriptions of the mother, something is not right. None of her behaviors make sense, and her reactions do not seem typical or expected. Perhaps it’s an issue of postpartum depression, or she had a preexisting condition, but she needs help, and so does her infant. She obviously didn’t know how to care for her baby, and a vegan diet isn’t to blame for that.
For the record, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the American Academy of Pediatrics state, “Well-planned vegetarian and vegan eating patterns are healthy for infants and toddlers.”
http://www.eatright.org/kids/article.aspx?id=6442459333
The key words are “well-planned”–it’s not rocket science, but it does take some thought.
“Perhaps it’s an issue of postpartum depression, or she had a preexisting condition, but she needs help, and so does her infant”
Apparently there are some new studies that indicate that what had been thought of as postpartum depression may include farm more complex symptoms and may be far more widespread among mothers with newborns than previously believed.
Well maybe man boobs serve a purpose after all.
I am a volunteer trainer for 23 La Leche Leagues.
Nick Spinelli
Doctors give the BEST service to babies. They give the WORST service to the elderly. The reason is liability. A doc is on the hook for millions of $’s if they screw up w/ a baby. They are out chump change if they screw up w/ an old person. This is really basic stuff.
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Thirty watt bulb huh?
And when two doctors testify to the opposite conclusion using their expert opinion in court, on the same set of facts, what is their liability?
That happens every day (Why Trial By Jury?).
It is the same with police … so they switched to SWAT team mentality to make sure they were right.
Far right.
Eric
Dredd: “The police decided unilaterally which doctor had it right (the only one consulted who contacted them) without judicial involvement.”
Police normally have a duty to intervene when there is an urgent safety consideration.
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What determines normally?
And what of their duty to not do false arrests and incur liability?
Are you aware of “the law of when”, or are you just spouting off?
Study due process much?
Can you cite the law she was accused of breaking?
Thought so.
I think I’ve got a post in wordpress hell.
Karen S:
Holy cats! 12 days after birth and the infant was still losing weight instead of gaining it! I’m surprised she survived.
This arrest was yesterday, so I suppose that’s still an open question.
Karen, I didn’t comment on the police or their actions. Fact is, it’s a good thing they intervened. My comments were addressing what I perceive to be a possible cause of the problem – ignorance that can be addressed. My point is that it is entirely possible that this young woman didn’t understand the seriousness of her child’s condition. Was she suffering from depression? Was she subjected to ridicule for being a vegan, therefore suspicious that the dr. was trying to put one over on her? I don’t know. We don’t enough about her. I don’t believe she was deliberately trying to hurt her child. The consequences should be a probation that includes education about caring for her infant and monitoring by someone who is also knowledgeable about vegan.
I tend to stay away from soy, mainly because it’s one of the products, along with corn and alfalfa, that’s mostly GMO. It would have to be organic.
Bettykath, I restored your comment at 2:51.
https://www2.aap.org/breastfeeding/index.html
This is the website my grandson’s pediatrician recommended to my daughter. My daughter also got excellent information from her lactation consultant.
Paul – I appreciate how kind you are to the mom, giving her the benefit of the doubt. I do hope it was a matter of new-mom-obsessing and poor information, that she accepts some education, and learns how to be a better mom.
Because kids do not fare very well in foster care.
Where is the dad?
Paul:
“One of the truism i have learned is that some women are nuts with their first child.” This is so true. It reminds me of the commercial where a new mom makes a kid cover herself in hand sanitizer before holding her baby, but has a greasy mechanic hold her second baby while she fishes for something in her purse.
I have real concerns over what is going on with her. As you’ve pointed out, many first time moms are very fussy with their babies. No matter what feeding method they choose, if a pediatrician says get your baby to the ER within the hour, they would be hurtling towards the car at mach 5.
I hope they evaluate her and educate her if she is simply misguided or over-zealous. Send her home with a baby scale. Show her how to check for dehydration. It’s too late for her to start breastfeeding now, without medication.
I hope she realizes the risk she took with her baby by being overly zealous about animal products, and puts her baby before her philosophy.
Correction: should be 12lbs.5 oz @ my 1:08 PM comment. He was also 24.5 inches long, he was 22 inches at birth. This is how a healthy baby grows.
Does she have an objection to breast milk as well? Even a vegan would seemingly have to admit that this is the most natural food for a human infant, even though it technically comes from an animal.
Doctors give the BEST service to babies. They give the WORST service to the elderly. The reason is liability. A doc is on the hook for millions of $’s if they screw up w/ a baby. They are out chump change if they screw up w/ an old person. This is really basic stuff.