"Infant JAne" SULTZE - 14 Months - Appleton WI

Appleton, Wis. parents Christopher and Mary Sultze found themselves
charged with felony child neglect for allegedly intentionally keeping
food from their infant daughter in an effort to keep her from becoming
obese.


Each of the Sultzes was charged with one count of felony child
neglect, and if they’re convicted, each could serve a year in prison or a
$25,000 fine. They were released on bail but not allowed to see their
young daughter. Mary Sultze has been accused of child abuse before when
she plead no contest to misdemeanor battery because she bit one of her
daughters after the girl had bitten her sister.


The starved infant was born in July of 2010 and weighed eight pounds,
but when doctors finally convinced her parents to take her into the
hospital at 14 months of age, she weighed only 13 pounds. Doctors told
her parents she was failing to thrive, but her parents said they had no
idea why the girl was not gaining weight.


The couple, said prosecutors, were frustrated at the doctors’
questions about the girl’s weight, insisting they fed her normally.
Multiple reports state that both parents were irritated by the
questioning, insisting their other children grew slowly, and this one
would gain weight later.


After the couple were convinced to put their daughter in the
hospital, the baby gained eight ounces in one day. No other causes for
her failure to thrive were found when she was examined.


While the family was in the hospital, Christopher Sultze was
overheard saying he was worried the child would become fat while she was
admitted, and he didn’t want an obese child. A doctor and a social
worker questioned him, and he said the family follows a low-cholesterol
diet because he had surgery to correct a blocked artery when he was 25.


Sultze was overheard saying multiple times he was afraid his daughter
would “get fat” while in the hospital, and he wanted to take the girl
back home against doctors’ recommendations. Babies need a high-calorie
diet in their first year of life because that is when they grow the
most. Babies usually double their weights within six months and triple
it within a year. Calories and fat are vital to an infant’s survival in
the first year to 18 months of their lives.


Attorney Brandt Swardenski said Mary Sultze waived her right to a
preliminary hearing so she could be released on bond to care for her
other three children.


“I have serious reservations about whether there’s any criminal
activity here or just misguided parenting intentions,” Swardenski said.
“This is a case where we need to reserve judgment until we learn more
details on exactly what occurred.”
http://www.imperfectparent.com/topics/2011/11/18/parents-starve-baby-fear-future-obesity/