Debating Parental Responsibility for Childhood Obesity: Ethical and Legal Considerations

Abstract

Childhood obesity is a complex, multifactorial problem requiring great scrutiny before judgment is rendered on parental accountability. In several states, legal action has been taken against parents for neglect when well-meaning authorities reported children's diagnosed severe obesity to social services. The aim of this paper is to view childhood obesity through a lens of the ethical principles of social, distributive, and procedural justice. Further, the aim is to debate whether responsibility for childhood obesity is shouldered solely by parents and caretakers, or shared communally as a matter of public health.