She considered herself an extreme vegan
A Philadelphia woman is now facing child endangerment charges after her 11-month old son was found to be severely malnourished and suffering from a rash so bad that it affected his motor skills.
According to the boy’s father, the mother was so obsessed with special diet and that’s what drove her feeding choices to her child.
The family grew concered
The boy’s father, Jerry Hawk is separated from wife Elizabeth Hawk, and finally got so worried about his 11-month-old son that he brought him directly to child welfare authorities himself.
“She was going to live on water and sunlight,” said Brandy Hawk, the boy’s aunt, told KDKA of her sister in-law’s extreme vegan lifestyle.
According to both police and relatives the infant was fed only small amounts of berries and nuts.
His rash was so bad!
Brandy Hawk said she became concerned when she would visit with her young nephew after noticing a rash he had developed.
“He had a severe rash,” said Brandy. “It was his motor skills; he couldn’t use his hands at all.”
Brandy says that Elizabeth told her it was just ‘allergies.’
According to KDKA the boy couldn’t even crawl because it was so bad.
‘Obsessed’
When Jerry Hawk brought his son to CYS telling them his estranged wife was ‘obsessed’ with her vegan diet they immediately rushed the infant to Ruby Memorial Hospital in Morgantown, West Virginia.
“He said, ‘I gotta save my kids,’” Brandy said.
Inhumane
According to court records, doctors found that the infant’s rash was so bad that not treating it was deemed “inhumane.”
They also stated that by not treating the rash the mother had put her son at risk for developing septic shock as he was scratching at his skin so bad.
In addition his lack of growth was at a failure to thrive rate, with developmental delays occurring as a result of his lack of nutrition, according to KDKA.
He’s on the road to recovery
The infant, along with his two older siblings, is now in the care of his father as his mother faces child endangerment charges, and is thriving.
“He’s doing great,” said his aunt. “He’s turned completely around.”
Here’s hoping he doesn’t suffer any long term affects from this.