The parents of a 23-month-old boy fear their son could eat himself to death after being diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder which means he is constantly hungry.
Geezer Buxton, is one of a handful of youngsters in the country to be diagnosed with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). It means the toddler, from Chesterton, Staffordshire, wants to eat anything he can get his hands on and has no ability to realise when he has had enough.
Those suffering from PWS usually experience compulsive eating and an obsession with food usually begins before the age of six.As well as having an insatiable appetite, sufferers can also have slow physical and emotional development, as well as learning difficulties.The condition affects one in every 15,000 children born in England every year.
Geezer - named after Black Sabbath bassist Geezer Butler - was diagnosed with PWS when he was three weeks old after doctors were concerned about him being floppy and unresponsive. Although he is making good progress, he is yet to utter his first word and has only recently started to crawl.
Geezer’s parents Michelle Sargeant, 43, and Craig Buxton, 39, are concerned for their son’s future because he may never be able to live an independent life. Ms Sargeant said: 'When he was born I had to have a C-section, he was taken into intensive care and wouldn’t feed properly for ten days.
'He was fed through a tube before we were allowed to take him home.Around three weeks later we were given the diagnosis of PWS. 'If you saw him today, you would think he was a normal toddler, although he can’t speak properly or stand due to his low muscle tone.
'After finding out about his condition, I went online to speak to other parents regarding the condition, they told me their stories, such as having to lock foods away and their children eating strange things. 'That doesn’t happen with every child, it can happen, but it doesn’t mean it will, Geezer isn’t at that stage at the moment but we will have to keep a closer eye on him in the next year.
'I can’t imagine him being unsupervised, when he gets older he would need adult supervision all the time to monitor his food because they need less calories due to the muscle tone and them not burning as much as others. 'The condition can be a bit like Pica in some ways, which is publicised in the news where children eat absolutely anything at all.
When he is older and he has friends and go out with them it will be hard for him but like I said hopefully there will be an adult with him at all times.
WHAT IS PRADER-WILLI SYNDROME?
Prader-Willi syndrome is a rare genetic condition. It causes a constant desire to eat, dangerous weight gain, restricted growth, reduced muscle tone, learning disabilities and behavioural problems. It affects on in every 15,000 children born in the UK.
Children with the condition will eat three to six times more than other children and will still want more. There is no cure but the condition itself is not life threatening. However, people with the syndrome often develop obesity related conditions such as type 2 diabetes and heart failure. “If he does begin to eat everything and anything, we will have to watch him like a hawk to control his weight, as it can be a very dangerous condition to have.
'It is a scary thought of him being on his own because he could one day eat so much that his stomach ruptures. He could eat himself to death. 'My other three children don’t have the condition so we do feel quite bad for them as we are spending most of our time with Geezer taking him to and from hospital.
Mr Buxton, a self-employed barber, added: 'When he was born, he actually stopped breathing four times. He was also really floppy, he couldn’t even hold his neck or arms up. 'It was a really worrying time because the doctors didn’t know why this was happening. We were told he had a 50 per cent chance of surviving.
'They had to take a blood sample and when the results came back, we were told he had this rare syndrome.
'Although it is a genetic disorder, in most cases it is not hereditary so it can happen to anyone.'
The couple are now fundraising for the PWS Association UK.
Michelle, who works as a part-time nurse, added: 'With the continued research in genetics and PWS, we remain positive about the future and hope that our little boy will be able to lead a happy and healthy life.'
Relatives of other PWS sufferers have told how their loved-ones have dangerously over-eaten as a result of the disorder.
In 2011 two-year-old Alfie Mazeika scoffed down an entire three-tiered wedding cake as it was about to be served at a reception in Durham. In June 2012, 20-stone Jade Hall needed round-the-clock care from her family in Cambridgeshire after almost binge-eating herself to death.
The 20-year-old could 'eat a 12-course meal', and frequently munched on soap and dog biscuits.
Last year five-year-old Zach Tahir, from Greater Manchester, had to be monitored by his mother after eating window blinds and plaster off the walls.
No comments:
Post a Comment