Online petition calls for malnourished son of anti-vaxxer to be returned home

Updated 22 May 2017, 5:34pm

Supporters of a prominent anti-vaxxer whose disabled and malnourished young son was taken by family services have launched an online petition to have him returned.

Documents obtained by the ABC show the four-year-old boy, whose family lives in Newcastle, was severely underfed and was at immediate risk of serious harm.

The mother of the boy had been feeding her son a cannabis oil and plant-based diet and missed critical medical appointments, the documents show.

Supporters say the boy’s mother has been treated as a criminal for feeding him naturally and the petition has been signed by 23,000 people.

Emergency physician Dr Sue Ieraci said the case highlights the dangers of when anti-vaxxer groups prey on families who are desperate.

“What I’m seeing is a vulnerable family who need a lot of support with a very disabled child, who have somehow fallen into the arms of the anti-vaccination movement,” Dr Ieraci said.

She said a battle was now being waged between the family of the boy, who has cerebral palsy, and the public health system.

“It seems to be that the child is getting thinner and thinner and the family seems to be rejecting the standard medical treatment that has kept him relatively healthy all these years,” she said.

“It seems like there’s become a battle between the family and the medical system that is not benefiting the child.”

Dr Ieraci said it was the online anti-vaxxer community that had fuelled debate over the young boy’s health.

“It’s very easy, as you know, on social media to stir up hysteria,” she said.

“They’re constantly urging people to share and spread messages around.”

‘You’re not taking my child. Over my dead body

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-05-22/petition-calls-for-anti-vaxxers-malnourished-son-to-return-home/8547506