Obese teen who weighs 238 pounds claims going on a healthy diet will 'ruin his childhood'

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Earlier this year, BBC reported that obesity has been leveling off for children aged 10 years old and below. According to the report by King's College London researchers, obesity rates among children aged two to five years old have been relatively stable at 25 percent, but for six to 10-year-olds, the rate was at about 30 percent. The 11 to 15 age group, however, is still seeing a rise from 26 percent in 1996 to 35 percent in 2003. It has even gone up to 37 percent in the last 10 years.

According to Colin Michie, chair of the nutrition committee at the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, that despite the findings, there are still "lots of problems, particularly among teenagers, who are not easily directed, at a sensitive time in their lives."

"It is a disappointment that even more children are overweight and obese at the end of primary school than at the beginning," Michie explained. "Prevention works better in younger age groups, so we have to focus on cutting calories and encouraging a more active, healthy lifestyle in children."

A 14-year-old named Harry Palmer from Dagenham, who gained popularity through his YouTube channel and on Channel 5's "Danger: Teen Bingers", weighs over 200 pounds and claims that dieting would ruin his childhood, Daily Mail reports.

"Prevention works better in younger age groups, so we have to focus on cutting calories and encouraging a more active, healthy lifestyle in children," Palmer admitted during the show.

"If I lose weight, I will lose weight when I am older," he explained. "I don't think I should ruin my childhood by eating healthy all the time, like salads and stuff. Most kids eat sweets so I should live my childhood and be happy."

His parents, Former England and West Ham footballer Christina and soldier Barry Palmer, both want their son to lose weight to decrease his risk for certain illnesses caused by obesity.

"There's no telling him, he knows better. He doesn't want to lose weight, he's not bothered, he's living his life," Barry Palmer said. "It is frustrating and upsetting, is there any more I can do?"

Palmer weighs more than twice the average for kids 14 years of age, and his BMI is 37.2, which is considered "severely obese," and is also over the limit of 35 allowed for pilots—a job he dreams of having one day. Despite warnings from the doctor, who admits that Palmer is "a trajectory for type two diabetes, an increased risk of gall bladder disease and heart disease", and has an increased risk for stroke, it seems that Palmer is not moved. He determines to keep his lifestyle the way it is.

Tam Fry of the National Obesity Forum and chair of the Child Growth Forum recommends that parents should get their children's BMI measured by a professional and seek dietary advice if in case the BMI is in dangerously high levels. Professional help would enable a child better navigate his way to better overall health.