constant battle
Katie Price reveals son Harvey steals frozen pizzas and eats them raw in desperate search for food
KATIE Price has revealed her son Harvey steals frozen pizzas and eats them raw in his desperate search for food.
The mother-of-five shared the distressing news as she detailed the extent of his recent weight gain, which has soared to nearly 29st.
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Harvey, 18, has a condition which makes him crave food.
Doctors have warned he is at serious risk of a heart attack if he does not lose weight urgently.
Katie, 42, admitted her eldest son has been known to steal pizzas at home and eat them from frozen.
Katie explained: “I tell him he’ll die and he says, ‘No, don’t be silly, Mummy’s only joking’.
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"He doesn’t understand. He’s always been a big boy, always been chubby, but now it’s ridiculous.
“His clothes are 7XL, there are only two shops on the internet where I can get clothes for him.
“He walks up the stairs and he’s sweating and out of breath."
The reality star went on: “I’m really upset and worried about Harvey’s weight because now it’s on, the damage is done.
What is Prader-Willi syndrome?
PWS is a genetic condition that can impact muscle tone, sexual development and the function of the nervous system.
As well as this, those with Prader-Willi syndrome are more likely to have learning difficulties.
Often, it also sparks a constant desire to eat food and a permanent feeling of hunger which leads to child obesity.
However, the syndrome is very rare, with estimating that it affects "no more than one in every 15,000 children born in England".
describes the medical characteristics of the condition as:
• Hypotonia: weak muscle tone, and floppiness at birth.
• Hypogonadism: immature development of sexual organs and other sexual characteristics.
• Obesity: caused by excessive appetite and overeating (hyperphagia), and a decreased calorific requirement owing to low energy expenditure levels, although obesity is not normally a feature of those whose food intake is strictly controlled.
• Central nervous system and endocrine gland dysfunction: causing varying degrees of learning disability, short stature, hyperphagia, somnolence (excessive sleepiness), and poor emotional and social development.
“People say to me, ‘Why don’t you just not let him eat?’ but they don’t understand.
“He’ll smash things or headbutt the walls if I say no to him.
“But there is no time to wait, he has to lose weight now.”
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Harvey is autistic and struggles with an excessive appetite caused by his genetic condition Prader-Willi Syndrome.
“It’s a cruel illness. He feels hungry all the time,” she told The Sun.
“Every time I feed him, it’s killing him.
“Even though it makes him happy, it’s cruel of me to do it.
“He needs to lose weight or he’ll end up dead. He doesn’t deserve that. I don’t want to lose him.
“He’s only 18, he’s got his whole life ahead of him. I will do anything to help.”
Katie has brought up Harvey alone since birth after being abandoned by his dad, ex-Manchester United footballer Dwight Yorke.
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Vulnerable Harvey was admitted to hospital in July with breathing problems and a high temperature.
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Katie was told he was at risk of organ failure and a coma, and feared he was having a heart attack.
Harvey did not test positive for Covid-19, but spent ten days in intensive care due to the “complex” nature of his medical needs.
Devastated Katie Price reveals 'it’s only a matter of time' before Harvey's obesity causes him to die of a heart attack
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