Hefty Trick-or-Treaters May Want to Avoid This House - East Idaho News
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Hefty Trick-or-Treaters May Want to Avoid This House

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Getty 103013 TrickorTreat?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1383161240909Photos.com/Thinkstock(FARGO, N.D.) — A North Dakota woman is causing quite a buzz over her intent to hand out letters instead of treats to children she deems “moderately obese,” on Halloween.

The admonishment to parents is speckled with grammatical errors and states, “You child is, in my opinion, moderately obese and should not be consuming sugar and treats to the extent of some children this Halloween season.”

The letter surfaced after a woman, known only as “Cheryl,” called in to a local Fargo radio station and said she hoped other parents would take her lead.

“Cheryl’s” identity has not been authenticated, nor has the letter. But in its content, written on letterhead that includes a jack o’lantern with a devilish smile, “Cheryl” also lashes out at the community over the child-obesity epidemic, “It takes a village to raise a child [and] I am disappointed in this village of Fargo Moorhead, North Dakota.”

ABC News’ chief health and medical editor, Dr. Richard Besser, agrees that the unidentified woman’s approach is extreme.

“This is an act of cruelty,” Besser says. “Choose not to participate in trick or treating if you have a problem with the focus on candy, or hand out healthy snacks instead. To stigmatize a child in this way is simply cruel.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

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