Mohammed Arbrar, the world's heaviest child from Pakistan, who weighs 196 kg at just ten years old will undergo weight loss surgery in a bid to save his life.
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His parents have revealed that despite weighing just 3.6 kg at birth, Mohammed started quickly gaining weight, since he has had an insatiable appetite: he was always hungry as an infant and would drink two litres of milk.
"He weighed eight pounds at birth but his weight never stopped growing. He used to drink two litres of milk when he was only two years old. It was like his stomach never filled up. He always cried for more food. It was very difficult for me to even carry him. We had to make a special swing and a bed for him to change nappies", his mother said.
Even though Mohammed's parents made a decision to never allow him eat junk food, he easily consumed meals meant for four adults.
"We had never heard of obesity. When he was a baby, he was beautifully plump and we were proud of his frame. By the time he was six years old, he was already 15 stones and ate meals meant for four adults", his father revealed.
Concerned about his constant hunger and growing weight, the parents took him to several doctors to find a medical solution to the problem, but even strict diets wouldn't help because Mohammed failed to follow the regimen due to his appetite.
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Finally, two months ago they found the country's best-known bariatric surgeon, Dr Maaz ul Hassan, who told them how to bring Mohammed's weight down to normal, namely by reducing the size of the stomach using a gastric band.
"We struggled a lot finding the right treatment for him. We never lost hope of getting medical help. I am happy that finally Abrar will get the operation he needs to help him live a normal life. We understand that he has a disease of eating too much food and he needs to be treated differently. I am sure he will lose weight just like Dr Maaz's other patients. I am hopeful that with proper diet and exercises and activities like swimming and sports, he will one day be a normal weight", his mother said.
Mohammed is set to undergo an hour-long laparoscopic sleeve surgery on Friday, after which he will have to be on a liquid diet of buttermilk, chicken broth, and fruit juice.