Overweight Girl Gets Dirty Looks And Cruel Comments From Strangers Who Have No Idea What's Behind Her Weight Gain

READ ALSO: Little Girl With Rare Illness Performs With The New York City Ballet

One of such disorders is septo-optic dysplasia. It can cause eye problems, intellectual disability, and underdevelopment of the pituitary gland. However, not every person affected by the disorder has all three of these key features.

The disorder is quite rare; it’s estimated to affect 1 in 10,000 children. One of these children is Emily Heap, a preschooler from Northampton.

Emily’s intelligence is unaffected – she’s just as smart as any girl her age. But she has vision problems and gains weight uncontrollably despite her strict diet. Her pituitary gland, one of the glands that regulate hormones responsible for fat storage, isn’t just underdeveloped – it’s missing. The girl was born without it.

Olesia Bilkei / Shutterstock.com

READ ALSO: Sweet Revenge: Fat-Shamed Teenager Came Up With The Genius Payback On The Spot

Emily’s parents, Emma and Robert, have been getting dirty looks because of their daughter’s weight.

Speaking to PA Real Life, Emma said:

Until recently, [Emily] had struggled to walk, partly because of her size, but also because she has low muscle tone.

We had to take her around in a pram and people were always judging her as just being too fat to walk. None of this is Emily’s fault – there’s nothing we can do to stop her body piling on weight.

The mom also said she’s worried about her daughter’s risk of diabetes and heart disease.

Another Emma’s fear about her daughter’s future is her having to face bullying. She said:

I do worry about when she is a little bit older, in case other kids start being horrible to her. She’ll be judged by the outside world, because of her size. I know it will happen and there’s nothing I can do about it, other than give her as much strength as I can.

belchonock / Depositphotos.com

Emma and Robert are doing everything they can to give their daughter the best life she can have.

Emma has made an amazing start to her #pituitary #charity #fundraising - her beautiful daughter Emily has the same condition as @KatiePrice's son Harvey.
Let's help her raise as much as possible. #RT for #awareness https://t.co/rEjUnuu1py

— Pituitary Foundation (@Pituitary_org) December 9, 2017

They’re involved with the Pituitary Foundation. Earlier this year, Emma ran a half marathon to raise money for the nonprofit.

We hope people in Emily’s future won’t judge her by her appearance. She deserves better!

READ ALSO: Robert Downey Jr. Visits His Seriously Ill Young Fan And Makes His Unusual Wish Come True