Country struggles to end force-feeding of girls - Obesity seen as attractive, a sign of wealth

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http://www.suntimes.com/news/world/344055,CST-NWS-maur17.article

April 17, 2007
BY RUKMINI CALLIMACHI

NOUAKCHOTT, Mauritania -- Mey Mint struggles to carry her weight up the flight of stairs. It will take several minutes for the 50-year-old to catch her breath, air hissing painfully in and out of her chest.

But her rippling flesh is not the result of careless overeating -- it's tradition. In Mauritania, obesity in women has long been the ideal, signaling a family's wealth.

Mint was 4 when her family began to force her to drink 14 gallons of camel's milk a day. By the time she was 10, she could no longer run.

''My mother thinks she made me beautiful. But she made me sick,'' says Mint, who has diabetes and heart disease.