A vegan food powered by a toddler is so malnourished that it has no teeth, said the Court

The girl, who was taken to the hospital after having a seizure in March 2018, was fed strict diet herbal, which left her malnourished and was suffering from an illness avoidable bone.

The girl's height and weight of 4.89 kg was significantly below her age at the time of her hospitalization. She had not seen a doctor since the days that followed her birth.

The former foster mother of the girl said that when she first met the little girl, she could not sit, roll or hold her own bottle then that she was almost two years old.

The girl was lying on a hospital bed "with tubes covering her tiny body".

"I remember thinking how terrifying it was (for her)," said the caregiver in a statement read in court.

The toddler continues to stand out as being different, she said.

"When she meets new people socially, they always ask her about her age and are shocked at how small she is."

The preschooler, who is now almost three years old, is technically obese because her height – that of a one-year-old child – is so disproportionate to her weight.

"It's as if her body was storing calories in case she needed it in the future," said the caregiver.

After leaving the hospital, the girl had to go every day to an appointment with a health professional. She also had to have her blood tested at least once a month.

"As she ages, she (her blood tests) is increasingly in distress," said the caregiver.

"She's starting to scream now."

On Thursday, the court heard testimony from psychiatrists who disagreed on whether the mother was suffering from postnatal depression at the time of neglect.

Father's lawyer, Frank Coyne, said his client was busy at work and thought the toddler was in good health. His partner was the main caregiver, he said.

"She decided that the diet of the house (…) is not and was not vegetarian or vegan," said Mr. Coyne.

Prosecutors then criticized this claim, noting that the father had lied to the medical staff about the baby's development during his transfer to the hospital.

Judge Sarah Huggett also responded to the suggestion that the toddler appeared to be in good health.

"She did not work and did not speak," said the judge.

"There was a considerable period of time during which he did nothing … he did not take the child himself to a doctor."

Each parent is liable to a maximum penalty of five years imprisonment.