Canadian couple treated 18-month-old son suffering from meningitis with maple syrup and other quack remedies — leaving him in agony for weeks before death

 A Canadian couple allegedly gave their sick infant son maple syrup and other alternative remedies instead of medicine — letting him suffer for weeks before he died of meningitis.

David and Collet Stephan, from Alberta, are now on trial for the death of their 18-month-old boy, Ezekiel. The parents — who run Truehope Nutritional Support, a nutritional supplements company, and openly oppose vaccinations — are accused of avoiding professional medical help while experimenting with homemade quack cures.

The parents have pleaded not guilty to charges of failing to “provide the necessities of life” for their son, who died in March 2012 at 18 months old.

Ezekiel Stephan died after weeks of ailments. He was not taken to a hospital until he stopped breathing.

The couple attempted other treatments — including maple syrup, juice with frozen berries, and a mix of ginger root, apple cider and various vegetables and spices — in hopes of boosting the boy's immune system, the CBC reported. Ezekiel initially showed some improvements, but his ailments dragged on, prosecutors said.
 The couple eventually brought their boy to a naturopathic doctor, who gave Ezekiel a treatment for viral meningitis but never actually examined him, prosecutors said.

The boy again seemed to improve for a few days. But a family friend who is a nurse warned the couple that he needed better care.

“I always say that knowledge is power,” the friend, Terrie Meynders, said Tuesday in the trial’s second day.

“In my mind, if he was sick, it would be helpful to find out why.”

The day after Meynders’ warning, Ezekiel took a nap — and didn’t wake up. He had stopped breathing, and after his father attempted CPR, the couple called 911 — and Ezekiel, for the first time, was taken to a doctor, prosecutors said. But it was too little too late.

The boy turned blue as his parents drove him to help, prosecutors said. He was eventually airlifted to a hospital in Calgary, and died five days later when doctors took him off life support.

The parents run a “Prayers for Ezekiel” Facebook page, which asks for donations for the family and is filled with posts railing against vaccinations and saying the couple is being unfairly persecuted.

The most recent post — said to be written by David — alleges a big business conspiracy against the couple’s alternative meds.

“Since this court case has begun, there has been a great deal of opposition and outright malicious attacks from various organizations, some having pharmaceutical interests and others just having a very strong opposing agenda,” the Tuesday post said.

“My wife and I have come to the point that it is of no affect (sic). Our only desire is that the truth comes out. For those that have been actively opposing us and even sought to hurt us, we forgive you and clear ourselves of the bitterness and hatred.”

The page also includes many posts opposing vaccinations for children.

Collet Stephan with her son Ezekiel.