Childhood obesity = child abuse?

Click on this link to read a column by Esther Cepeda (7-17-11) that cites an American Medical Association opinion that parents who allow their kids to grow very fat are engaging in a form of child abuse. For earlier article (USA Today, 7-23-09) that discusses how the courts have handled this question, click on this link. Does the government have a right/obligation to protect children from fatness-enabler parents?