Hungrytown, USA

According to recent sensational press reports:
" More than a million children regularly go to bed hungry in the US, according to a government report that shows a startling increase in the number of families struggling to put food on the table.
President Obama, who pledged to eradicate childhood hunger, has described as "unsettling" the agriculture department survey, which says 50 million people in the US – one in six of the population – were unable to afford to buy sufficient food to stay healthy at some point last year.
The report said 6.7 million people were defined as having "very low food security" because they regularly lacked sufficient food to eat. Among them, 96% reported that the food they bought did not last until they had money to buy more. Nearly all said they could not afford to eat balanced meals".

What is unclear from these alarming reports is the question of whether these people are actually suffering from hunger or malnutrition?
Hunger is defined as: feeling the need to eat, appetite, or great desire for , a physiological need for food; the consequence of food deprivation
starve: be hungry; go without food.

On the contrary, malnutrition is defined as:
inadequate nutrition: a lack of healthy foods in the diet, or an excessive intake of unhealthy foods, leading to physical harm.

So, there seems to be a little confusion and sensationalism going on here. Gauging by the higher incidence of obesity in the impoverished minorities, it is evident that the problem is not of hunger but of malnutrition. Its not that there is a lack of quantity of food ( calories), but rather a problem with quality ( macro and micro nutrients).

Because it is possible, (even for the poorest of the poor on food stamps: getting under four dollars per day) to get 2000 calories a day at McDonald's eating exclusively off the Dollar menu. Or on a high fat, high sugar diet of highly processed food which can be cheaply obtained from the corner store. (Trying to buy fresh fruits and vegetables? Forget it.)

Of course, this calorie-dense nutrient poor food is great at preventing hunger, but it is leaving one fifth of America malnourished.

Here's my question for McDonald's and Burger King: How can give away so many calories for for a buck and still make a profit? Maybe you could teach us how to make healthy wholesome food affordable for all!