" Experts say the poor state of the average British diet -- often high in fat, salt and calories, but low on nutrition -- means malnutrition is a problem even though food is plentiful. "

" "You can't always tell if a person is malnourished with your eyes," said Dr. Marinos Elia, a professor of clinical nutrition and metabolism at Southampton University. "People may be eating too much food, but they may not be eating enough fruits and vegetables." "

" Dr. Alastair McKinlay, a gastroenterologist and chairman of a British malnutrition action group, put it bluntly: "There's a widely held misconception that if you're fat, you can't be malnourished." "

" Some experts even contend that the food rationing system during World War II offered Britons more nutrition than what they're eating today. From 1939-45, Britons got books of coupons, which they traded in for limited amounts of items like flour, milk, eggs, meat and canned fruit. "

" "Rationing was a huge success because it ensured that if you got your allotted amounts, you got a nutritionally reasonable diet," said Dr. Colin Waine, chairman of the National Obesity Forum. "I'm not advocating a return to rationing, but it was a more balanced diet back then." "

" Despite the unlimited food supply today, Waine said people don't always make the right choices. "

" Many nutrition experts believe the number of malnourished Britons is closer to 4 million, about 6 percent of the population, than the government's estimate of 2 million. "

" Most malnourished people have a chronic illness like AIDS, cancer or tuberculosis. In the last five years, according to the Department of Health, the number of hospital-identified malnourished patients has risen by more than 40 percent, though experts say that is largely due to heightened surveillance rather than a dramatic jump in cases. "

" There are no statistics on how many obese people may be malnourished, but doctors say they are seeing patients who are both overweight and malnourished. According to
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