Pity and sadness and horror - and an incredible sense of urgency - are normal reactions when faced with a starving child. I don't mean a hungry child. Hunger is a healthy response. The starving child feels no hunger pangs.

It does not cry either. That's a luxury enjoyed by the healthy. The starving child is past tears and cries - it has energy only for mute appeal.

Starvation means more than just pangs in the belly. It is the terrible agony of a body literally cannibalising its own tissues as it fights off death.