PETALING JAYA: Rising food prices have left children from low-income families in Kuala Lumpur with fewer than three meals a day, as families try to cut back on spending due to the escalating cost of living.
The rise in living costs and financial constraints have also forced many such breadwinners (nearly 40%) to work longer hours and even cut back on food consumption and spending on non-food items, according to a United Nations-backed study on 755 households in 16 low-income flats in Kuala Lumpur.
About 52% of the children surveyed ate fewer than three meals a day, compared with 45% before the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Children are disproportionately affected by the prevailing circumstances, with a significant portion of them enduring food insecurity, a situation that has intensified since the pandemic,” the Living on the Edge: Longitudinal Study on Post-Covid-19 Impact Assessment Among Low-Income Households in Kuala Lumpur report found.
This nutritional deficit extends to children in female-headed households and those in households led by persons with disabilities, highlighting the universality of the challenge, it added.
Malaysia announced it had entered a Transition to Endemic Phase on April 1, 2022, although the Covid-19 pandemic has not been officially declared over.
The UN study aimed to find out how these families, whose median incomes are near RM3,000 per month, are coping with the rise in food prices and other living costs since the pandemic.
“Children, most of whom have health problems, also eat less with one out of every two eating less than three times a day,” the study said.
The households have been part of a series of earlier studies in May 2020, September 2020, December 2020 and March 2021, which tracked the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and its lockdowns on low-income families.
Eight out of 10 households said they are struggling to earn enough to meet their daily needs, as compared to the pandemic era when seven out of 10 reported experiencing this hardship.
“The majority of households (90%) say they are affected by the rise in the cost of living, especially food prices, with about 50% saying that they are financially worse off than in 2022.”
Six in 10 households, including those headed by women and persons with disabilities, cited high prices as a major obstacle hindering their ability to offer nutritious meals to their children.
Two in 10 respondents cited time constraints and the affordability of fast food as further obstacles for families in providing nutritious meals to their children.
“Dietary habits have undergone notable changes, characterised by increased consumption of eggs, rice, and instant noodles.
“Approximately seven in 10 households now report spending more on eggs – the most affordable protein source – compared with 52% during the pandemic.
“Similarly, seven in 10 households also indicated increased spending on rice compared with the four in 10 during the same period,” it said.
The consumption of unhealthy food options also rose, with 46% turning to instant noodles compared with 40% during the pandemic.
The financial pinch has taken a toll on their mental health, with three in four households admitting that the rising cost of living had affected them mentally.
“Depression rates have worsened. The proportion of households reporting feelings of depression increased from 21% in September 2020 to 28% in October 2023.
“This trend remains consistent for female-headed households, with rates hovering around 28% to 29% during this period, although there was a notable increase from 22% in March 2021,” the report said.
The report also provided six key suggestions as a mitigation measure.
These include care allowance for all children from before birth until the age of two, allowance for the disabled, more social aid and increasing awareness on sexual, reproductive and mental health.
