Overview
- A new Dons Solidaires barometer estimates about 4 million people in France cannot afford essentials like soap, shampoo and toothpaste.
- Budget strain shows up in daily choices, with nearly half cutting hygiene purchases and 8 million choosing between food and these items, including some women turning to makeshift menstrual care.
- The tally has risen by more than 1 million people since 2019, signaling a sharp expansion of hygiene precarity.
- Impact falls hardest on vulnerable workers and single parents, with 42% of working poor giving up items and 60% of single-parent households restricting purchases.
- Frontline services are stretched, with a Marseille solidarity grocery reporting emptied shelves and Restos du Cœur seeing more requests for costly adult diapers.