Venezuelans 'forgo' brushing their teeth due to economic recession

As Venezuela's economic downturn worsens, many Venezuelans are struggling to get their hands on even the most basic personal hygiene products, such as toothpaste, The Washington Post reports.

Many Venezuelans can no longer afford toothpaste. A tube of toothpaste in the country now costs the equivalent of half a week’s salary for many workers, as inflation has reached 700%. (Source: Pixabay.com)

“I always like to brush my teeth before bed. I mean, it’s a given, right? Now I have to choose between brushing my teeth in the morning or at night because I can only choose one. So I can only brush my teeth in the morning,” said Ana Margarita Rangel, a worker who lives in one of the slums 25 miles west of Caracas.

It is known that Rangel earns about 97,531 bolivars per month, which according to the official exchange rate of Venezuela is about 70 USD but according to the market value is actually only 12.53 USD (equivalent to nearly 285,000 VND).

Ana Margarita Rangel earns minimum wage working in a cosmetics factory in the Caracas suburb of Guarenas. Photo: The Washington Post

But the currency is rapidly falling in value and inflation in Venezuela is expected to reach 1,500% this year, leaving Rangel and the 32% of Venezuelans earning the minimum wage unable to afford basic hygiene products like toothpaste, as well as other basic necessities like food and medicine.

The Venezuelan government has set price ceilings on basic food products like pasta, rice, and flour, but people are forced to line up for hours in hot weather to buy them.

Like millions of Venezuelans, Rangel has cut herself off from key protein sources with a diet of chicken, beef and fruit, even though she and her three children all have jobs.

“We always end the meal talking about all the things we can’t have anymore. I don’t spend my afternoons cooking anymore because I don’t have any meat or vegetables to cook,” she said.

A recent report found that more than 15% of Venezuelans are forced to scavenge as a means of survival, while the majority go to bed hungry.

Another resident of Rangel’s neighborhood, Rainer Figueroa, 30, told The Post he had to stop playing soccer because he needed to conserve calories. Having lost nearly 25 pounds in the past six months, he now eats just two meals a day and feeds his three children.

Daily protests are now taking place across Venezuela calling for elections against the dictatorship of Nicolas Maduro. In particular, a race in Runrunes, where at least 108 people have been killed since the opposition began protests in April, was massacred by police using cannons and rubber bullets./.

According to Dan Tri