Living below the poverty line much tougher than you'd expect

Morgan Tait. Photo / Natalie Slade

Reporter Morgan Tait took the Live Below the Line Challenge in support of the Aotearoa Development Co-Operative (ADC), which provides microfinance for poverty-stricken entrepreneurs in Burma and Malawi

Day 1

In order to get more bang for my buck I have decided on a repetitive diet of banana and oats for breakfast and a soup made of frozen vegetables, soup mix and tinned tomatoes to be eaten with a potato for lunch and dinner every day. I ate my allocated dinner portion while my flatmates enjoyed a delicious-smelling goat curry and caramelised apple crumble.

Day 2

My morning run was a battle - it took me 15 minutes longer than usual and I had to endure the fitness shame of walking up, but running down, Mt Eden. I did enjoy a surprisingly delicious cookie made from nothing but a tablespoon of sacrificed banana and oats from breakfast, though. My flatmates are having spicy Chinese chicken with rice noodle salad and steamed fresh vegetables.

Day 3

I had a very broken sleep last night, so woke up tired and with no energy to go to the gym. Making cupcakes to sell to colleagues to raise money for my chosen charity is a special kind of torture. I raised $150 from selling them, though. Am experiencing caffeine withdrawal and really struggling to concentrate/do anything by 3pm. I have stopped being in room while flatmates have dinner.

Day 4

I'm so tired this morning, despite going to bed much earlier than usual. My cocoa butter body wash has never smelt so edible and I actually filled a cup with coffee just to inhale the scent. I struggled so much yesterday that I brought all my day's food with me to work so I can concentrate. All my food is eaten by 2.26pm - I am officially out of oats and potatoes. I went to bed at 8.30pm.

Day 5

I nearly fainted at the gym this morning, but am grateful I saved my last egg to make the soup into something resembling an omelette for breakfast before coming to work early in a desperate attempt to busy my hunger away. I had a banana for lunch, soup for dinner and headed home for a crazy Friday night of bedtime at 8.30pm. I'll be dreaming of anything but oats, potatoes and soup, but also mulling over the fact that my complaints over the past five days are insignificant compared to what 1.2 billion people face every day.

What Morgan ate and an experts view

On the menu

3 x 400g canned tomatoes $2.40

Soup mix 250g $1.95

Frozen veges 500g $2.29

5 x bananas $1.16

3 x eggs 75c

500g rolled oats $1

2kg potatoes $1.60

Salt and pepper 10c

Total: $11.25

Nutritionist Elaine Rush says:

"You are eating about 40 per cent of the energy you would need. There are five main nutrients that you are missing: Vitamin B12, calcium, zinc, selenium and iodine. Potatoes and oats were a good choice because they have iron, but iron is far more soluble from red meats.

"If you did this all the time you would have malnutrition. It brings it home that you just can't do it, and particularly that you are a young woman of reproductive age because if you conceived while doing this you're going to impact how that baby develops - if you don't have enough money to buy or produce the right foods, it's going to impact the next generation.

"It makes you appreciate how we can get food relatively easily compared to other parts of the world."

• Elaine Rush is a Professor of Nutrition at AUT