Progressive policies such as raising the minimum wage , overregulation of businesses, and irresponsible government spending often do the opposite of their intent. Poor citizens, who have a higher birth rate , are most affected in the long run by ensuing inflation.

The grocery bills are the worst of it for big families. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the cost of milk has increased by 25% in just two years. The cost of the average home has increased by 38%.  

For large families, which are often defined as those with four or more children, the impact is causing massive strain. The data show that those with more children are most likely to have less education , and it’s common for the family to rely on one income, making it even harder to stretch increasingly less valuable dollars.

In many locations, there’s been an increase in trips to the local food bank for support, and Facebook groups are wracked with people seeking low-cost meal ideas to feed their large families. As one group member wrote , “We are barely afloat … and have to start picking and choosing which bills to pay.”

In general, low-income households put nearly twice as much toward food budgets as middle-income households, meaning that food inflation affects them in much more significant ways. Those with higher incomes may be strained as well, but they aren’t worried about keeping the lights on.

Larger families, which have become more rare over time , are an important anchor for a society that values them less every year. They also tend to be far more religious than most, which is another component of their positive, non-monetary contribution to society.

They should be top of mind when creating economic policy.

One study found that children who grew up in families with four or more children were more resilient and had higher self-esteem than others. Divorce is also less common in large families, for both parents and children. The double butterfly effect of these statistics affects society in a number of ways, including greater financial and educational success, as well as stronger families and communities as a result.

And for all the talk about empowering women in the workplace, which is good and right when they want it, 56% of mothers with young children say they would “prefer to stay home.” Those with multiple children often have to stay home given the cost of child care, but many planned to do it that way to begin with. As a society, we should want this and empower women equally in this role, as they are doing the holy work of human raising.

But this role is made harder when inflation hits with no end in sight. CNBC reports that inflation has cost families at least $341 extra a month, but this number is much higher for those feeding six or more mouths. Much of this was avoidable. Because of extended pandemic restrictions, the entire production industry was stalled and stunted.

Just as progressive pandemic policies harmed vulnerable children the most by keeping them away from in-person school, so too do their economic policies harm families and the poor today. We can stand behind large and poor families by supporting policies that will help undo this inflationary mess. Decreasing regulatory burdens and needless laws, offering more affordable educational and energy alternatives, and ending much of the wasteful government spending that hampers our economy are positive moves.

Unfortunately, the Biden administration appears hellbent on harmful climate change policies, higher taxes, and regulatory barriers to innovation. As the Heritage Foundation policy experts write , the Inflation Reduction Act is merely raising taxes on firms, which “increases their costs, which fall on households through higher prices, reduced production of goods and services, less investment, lower productivity, and lower wages.”

Democratic presidents of the past, such as John F. Kennedy, who lowered taxes, and Jimmy Carter, who focused on deregulation, no longer exist. It is large families and the poor who will pay the most substantial price for the economic pipe dreams of a failing Biden administration.

Ericka Andersen is a freelance writer living in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is the author of Reason to Return: Why Women Need the Church & the Church Needs Women.