Marcia Biggs:

Many neighborhoods in Venezuela have always been poor, but people here say they got by with help from the government. In the last couple years, they say things have changed.

Gutierrez says the free box of food from the government only comes once a month, and only lasts the family around two days.

In a nearby slum, Edward and his brother tell me they forgo school every day to go to the dump to look for food.

What did you find in the trash?

"I found a piece of cake," 12-year-old Edward tells me, "but it didn't sit well. I had a stomachache for a week."

He says the food he got that time was bad, but that, most of the time, the food is good, so he keeps going back to the same place where they throw the rubbish to get food.

In their slum, we saw signs of malnutrition everywhere, distended bellies from a lack of protein, stunted growth, diarrhea, as well as preventable diseases, like scabies.

Children across Venezuela are facing a crisis from every angle, food, health, education, and violence, leading to fears of a lost generation and a bleak future for the country.

One immediate impact? Classrooms across Venezuela are emptying out, as families leave or decide they can't afford the transportation, the uniforms, or enough food to send their children to school. And those who remain are often too hungry to learn.