A large group of these people are having a revenue problem, not a spending problem
I walked out of college in the Great Recession with a 900/month student loan debt and paying 500/month for rent in the shittiest apartment in the area with two roommates. I could only get minimum wage jobs that would send you home if you ever got close to full time so you didn’t get benefits. Working 50-60 hours a week got me about 1400-1700 a month before tax. I frequently had to steal food if I wanted to eat even every other day and healthcare was completely out the window. There was no improving that situation by being more careful about spending because there was nothing to cut. That was paycheck to paycheck with zero luxuries and not even all the necessities