Almost three quarters of Italian families consider themselves poor, an economic think-tank said on Thursday.
Presenting the results of a poverty survey, the Institute of Economic Studies and Analyses (ISAE) said 74% of families in the country felt they did not have enough money to lead "a dignified existence".
Respondents defined such an existence as one in which they were just able to afford the bare necessities of life.
According to national statistics bureau Istat, 11.1% of Italian families live at or below the poverty line, put at 936 euros a month for a family of two.
But ISAE said a person's perception of being poor began at much higher income thresholds - 1,300 euros a month for singles, 1,800 euros for couples and 2,000 euros for couples with children.
ISAE said the number of families who felt poor had grown substantially since 2003.
The report was certain to rekindle a long-running 'euroflation' row.
Many Italians say prices have shot up since the January 2002 switch from the lira to the euro, eroding the buying power of wages and pensions and leaving families struggling to make it through to the end of the month.
A recent ISAE poll found that the vast majority of consumers, regardless of age, income or profession, perceive inflation as having increased by at least 25% per year since 2003.
ISAE noted the contrast with official data put out by Istat showing a 10% rise in inflation over the same period.
Consumer rights' groups say the prices of many items doubled after the euro's introduction, with retailers, restaurants and others treating one euro like the old 1,000 lire - instead of almost 2,000 old lire.
But statisticians and economists are equally convinced that the euro changeover has had only a small impact on inflation.
Istat has staunchly defended the credibility of its data while maintaining that the methodology used by independent researchers claiming a soaring inflation rate is unscientific.
Official statistics show that Italian families are increasingly in debt.
The Bank of Italy reported last week that household indebtedness hit 493 billion euros in March, an increase of 11% over the same month last year.
