This study used data from nine states that participate in the Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System to address limitations in previous work. Studying the effects of the WIC Program, results suggested that the WIC effect in improving infant health exists, but on fewer margins and with less impact than has been claimed by policy analysts and advocates.
The researchers examines the relationship between WIC and Food Stamp Program participation on young children's health and mistreatment outcomes. Their analysis used a unique individual-level longitudinal database that linked administrative datasets on WIC and Food Stamp Program participation, Medicaid enrollment and claims, and child abuse and neglect reports in Illinois. Based on the findings, receiving WIC benefits and Food Stamps, jointly or alone, was associated with less child abuse and neglect; was inversely related to the incidence of health problems among low-income children; and was associated with lower risk of being diagnosed with anemia, failure to thrive, and other nutritional deficiencies. For several outcome measures, stronger associations were found among study participants enrolled in WIC.
This study investigated the differences between children ages 1 to 5 in the Texas WIC Program who had improved anemia statuses and those who did not. Non-improvers were more likely to be those children who were younger, who lived in families with four or more children, who ate fewer snacks, and who never ate dried fruits. More parents of non-improvers incorrectly believed that their child had improved.
This report provided information on the new methodology developed by the National Research Council to estimate rates of eligibility and participation in the WIC Program. The new methodology provided more accurate estimates of the number of people eligible for WIC. The report estimated that 13.5 million individuals were eligible for WIC and that 7.7 million participated in WIC in 2003.
This brief summarized two recent ERS-sponsored studies that provided new assessments of nutrient intakes of WIC children, income-eligible children not participating in the WIC Program, and children ineligible for WIC.
The five summaries in the Nutrition and Health Characteristics of Low-Income Populations series highlighted key findings of the multi-volume Nutrition and Health Outcomes Study. The summaries examines the nutritional and health status of Food Stamp Program participants, WIC participants, school-age children, and older Americans.
This paper evaluated the skepticism that WIC research failed to properly control for selection into the WIC Program, using rich data from the national Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System. The authors showed that relative to Medicaid mothers, all of whom were eligible for WIC, WIC participants were negatively selected on a wide array of observable dimensions, yet WIC participation was associated with improved birth outcomes.
Data from the Wisconsin Childhood Lead-Poisoning Prevention Program were analyzed to examine the distribution and trends in elevated blood lead levels among WIC-enrolled children from 1996 until 2000. According to the study, higher blood lead levels were seen among WIC-enrolled children. And, although statistically not significant, the rate that blood lead levels declined among WIC-enrolled children was greater than the rate among non-WIC-enrolled children.
This research was designed to establish a baseline from which to monitor the nutritional and health characteristics of WIC participants and non-WIC participants over time. Because of age-based variations in the survey protocols and small samples of pregnant and postpartum women, data were not consistently available among women, infants, and children. The richest datasets were available for children, and datasets were most limited for pregnant women.
Using data from the 2002 Feeding Infants and Toddlers Study (FITS), the researchers examines the nutrient intakes, foods consumed, and feeding patterns of infants and toddlers participating in WIC. Results found that infants enrolled in WIC were less likely to have been breastfed, compared with other US children. Significant numbers of WIC and non-WIC toddlers did not consume enough fruits and vegetables.
