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2 - WIC Turns 35: Program Effectiveness and Future Directions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2012

By
Barbara Devaney
Edited by
Arthur J. Reynolds ,
Arthur J. Rolnick ,
Michelle M. Englund  and
Judy A. Temple
Arthur J. Reynolds
Affiliation:
University of Minnesota
Arthur J. Rolnick
Affiliation:
Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis
Michelle M. Englund
Affiliation:
University of Minnesota
Judy A. Temple
Affiliation:
University of Minnesota
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Summary

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides supplemental foods, nutrition education, and social service and health care referrals to low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women; infants; and children up to age 5 who are at nutrition risk. The WIC program is based on the premise that many low-income individuals are at risk of poor nutrition and health outcomes because of insufficient nutrition during the critical growth and development periods of pregnancy, infancy, and early childhood. It is a supplemental food and nutrition program to help meet the special needs of low-income women, infants, and children during these periods. WIC provides three main benefits to participants: (a) supplemental foods; (b) nutrition education, including breastfeeding promotion; and (c) referrals to health care and social service providers.

WIC began as a pilot program in 1972 and was authorized permanently in 1974 (P.L. 94–105). Since then, WIC has become a key component of the nutrition safety net provided for low-income Americans. Today, WIC functions as a vital link in America's public health efforts to ensure that all of the nation's children have the resources they need to thrive. About half of all U.S. infants and a quarter of all U.S. children ages 1 to 5 receive WIC benefits.

The WIC program has been the focus of numerous and varied evaluations. In general, these studies show WIC to be effective, although several methodological issues have been raised about the existing research.

Type
Chapter
Information
Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life
A Human Capital Integration
 , pp. 29 - 48
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2010

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References

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