What is the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program?

From the Guidelines

The Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program is a discretionary federal program that provides nutritious foods, nutrition education, and healthcare referrals to low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, as well as infants and children up to age 5 [ 1 ].

Key Components of WIC

• The program serves approximately 7 million participants every month to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children [ 1 ].
• WIC participants are pregnant women, breastfeeding women (up to the child’s first birthday), nonbreastfeeding postpartum women (up to 6 months postpartum), infants (up to their first birthday), and children up to their fifth birthday [ 1 ].
• The program has been shown to reduce excess weight gain in pregnant and postpartum women, improve birth weight of infants, and reduce childhood obesity [ 1 ].

Benefits and Eligibility

• To be eligible, applicants must meet income guidelines, which vary by state, and be at nutritional risk, as determined by a healthcare professional [ 1 ].
• Once enrolled, participants receive a monthly benefit to purchase specific foods, such as milk, eggs, cheese, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and infant formula [ 1 ].
• The program also offers nutrition counseling and education on healthy eating habits, breastfeeding support, and referrals to other healthcare services [ 1 ].

Administration and Funding

• The program is administered by the US Department of Agriculture and is available in all 50 states, as well as US territories [ 1 ].
• The WIC program has a strong commitment to increase breastfeeding among its participants, providing counseling, peer support, enhanced food packages, and access to breast pumps to support the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding [ 1 ].

From the Research

Overview of the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program

• The WIC program is a federal nutrition assistance program in the USA that provides food benefits and nutritional and breast-feeding support to low-income pregnant or postpartum women, infants, and children at nutritional risk 2.
• The program serves as an important first access point to health care and social service systems for many limited resource families, serving approximately half the births in the nation 3.
• WIC provides nutrition education, growth monitoring, breastfeeding promotion and support, and food to low-income pregnant or postpartum women, infants, and children aged <5 years 4.

Goals and Benefits of the WIC Program

• The program aims to promote lifetime health for women, infants, and children by providing nutrition education, breastfeeding promotion, and referrals 3.
• WIC helps achieve national public health goals such as reducing premature births and infant mortality, increasing breastfeeding, and reducing maternal and childhood overweight 3.
• Participation in the WIC program is associated with many positive outcomes, including improved birthweights and childhood dietary practices 5.

Eligibility and Enrollment in the WIC Program

• Approximately 17% of all women surveyed were eligible but not enrolled in WIC during pregnancy, with varying participation rates by state 4.
• Eligible nonparticipants had higher prevalences of markers of risk for poor maternal or infant health outcomes than ineligible women, suggesting that many eligible women and their children might benefit from WIC services 4.
• Strategies to improve enrollment and retention rates in the WIC program include utilizing data to check adjunctive eligibility, increasing public awareness, implementing a centralized smartphone app, and streamlining the use of technologies for online applications and remote communication 2.

Breastfeeding Support in the WIC Program

• Despite WIC's policies that encourage breastfeeding, the program allocates only a small percentage of its budget toward breastfeeding initiatives, with formula expenses accounting for a significant portion of its expenses 5.
• Research shows consistent success with peer counseling programs among WIC participants, but little money is budgeted for these programs 5.
• The American Academy of Nursing Expert Panel on Breastfeeding recommends a shift from formula bargaining to an investment in structured peer counseling programs to support breastfeeding among WIC participants 5.