December 15, 2007
Young families get a healthy start with WIC foods. (YKHC File Photo)
20 Years of WIC:
Helping Delta families get a healthy start
This year the Women, Infant, and Children Program (WIC) celebrates 20 years of providing food and nutrition education to YK Delta families.
The YKHC WIC Program has seen an unprecedented growth in 20 years. In 1988, the YKHC WIC Program had a caseload of 400 participants and a staff of two, with part-time CHRs providing assistance for outreach in the villages. In March 2007, the Delta's caseload was 2,470 and a staff of six.
The caseload growth represents a 69 percent increase in the number of participants served by the YKHC WIC Program in the Delta. Caseload growth and expansion in services has been achieved in the most cost-effective manner, mindful of the strict grants management guidelines established by the US Dept. of Agriculture.
YKHC's WIC Program has the lowest per participant cost at $17.89 in the Federal Fiscal Year 2006, while the statewide average per participant cost for rural programs was $26.
WIC is an important part of health care. It helps prevent nutrition and health problems and improves the nutrition and health of WIC participants in three ways-by providing nutritious foods for health, encouraging regular health care, and promoting good nutrition through education.
Nutrition education is an important part of the WIC program. Although people are only on WIC for a short time, the information they get from WIC lasts a lifetime. By learning about good nutrition from WIC, participants make changes in the way they eat. These changes help them stay healthy and feed their families long after being on WIC.
The YKHC WIC Program serves about 2,400 participants a month. WIC works closely with village vendors to make sure they are stocked with the foods WIC provides. In villages that don't offer WIC foods in the store, WIC sends boxes of food to WIC participants each month.
We are very proud of the positive impact WIC has in the health outcome of participants served. Among these are the reduction in the incidence of iron-deficiency anemia, baby bottle tooth decay, obesity, and diabetes. WIC increases immunization rates through referrals and improves a child's growth and development. The program also helps promote increased consumption of fruits and vegetables and is credited with increasing the number of pregnant women who seek prenatal care thereby enabling a healthy pregnancy and birth outcome. p
WIC at a Glance
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is a supplemental food program that serves a population during critical stages in life. WIC provides healthy foods, nutrition education, and referrals to other health and social services to clients for free.
Who is qualified for WIC?
- A woman who is pregnant, breastfeeding, or just had a baby
- A child who is between the ages of 1 and 5
- An infant up to 1 year of age
What are the requirements to be eligible for WIC?
- Meet income guidelines
- A State residency requirement (live in Alaska)
- Be individually determined to be at "nutrition risk" by a health professional
- A person or family member who participates in certain other programs (Food Stamp Program, Medicaid) automatically meets the income eligibility requirement.
How long will one be certified for WIC?
- A pregnant woman will be certified through pregnancy and up to 6 weeks after birth or after pregnancy ends.
- A breastfeeding woman will be certified until the baby's first birthday.
- A non-breastfeeding postpartum woman will be certified up to 6 months after the birth of an infant or after pregnancy ends.
- A child will be certified up to their 5th birthday. A child will need to be recertified every 6 months.
- An infant will be certified until he/she turns one year old.
What food does one get on WIC?
- Foods provided by WIC include: iron-fortified infant formula, infant cereal, iron-fortified adult cereal, fruit or vegetable juice, eggs, milk, cheese, peanut butter, dried beans or peas, tuna fish, carrots, and salmon.
How does one receive food from WIC?
- WIC warrant can be picked up at the clinic in Bethel.
- WIC warrants can be mailed to the client.
- Warrants can then be used to buy food from approved WIC vendors.
- A WIC foods box can be mailed from Fred Meyer in Anchorage. This usually takes about 1 to 2 weeks.
Nutrition Themes
An important part of WIC, Nutrition themes provide a consistent message that is behavior specific. They also emphasize the need to reduce overweight and obesity among Alaska children. WIC has four nutrition themes a year. WIC's nutrition theme for October through December is "Family Meals & Breastfeeding: The Heart of Good Eating."
Some points to consider:
- Infants who are only fed breast milk the first six months have the best start to healthy eating
- Young children fed at the family table have better eating, self-feeding, and language skills
- Family meals help communication and build relationships
- Family meals help children eat better
