This report details the important effects that the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has on very young children. The report highlights Children’s HealthWatch research that WIC not only improves children’s health but reduces their risk of developmental delays.

“Nutritious food is good medicine. WIC, of all the federal nutrition programs, is the only one that is firmly grounded in the medical model; it’s based on up-to-date scientific evidence and on relationships between clinicians and clients. Many families tell me that their experiences at the WIC office have felt like they were “going to the doctor”– like they were doing the right thing for themselves and their children. Families often share with me nutrition information they learned from the WIC nutritionist. As someone who struggles daily to help babies recover from serious malnutrition, I cannot say enough about WIC as a crucial component of both prevention and treatment of nutritional risks in America’s children.”

–Dr. Deborah A. Frank, Boston University School of Medicine
Director, Grow Clinic for Children, Boston Medical Center