By Nadia Ramlagan
Public press service

A federal nutrition program for low-income moms and babies now includes canned fish and beans, whole grains like quinoa and cornmeal, and more money for fruits and vegetables.

Theda Simpson, a former participant in the Metcalfe County Special Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants and Children, said she was counting on the funds for additional help to pay for extra formula for her daughter and her sons, who suffered from milk allergies as infants. She found out about the program through the local health department and stressed that it was a lifesaver in keeping her children from going hungry.

“I hope every mother will learn about it, know the program and be able to access and get the help they need to be able to feed their children,” Simpson said.

Under the new changeschildren ages 1-4 will now receive $24 per month, pregnant and postpartum women will now receive $43 per month and breastfeeding women will now receive $47 per month, under recent updates from the USDA.

Research has shown that the WIC program helps improve pregnancy outcomes, including reducing the incidence of premature births, infant mortality, and low birth weight babies.

Karena Cash, director of data and research for Kentucky Youth Advocates, said WIC does not reach every available mother or mother-to-be in the state, although advocates have worked to reach more households, particularly in Latino communities and among kinship caregivers. Data shows that two in five eligible families do not participate in the program.

“About 96 percent of Kentucky infants are in school, while only about 60 percent of women and 51 percent of children ages one to five are eligible,” Cash reported. “We’re seeing some pretty significant discrepancies.”

Tanya Torp, executive director of the Lexington nonprofit Step By Step serving young single mothers and their babies, said a major obstacle is the lack of understanding among grocery stores about how WIC and benefits work. products covered by the program.

“For us, being able to work with certain stores is going to be very important,” Torp explained. “Train store employees so they are able to help when someone comes in and asks about WIC.”

Advocacy groups have developed a online toolbox for communities and local leaders, as well as professionals serving young children, to help raise awareness of the WIC program. Nationwide, more than 6 million women and children rely on WIC each month.