AJPH
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Purchase Article
Right arrow View Shopping Cart
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Kowaleski-Jones, L.
Right arrow Articles by Duncan, G. J.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Kowaleski-Jones, L.
Right arrow Articles by Duncan, G. J.
Related Collections
Right arrow Birth Outcomes
Right arrow Pregnancy
Right arrow Nutrition/Food
Right arrow Socioeconomic Factors
May 2002, Vol 92, No. 5 | American Journal of Public Health 799-804
© 2002 American Public Health Association

RESEARCH AND PRACTICE

Effects of Participation in the WIC Program on Birthweight: Evidence From the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth

Lori Kowaleski-Jones, PhD and Greg J. Duncan, PhD

Lori Kowaleski-Jones is with the Department of Family and Consumer Studies, University of Utah, Salt Lake City. Greg J. Duncan is with the Institute for Policy Research, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill.

Correspondence: Requests for reprints should be sent to Lori Kowaleski-Jones, PhD, Department of Family and Consumer Studies, University of Utah, 225 S 1400 East, Room 228, Alfred Emery Bldg, Salt Lake City, UT 84112–0080 (e-mail: lori.kowaleski-jones{at}fcs.utah.edu).

Objectives. This study sought to estimate the impact on birthweight of maternal participation in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).

Methods. WIC estimates were based on sibling models incorporating data on children born between 1990 and 1996 to women taking part in the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth.

Results. Fixed-effects estimates indicated that prenatal WIC participation was associated with a 0.075 unit difference (95% confidence interval [CI] = –0.007, 0.157) in siblings' logged birthweight. At the 88-oz (2464-g) low-birthweight cutoff, this difference translated into an estimated impact of 6.6 oz (184.8 g).

Conclusion. Earlier WIC impact estimates may have been biased by unmeasured characteristics affecting both program participation and birth outcomes. Our approach controlled for such biases and revealed a significant positive association between WIC participation and birthweight.






HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 2002 by the American Public Health Association