Earlier prenatal care - WIC is intended as a community resource to increase knowledge of programs in the community available to our population. We are a referral program and assist our participants in finding and making connections to the meet the needs of our population.
Reduced health care costs - Preventative measures are the source for improving health and decreasing the need for healthcare resources over time. WIC provides nutrition and health information to assist participants in supporting a healthy lifestyle with balanced diet and exercise.
Improved nutrient intake - through nutrition education, WIC identifies primary nutrients that are important to promote health in pregnant and postpartum women, infants and children. We provide food to incorporate all of these nutrients into the daily eating habits of our participants as well as nutrition education to explain the reasons these nutrients are necessary. WIC works with participants to meet the needs of varying cultures while still encouraging these key nutrients.
Increased immunization rates - WIC encouraged participants to immunize their children. We provide support for local resources, such as the Montgomery County Immunization Program, to offer information to those entering our doors as to the importance of their free or low cost services. WIC records health/immunization records in their database from the Health Care Provider's office to ensure that the immunization records of all of our participants are permanently documented.
Decreased anemia - WIC provides hemoglobin screening. This test is to measure levels of hemoglobin, which can be an indicator of varying types of anemia, levels of Folic Acid, levels of Iron or energy levels of individuals. Using the results, Nutrition staff can discuss with participants factors in their personal lifestyle that can lead to measured levels, as well as ways to modify their intake to improve hemoglobin levels.
