The federal government 's Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program currently helps feed more than half the babies in the U.S.  It pays about $35 monthly to 8 million people (who are at or slightly above poverty) nationwide for such groceries as juice, eggs, milk, and cheese.  

   As suggested by the Institute of Medicine, WIC may now pay slightly less for those products and allow for fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to be introduced into our homes at the same cost.  

   The WIC program has not been updated since 1980.  Yet, with the advances in science and nutrition, our escalating obesity epidemic, and better food availability, the government is stepping in to set a healthy trend in society. 

      This directly correlates with my recent blog about our new fruit and vegetable slogan "Fruits and Veggies - More Matters."  "In low-income neighborhoods, those are really nice kind of luxury treats that a mother could bring home through WIC," said Geri Henchy, director of early childhood nutrition at the Food Research and Action Center.  

      A few of the proposed changes in  the WIC program include: $6 worth of fruits and vegetables for children and $8 for women, whole grain bread added to the list with possible substitutions of corn tortillas and brown rice (reflecting ethnic diversity), and a decrease in juice from 9 ounces daily to 4 ounces daily for children 1 through 5.  

   WIC encourages breastfeeding by allowing more food to those moms.  Breastfeeding moms will see an increase in the amount of canned tuna to 30 ounces and have an option of canned salmon.  Canned tuna and salmon are packed with protein, low in fat, convenient, simple and even nostalgic. 

   The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposed the changes to the WIC program on Friday and final approval is expected next year.  
      
                     

   Keep your fingers crossed!