New WIC food rules: More whole grains bought, but not eaten

A group of researchers from the University of Illinois set out to evaluate the impact of the changes to the WIC food packages in participants of the Chicago Family Food Survey. A natural experiment was conducted to assess if the changes made to WIC food packages had immediate impact (in 6 months) on dietary intake, food availability and other various life-style measures. Six months after the new rules were implemented modest changes were observed including increased fruit intake among Hispanic mothers and increased low-fat dairy intake among Hispanic mothers, Hispanic children and African American children. Availability of low-fat dairy and whole grain foods in homes increased yet changes in food availability were not correlated with changes in dietary intake. Dietary changes varied by racial/ethnic group in this sample that was comprised of Hispanic and African American mother-child dyads. 
Public Health Nutrition. [Epub April 2, 2013] (Odoms-Young et al.)