The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) helps pregnant and new mothers, babies and young children get the nutrition they need to grow up healthy. The food vouchers, nutrition education, breastfeeding support and community referrals provided by WIC help ensure that families can meet their children’s nutritional needs – and that the next generation has a strong start in life.

The WIC program is one of the most successful federal nutrition programs, helping improve health outcomes for children and their parents. It reduces low birth weight, boosts vaccine rates for infants and kids, lowers the risk of iron deficiency anemia and improves diet quality — all while saving parents money.

But despite its success, WIC programs in Chicago struggles to reach more eligible families. In 2021, more than 44% of Illinois families that qualified for the program weren’t enrolled, the highest figure in two years. It’s due in part to a lack of awareness and fear stirred up by misinformation. It’s also due to barriers like staffing shortages in some WIC offices, insufficient street advocacy spreading the word about the benefits of the program and limited options for foods that can be purchased with WIC coupons compared to those available at food pantries.

These are just some of the issues facing the nation’s most successful and effective public nutrition program. But WIC is on the move, expanding services and stepping up its game to tackle systemic national challenges — including childhood obesity, high blood pressure among pregnant women, low breastfeeding rates and a growing food insecurity epidemic driven by rising housing costs and a lack of jobs.

Hoda Emam’s report, which was supported by the USC Annenberg Center for Health Journalism, is based on interviews with parents and local advocates across Chicagoland. Its goal is to inform the public and policymakers about the importance of WIC in addressing food insecurity, child poverty and maternal health.

To qualify for WIC, you must be a resident of the state and meet Categorical, Residential, Income and Nutritional Risk requirements. To find the closest WIC office, visit the Illinois Department of Human Services’ website. Then, speak with a WIC professional to see whether you or your children are eligible for the program.