Signs posted in the checkout lines at Hillsdale’s Kroger and the Wal-Mart in Jonesville announced low-income Michigan families who rely on the Women, Infants, and Children’s Nutrition Program are no longer able to purchase 2 percent or whole milk through the program.
The change, which is being implemented in all 50 states after a national policy decision, is part of a broader campaign by WIC to reduce child obesity among the impoverished. While mothers of 1-year-olds will still be able to receive whole milk through the program, food packages for mothers with children two years of age and older will now only offer skim, one-half percent, and 1 percent milk.
President and CEO of the National WIC Association Douglas Greenaway said the federal rule establishing the program revision was published on March 4, with state implementation to take place between May 5 and Oct. 1. In Michigan, the policy went into effect Sept. 15.
The signs hung at Kroger and Wal-Mart alerted Hillsdale residents of the change beginning in early September.
The woman in charge of coordinating this change regionally is Kim Wilhelm, Prevention Services director at the Branch-Hillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency. Wilhelm, who works in Coldwater, said more restricted food options can help ensure that low-income families eat healthy meals across the board.
“Anything that has more fat and calories leads to more obesity,” Wilhelm said. “So we’re just trying to do what we can to give foods with just as much nutritional value but without the calories and fat.”
While 1-year-olds require a diet richer in fat for proper brain development, Wilhelm explained, fat becomes less important and more dangerous by the time a child turns two.
Wilhelm also said that exceptions can be made for families with sick or underweight 2-year-olds who may need a diet higher in fat.
“Sometimes there’s a medical condition, a failure to thrive, and the child just needs the extra calories,” she said. “With a doctor’s order, we can put that in their food package.”
The balancing act between giving families more options and promoting smart eating choices can sometimes cause dissent among members of the program. According to Jen Agar, a customer service manager at Kroger, this restriction caused some customer complaints when it was first implemented in mid-September. Since then, however, families have gotten used to the change.
“In the beginning it was a problem, but nothing since,” Agar said.
Health Officer Steve Todd also expressed confidence that this change would not adversely affect members of the community.
“We understand that this will be new for some families, but we’re giving lots of support and information to help them make the change,” he said in a press release Oct. 28.
For Wilhelm, reconciling families to the policy change was simply a matter of educating them about the nutritional decisions in question.
“We really haven’t received too much opposition,” Wilhelm said. “When people sit down and listen to the reasons, they tend to be okay with it.”
WIC has also distributed online pamphlets to help families deal with the transition, offering advice and answering common questions. For example, the Michigan FAQ page advises parents with children who dislike lowfat milk to “make the change gradually,” reassuring them that their family is “more likely to accept the change if you make it one step at a time.”
The pamphlet also suggests that parents have a “taste test” with their children, and use lowfat milk in recipes.
“Often, if children are used to drinking 2 percent milk, they can’t tell the difference between the taste of 2 percent and 1 percent milk,” it says.
Ultimately, WIC officials hope that changes like these will help curb America’s obesity problem by preventing children from becoming overweight.
“Hopefully we’ll see a reduction in our kids that are coming in that are obese or overweight,” Wilhelm said.
