Intra-household allocation and consumption of WIC-approved foods: A Bayesian approach

Abstract

.The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of p r o g r a m i n f o r ma t i o n ( B r a i l l e , l a r g e p r i n t , a u d i o t a p e , e t c . ) s h o u l d c o n t a c t US DA ' s T A RGE T Ce n t e r a t ( 2 0 2 ) 7 2 0 -2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.Iowa State University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, marital status, disability, or status as a U.S. veteran. Inquiries can be directed to the Director of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 3680 Beardshear Hall, (515) 294-7612. AbstractWIC, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, is a widely studied public food assistance program that aims to provide foods, nutrition education and other services to at-risk, low-income children and pregnant, breastfeeding and postpartum women. From a policy perspective, it is of interest to assess the efficacy of the WIC program -how much, if at all, does the program improve the nutritional outcomes of WIC families? In this paper we address two important issues related to the WIC program that have not been extensively addressed in the past. First, although the WIC program is primarily devised with the intent of improving the nutrition of "target" children and mothers, it is possible that WIC may also change the consumption of foods by non-targeted individuals within the household. Second, although WIC eligibility status is predetermined, participation in the program is voluntary and therefore potentially endogenous. We make use of a triangular treatment-response model in which the dependent variable is the requirement-adjusted calcium intake from milk consumption and the endogenous variable is WIC participation, and estimate it using Bayesian methods. Using data from the CSFII 1994-1996, we find that the correlation between the errors of our two equations is strong and positive, suggesting that families participating in WIC have an unobserved propensity for high calcium consumption. The direct "structural" WIC parameters, however, do not support the idea that WIC participation leads to increased levels of calcium consumption from milk.

The Impact of Policy Changes on Milk and Beverage Consumption of Texas WIC Children

“…Much of the existing literature devoted to WIC has focused on food and nutrient intake as well as the health outcome of its target population (Rose, Habicht, and Devaney 1998, Burstein et al 2000, Oliveira and Gundersen 2000, Ponza et al 2004, Siega-Riz et al 2004, Oliveira and Chandran 2005, Ishdorj, Jensen, and Tobias 2008, Yen 2010). A handful of these studies explored these issues using large national surveys such as the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (Cole 2001, Lin 2005, Ver Ploeg 2009), and the Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by Individuals (CSFII) (Rose, Habicht, and Devaney 1998, Oliveira and Gundersen 2000, Siega-Riz et al 2004, Oliveira and Chandran 2005, Ishdorj, Jensen, and Tobias 2008, Yen 2010).…”

Children's Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables: Do School Environment and Policies Affect Choices at School and Away from School?

“…For more on related posterior simulators for such models, see Koop and Poirier (1997), Chib andHamilton (2000, 2002), Tobias (2003), andChib (2007). Ishdorj et al (2008) used a similar model specification in evaluating the effectiveness of the WIC program. comprehensive and up-to-date information on the characteristics of the school meal programs, the school food policies and environments that affect the programs, the foods and nutrients in school lunches and breakfasts, and the role of school meals in students' diets (Gordon et al 2007b).…”

Intent vs. Implementation—Food Allocation to Adult Males in WIC Households

“…This study found increased calorie intake from WIC foods, but not significant differences in calorie intake overall. In 2007, researchers employing Bayesian econometrics found that WIC families harbor unobserved propensities to consume certain nutrients, and that this propensity accounts for previous findings of increased intakes [9]. Families may be selecting into WIC based on pre-existing preferences for WIC approved foods.…”