Maternal Smoking and the Timing of WIC Enrollment

Abstract

We investigate the association between the timing of enrollment in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and smoking among prenatal WIC participants. We use WIC data from eight states participating in the Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System (PNSS). Women who enroll in WIC in the first trimester of pregnancy are 2.7 percentage points more likely to be smoking at intake than women who enroll in the third trimester. Among participants who smoked before pregnancy and at prenatal WIC enrollment, those who enrolled in the first trimester are 4.5 percentage points more likely to quit smoking 3 months before delivery and 3.4 percentage points more likely to quit by postpartum registration, compared with women who do not enroll in WIC until the third trimester. Overall, early WIC enrollment is associated with higher quit rates, although changes are modest when compared to the results from smoking cessation interventions for pregnant women.

The impact of WIC participation on tobacco use and alcohol consumption

“…We drop any observation where this match could not be completed. Such classification is also warranted given that only a small fraction of WIC participants sign-up in the last trimester (Yunzal-Butler et al, 2010).…”

“…However, data for a restricted sample of women in North Carolina suggested that smoking prevalence for women on WIC during pregnancy was greater relative to women who enrolled in the program postpartum. Yunzal-Butler et al (2010) used similar WIC enrollment data for the period 1995-2004 and showed that postpartum smoking rates were somewhat higher for women who signed up for WIC by the first trimester, but lower for women who enrolled in the second trimester. Our study contributes to the literature by evaluating the effects of WIC enrollment on risky health behaviors.…”