The
Vermont WIC Program
The Vermont WIC program serves half of
all pregnant women and infants in the
state, and about 35% of all Vermont children
under the age of five. Most Vermont WIC
participants are white and live in rural
areas. To overcome food access problems
resulting from lack of transportation
and major supermarkets in many of Vermont's
villages and towns, WIC food packages
are home-delivered to participants weekly.
This unique, effective and popular food
delivery system does not require more
than one interim visit for nutrition education
between certification appointments, and
thus necessitates more opportunities for
participants to self-educate.
Goal
The primary goal of Fit WIC Vermont is
to increase active physical playtime and
decrease sedentary time for three and
four year olds through a family-based
intervention.
Methods
The Fit WIC Vermont project developed
the" Fit WIC Activity Kit" in
response to information they collected
which indicated that parents valued physical
activity as a healthy behavior for their
children, but were unsure about the types
or amounts that would be appropriate for
their preschoolers-. The Activity Kit
contains a variety of written materials
and hands-on items specifically compiled
using Social Cognitive Theory to help
WIC families overcome barriers to, and
increase opportunities for, active physical
play. Included in the Kit are a colorful
and easily accessible book for parents
that provides information on the relationship
between cognitive and physical development,
ideas for incorporating physical activity
into everyday routines, and specific skill-building
activities designed to enhance physical
development and learning. The book is
structured around the Fit WIC Activity
Pyramid, which offers recommendations
for both unstructured and structured playtime
and specific information about activity
resources within the community for family
outings. The book promotes the role of
parents as their child's first and most
important teacher, and offers parents
the skills and confidence needed to successfully
take on this role. Hands-on play items
such as a beach ball, beanbags, and a
cassette tape of children's movement songs
are also in the Kit.
The
Fit WIC Activity Kit allows WIC staff
to bypass the parental "disconnect"
around recognizing overweight and obesity
in their children, and to address this
issue in a manner that is received positively
by participants. At the same time, it
serves as a preventive measure for normal
weight children.
Accomplishments
The Fit WIC Activity Kit was very well
received by the participating families
and by the WIC staff at the intervention
sites. Because families can use the Fit
WIC Activity Kit to enhance their health
education and health outcomes in a manner
that is convenient for them, they are
highly likely to actually use the materials
once they leave the WIC clinic. Ninety-five
percent of WIC mothers reported ever using
the Activity Kit, with 71% using it more
than 4 times during the first 2 weeks.
Three to five months later, at the time
of follow-up, usage had dropped somewhat
but was still frequent. Ninety-seven percent
of mothers reported they would use the
Fit WIC materials again in the future.
Compared to a control group of Vermont
WIC mothers who did not receive the Fit
WIC intervention, mothers who used the
Fit WIC Activity Kit reported an improvement
in their child's active play skills, an
increase in the time the child spent doing
some types of active play and more confidence
in their own ability to teach play skills
to their child.
Additionally,
mothers responded that the Fit WIC Vermont
Activity Kit helped them connect with
their child, inspired new parent-child
activity ideas, and reminded them of the
importance of physical activity and play.
An unexpected effect of the Kit reported
by some mothers was improvement in their
child's language and communication skills.
Many mothers who had children of varying
ages said the Kit was adaptable to a wide
range of family ages and interests.
