Intake of food guide pyramid servings: A comparison of WIC children in Wisconsin and children from 1994 CSFII

The purpose of this study was to determine if foods provided by the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) affect sel ected indicators of diet quality among WIG participants. Recall data from 1 79 Wisconsin WIC children ages 2 to 5 years were converted to Food Guide Py ramid servings and compared to the 1994 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes o f Individuals (CSFII) Food Guide Pyramid servings data. Three comparison gr oups were identified from CSFII for children ages 2 to 5 years in the midwe st region:WIC participants and non-WIG participants above and below 185% of the federal poverty level. Means and standard errors for the Wisconsin dat a were computed with SPSS for Windows;WesVarPC was used to obtain weighted means and standard errors for CSFII data. The number of Food Guide Pyramid servings were compared among groups using a z-test. In general, WIG partici pants consumed more of some dairy products and vegetables and less added su gar than the children not participating in WIG, suggesting a significant co ntribution of WIC supplemental foods and nutrition education to the dietary quality of its participants. These findings should be of particular intere st to practitioners involved in program planning for WIC and persons who al locate funding to the WIC program.