Prenatal WIC Participation Is Associated with Gestational Weight Gain: A Secondary Analysis of United States Birth Records.

Background: The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides breastfeeding support, nutritious supplemental foods, referrals to health care and social services, and nutrition counseling to eligible pregnant women. Evidence on maternal weight outcomes associated with prenatal WIC participation remains sparse. Objectives: This study aims to estimate the association between prenatal WIC participation and gestational weight gain (GWG). Methods: Birth records data from women eligible for WIC during pregnancy (defined as delivery paid with Medicaid) and of reproductive age, who gave birth to a singleton, live birth, at a hospital in the United States in 2023 were used. Reception of WIC benefits during pregnancy, maternal prepregnancy weight and height, and weight at delivery were reported in the birth records. GWG (weight at delivery minus prepregnancy weight) was standardized for gestational age by calculating gestational age-specific Results: We analyzed 1,318,604 pregnancies. Prenatal WIC participation was associated with a small reduction in risk of low GWG Conclusions: Prenatal WIC participation provided support to modestly reduce low weight gain among WIC-eligible United States women, which may have limited clinical implications.