Vital WIC benefits' funding at risk

The moral test of government is how that government treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the elderly; those who are in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy, and the handicapped.

- Hubert H. Humphrey

As the government shutdown grinds on, a dangerous countdown has begun that could damage many vulnerable people if the programs that serve them lose funding. WIC is one such program.

A few weeks ago, a woman brought her 7-week-old infant to our clinic because he was "not acting himself." She said her "son was sleeping more than usual, was not drinking his formula as much, and was not as active." We noticed immediately his current weight was not much more than his birthweight, an ominous sign for someone so young.

He was quickly admitted to our hospital, and soon the lab called with a critical result. His sodium level was perilously low - low enough to cause heart arrhythmias, seizures, muscle failure, and death.

As the child was stabilized, we asked his mother a question that has been repeated too many times in low-income communities ravaged by poverty and food insecurity. "How do you mix the formula?" She responded honestly while staring at the floor. "I lost my WIC vouchers, and I had to put more water in the bottle to make the formula last." This infant was diagnosed with dilutional hyponatremia, low sodium in his bloodstream caused by diluting the formula.

In 1968, a group of physicians told federal officials how young women, often pregnant, were coming to their clinics with ailments caused by a lack of food. As an amendment to the Child Nutrition Action of 1972, Congress created the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) as a pilot project. Support came from evidence showing that maternal nutrition was key for positive pregnancy outcomes and child development. The program now serves more than nine million women and children up to 5 years old, 53 percent of all infants, 70,000 children in Philadelphia alone.

Indisputable evidence supports the WIC program. Pregnant women have longer, healthier pregnancies with fewer premature births. Infants in WIC have less iron-deficiency anemia, are more likely to have up-to-date immunizations, and enjoy better intellectual development. WIC also reduces fetal deaths and infant mortality. It helps protect the brains of the country's most vulnerable children at the most vulnerable time in their lives.

Research has also shown that WIC saves money. For every dollar invested in WIC, society saves almost triple that. WIC also has the highest rating from the U.S. Office of Management and Budget for its effectiveness.

As the shutdown drags on, mothers of two million infants may be forced to make tough and even harmful choices: skipping meals; turning to processed, high-caloric foods that are cheaper; substituting juice or whole milk for formula; and diluting formula to make it last.

It will all worsen health. And our society will fail a key moral test.

Daniel Taylor is a pediatrician with St. Christopher's Hospital for Children.

Contact him at Daniel.Taylor@DrexelMed.edu.