*About WIC

WIC's Success in Improving Maternal and Child Health

WIC have the History of 32 Years on Buiding Healthier Families

The health benefits from the WIC Program

The WIC Foods help kids grow healthy and strong

Welcome to WIC (PDF)

Prenatal care

Pregnancy & Cigarretes

The health benefits from Breastfeeding

"Breastfeeding the first hour"

The Food pyramid for kids

Finding the whole grains

Poor Diet and Bad Behavior

"Breastfeeding the first hour" in English and Spanish

Folic acid and Folate

Fruit and Vegetables for Better Health- PDF Englih and Spanish

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Mother’s milk is a loving & healthy good

start for baby’s life

Breast milk is a specialized food designed to meet the needs of infants.

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Every time your baby nurses, you are *

giving her advantages in life-advantages

of health, optimal growth, and

development, while also helping to

decrease the risk for a large number of

diseases-now and in the future.

The breast milk you make for the

first few days is colostrums and is full of

infection-fighting antibodies. Even

when your colostrums turns to mature milk,

your breast milk provides a natural defense *against infections and

allergies.

As baby grows, the composition and amount of your milk changes to meet

baby's needs.

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Breastfeeding has many benefits for your baby. Breast milk is rich in nutrients. It helps protect your baby against infections. It also helps prevent your baby from illnesses, having allergies and if the baby is sick will recuperate sooner since Breast milk has agents (called antibodies) in it to help protect infants from bacteria and viruses and to help them fight off infection and disease.

Breastfeeding also has benefits for you. It's clean and simple--you don't have to wash bottles or mix formula. It's free so it's cheaper than using formula. Nursing uses up extra calories, making it easier to lose the pounds gained from pregnancy and it helps to loose the extra pounds and to your uterus contract back to normal size after having been stretched during pregnancy. It delays the return of your periods (though you shouldn't count on it to prevent pregnancy). And it helps make time for you to built a close love relation with to your baby.

Recent research suggests that breastfeeding leads to normal weight gain for your baby, which may protect against obesity later in life. And if all that wasn't enough, breast milk offers a bright beginning because it contains special fats that are needed for optimal cognitive development.

The Mother Benefits

Aside from the emotional closeness you'll feel when nursing your baby, you can look forward to many physical benefits too. During the first few weeks after the birth, breastfeeding will help your uterus contract more quickly than if you weren't breastfeeding. Plus, nursing will help you use up extra calories to help you return to your pre-pregnancy weight.

You provide your baby with the best nutrition each day by breastfeeding her.*

A lot of the nutrition baby receives from breast milk comes from your body's stored nutrients.

So don't forget-YOUR nutrition is important too!

Enjoy a wide range of foods and don't forget your family's cultural favorites! Even during nursing, your baby is becoming familiar with and learning to like the flavors of the foods you eat.

How often should I feed my baby?

Feed your baby as often as he or she wants to be fed. This may be 8 to 12 times a day or more. How often your baby wants to feed may change over time as he or she goes through growth spurts. Growth spurts occur at about 2 and 6 weeks of age and again at about 3 and 6 months of age.

Let your baby nurse until he or she is satisfied. This may be for about 15 to 20 minutes at each breast. Try to have your baby nurse from both breasts at each feeding. The box below lists the signs to watch for so you'll know your baby is getting enough milk. If you're nursing fewer than 8 times a day, be especially aware of the below signs.

Signs that your baby is getting enough milk *

* Acts satisfied after each feeding.
* Gains weight constantly after the first 3 to 7 days after birth. Your baby may lose a little weight during the first week after being born.
* Has about 6 to 8 wet diapers a day.
* Has about 2 to 5 or more stools a day at first and then may have 2 or less a day. Stools will be runny at first.

Don't start giving your baby formula or cereal. If you give formula or cereal to your baby, he or she may not want as much breast milk. This will decrease your milk supply. The U.S. Surgeon General recommends that babies be fed with breast milk only and one of the best things that only you can do is to breastfeed for as long as possible. While breastfeeding isn't the only option for feeding your baby, every mother has the potential to succeed and make it!

What should I eat?

The best diet for a breastfeeding woman is well-balanced and has plenty of calcium. This means you should eat fruits and vegetables, whole-grain cereals and breads, meats or beans, and milk and dairy foods like cheese. You'll need to get enough calories--about 500 more per day than usual--and you'll need to drink more fluids.

A balanced diet that includes 5 servings of milk or dairy products each day will give you enough calcium. If you don't eat meat or dairy products, you can get the calcium you need from broccoli, sesame seeds, tofu and kale. Talk to your doctor about taking extra calcium if you don't think you're getting enough from your diet.

If you are concern and you want to learn more information on this, talk to your doctor and it will help if you enroll in a breastfeeding class.

*Foods to Avoid

Some foods can cause mild reaction such as spicy foods, cabbage, chocolate and foods high in C concentrate. It will depend on your own body and the sensitivity of your baby.

Foods such as cabbage, garlic, chili & curry may cause your baby to experience discomfort with wind. Although there is no research to support this, centuries of mothers will agree that keep these foods to a minimum if you want a good nights sleep. Some strongly flavored foods may change the taste of your milk, although babies enjoy a variety of breast milk flavors, if you baby suddenly becomes fussy at the breast after you eat particular foods (for example garlic) you be best to avoid that food while breastfeeding. However you babies tolerance may improve as he/she gets older so you may be able to re-introduce that food.

Other foods & drinks to watch out for are; pineapple/juice (being the worst offender) and other vitamin C rich fruits such as oranges, tomatoes, grapefruit and lemon, that can cause your baby to get a nappy rash. Moderate your caffeine intake, a small amount is fine, but too much can interfere with your baby's sleep, or make him/her fussy. Keep in mind that caffeine is found in some sodas, teas, and over-the-counter medicines, as well as in coffee.

Salud+HealthInfo is for information and educational purposes only. You should not rely on this information as a substitute for personal medical attention, diagnosis or hands-on treatment. If you are concerned abut your health or that of a child, please consult your family's physician or health provider immediately and do not try to diagnose yourself.

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