Do the Health Effects of WIC transmit to Children’s Academic Achievement?

• In Event: New Research on Childhood Exposure to the Safety Net

Abstract

This paper studies the long-term impact of improving infant health driven by improved nutrition.

Specifically, we use Texas administrative data to test whether the infant health improvements driven

by participation in the Supplemental Program for Women Infants and Children (WIC) extend to

later academic achievement. Our research design exploits zip-code level variation in WIC clinic

openings and closures between 2005-2009. Pre-natal access to WIC clinics increased math and

reading test scores for free-lunch students by 0.05 of a standard deviation. The positive benefits did

not extend to higher-income students. These large positive effects suggest that beyond infant health,

other WIC services (e.g. referrals to other social safety net programs, breastfeeding advice) and

nutritional assistance during childhood have long-lasting positive effects for vulnerable youth.

Authors

• Briana Ballis, University of California, Merced
  Presenting Author

• Marianne E. Page, University of California, Davis
  Non-Presenting Co-Author