Nov. 11--Single mother Monique Rocha, 23, has a 2-year-old son with a stomach condition.
So it's especially important for his diet to be packed with healthy foods.
The recently expanded California Women, Infants and Children program is helping Rocha get nutritious foods for her son.
A cooking demonstration held Tuesday at the East Bakersfield Community Health Center showed off foods new to the program that helps low-income pregnant women, new mothers, babies or children under age 5 with basic nourishment needs.
"It's important that young people learn healthy eating," said Congressman Jim Costa, D-Fresno.
The 2008 Farm Bill helped WIC enact new guidelines for the food program, such as adding fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables and whole grains items. The program now offers soy milk and tofu items, too. Baby food guidelines have also changed so eligible products contain less sugar and carbs.
All that's important because preventative care is crucial, especially in the Central Valley, where the three leading causes of death are heart disease, cancer and diabetes, Costa said.
Sen. Dean Florez, D-Shafter, said about 19 people per week die of diabetes in the Central Valley, and the WIC changes will help people eat better.
"Just because you're poor doesn't mean you have to eat the worst food," Florez said.
Countywide, about 53,000 people receive WIC services. A WIC liaison at Clinica Sierra Vista, Nora Garza, said its case load increased from about 36,600 recipients in January to about 37,200 in October.
The food changes began Oct. 1, said Beth Tolley, program manager for Community Action Partnership of Kern, a non-profit organization that runs a WIC program.
Tolley said small neighborhood stores were initially hesitant to carry WIC-eligible food and accept WIC coupons, but when they did, those items sold well.
After several people talked about the benefits of WIC foods, chef Enrique Castillo from La Costa Mariscos made tofu and veggie fajitas using some of the food items now approved for the WIC program.
People interested in finding out whether they're eligible for WIC can call 1-888-WIC-WORKS or visit www.wicworks.ca.gov.
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