Table 1.
Socio‐demographics of WIC participants and WIC eligible non‐participant mothers in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005–2006 (n = 304)
| Variable | Total mean or % (95% CI) | WIC only | Non‐WIC | P‐value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean or % | Mean or % | |||
| Age | 28.1 (27.1–29.1) | 29.5 | 27.0 | <0.01 |
| Race/Ethnicity | ||||
| Mexican American | 26.2 (18.8–35.2) | 30.1 | 20.9 | 0.70 |
| Other Hispanic | 8.1 (4.8–13.2) | 8.8 | 7.1 | |
| White | 38.1 (27.3–50.2) | 33.4 | 44.5 | |
| Black | 22.0 (13.5–33.6) | 23.1 | 20.5 | |
| Other race | 5.7 (2.4–12.9) | 4.7 | 7.1 | |
| Marital status | ||||
| Married | 49.5 (41.8–57.2) | 41.2 | 60.8 | 0.1 |
| Living with partner | 16.9 (12.0–23.3) | 19.8 | 13.0 | |
| Never married | 24.9 (17.6–34.1) | 29.3 | 19.0 | |
| Divorced | 4.2 (2.8–6.3) | 5.6 | 2.4 | |
| Separated | 4.4 (2.0–9.5) | 4.1 | 4.8 | |
| US born | 69.6 (58.2–79.0) | 68.4 | 71.2 | 0.48 |
| Living in poverty (PIR <1.3) | 53.2 (44.5–61.8) | 59.3 | 44.9 | 0.03 |
| Education level | ||||
| College (any) | 28.7 (20.5–38.5) | 22.7 | 36.8 | 0.03 |
| High school degree or fewer years | 71.3 (61.5–79.5) | 77.3 | 63.2 | |
| Maternal BMI category | ||||
| Normal (<25) | 34.4 (27.3–42.3) | 37.7 | 29.9 | 0.68 |
| Overweight ≥25 & <30 | 41.9 (34.8–49.4) | 22.3 | 25.5 | |
| Obese ≥30 | 23.7 (18.7–29.6) | 40.0 | 44.6 | |
| Participating in WIC programme | 57.7 (48.2–66.6) | |||
BMI, body mass index; PIR, poverty‐to‐income ratio; WIC, Women, Infants and Children.