Diet & Nutrition

Healthy Food Intake
Healthy food intake is represented by the average number of servings of fruits and vegetables eaten and the average number of times a child drinks milk each day. In 2017, WIC children (age 6 months to 5 years old) ate 5 servings of fruits and vegetables and drank milk 3 times per day, similar to findings from previous years.

*Data source: Los Angeles County WIC Survey, 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2017. Sample size approximately 5,000 in each year. For more details click here.

Unhealthy Food Intake

Unhealthy food intake is represented by the proportion of children that drink soda (e.g. coke, mountain dew, etc., diet soda not included) and sugar-sweetened beverages (e.g. Kool Aid, Gatorade, etc.) on an average day, and the proportion of children who eat fast food (e.g., McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Burger King, KFC, etc.) once a week or more often.

Soda and Sugar-sweetened Beverages

In 2017, 13% of WIC children drank regular soda or sugar-sweetened beverages on a typical day, a decrease from 20% in 2011 and 16% in 2014. Older children were more likely to drink soda and sugar-sweetened beverages than younger ones.

Fast Food

In 2017, 45% of WIC children ate fast food in a typical week. Older children were more likely to eat fast food than younger ones.

*Data source: Los Angeles County WIC Survey, 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2017 sample size approximately 5,000 in each year. For more details click here