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May: Oral Health Month
Tooth decay is a common but often preventable problem. Untreated tooth decay is progressive and can undermine children's long-term health, educational achievements, self-image, and overall success. In addition, oral health during pregnancy can have long-term effects on children. Good news: WIC Can Help promote oral health for families by referring them to low-cost or free services.
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Ultra-Processed Foods - Beware!
A small but rigorous study looked at the potential effects of a diet with
common ultra-processed foods compared to unprocessed foods. The two study diets contained the same amount of calories, carbs, sugar and fat, but subjects were allowed to eat as much as they desired. Those eating the ultra-processed food ate more calories and gain significantly more weight.
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Family-Friendly Legislation Package Introduced
Senator Tammy Duckworth has introduced a package of bills to make workplaces more family-friendly, improve childcare services, make it easier for low-income and middle-class families to obtain diapers for their children and close loopholes that prevent many educational support staff from being able to take medical leave through the Family Medical Leave Act. The package includes four pieces of legislation: the End Diaper Need Act, the ESP Family Leave Act, the Honoring Family-Friendly Workplaces Act, and the Expanding On-Campus Child Care to Help Parents Succeed Act.
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Pregnant Workers Fairness Act Reintroduced
The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) has been introduced in the House with bipartisan support. The Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would address legal ambiguities and help ensure that pregnant women are treated fairly on the job. The legislation, which is closely modeled after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), would require employers to make reasonable accommodations-such as a minor job modification-that would allow pregnant workers to continue working and prevent them from being forced out on leave or out of their jobs. The bill also prohibits employers from denying employment opportunities to women based on their need for reasonable accommodations related to pregnancy, childbirth, lactation, or related medical conditions. Related to this, A Better Balance has released, "Long Overdue: It Is Time for the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act." The report highlights that, in spite of Young v. UPS, the 2015 U.S. Supreme Court decision that set new standards for pregnant workers' federal protections, today's pregnant workers, especially women in low-wage and physically demanding jobs, are still forced to choose between a paycheck and a healthy pregnancy.
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Senator Harris to Reintroduce Maternal CARE Act
Sen. Kamala Harris has announced a proposal to address the worsening maternal mortality crisis in the U.S., and deep racial disparities in care across the country. Harris' proposal highlights the fact that African American women are three times as likely to die from pregnancy-related complications compared to their white counterparts - and not just among poor women, according to the CDC. Harris proposes to create a new $25 million program aimed at fighting racial bias in maternal care by directing grants to medical schools, nursing schools and other training programs intended to improve care for African American women, as well as $125 million for demonstration projects that will create incentives for providers to deliver integrated health services to pregnant women and new mothers and reduce maternal deaths, pregnancy-related complications and racial health disparities in care. Harris's plan would also ask the National Academy of Medicine to study and make recommendations on how to incorporate bias recognition into clinical skills testing.
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Public Charge Rule - Still Pending - Has Significant Chilling Effect on Program Use
The Trump administration's plan to expand "public charge" programs has already had a chilling effect on immigrant families in the U.S., though the proposed regulation remains un-finalized. A new study found that one in seven adults (13.7 percent) in immigrant households said that either they or family members chose not to participate in a noncash benefit program in 2018 "out of fear of risking future green card status." Among adults in low-income families, the rate was even higher, with one in five (20.7 percent) of adults too frightened to seek out benefits for fear of negatively affecting their green card or visa applications. The study also found that adults living with children under the age of 19 were more likely to report avoiding benefit programs (17.4 percent) than those who were not living with children (8.9 percent). The final rule is expected to be released soon, which experts say would only expand the chilling effect, and according to Reuters, may be followed by a proposal to expand deportations around the public charge regulation as well.
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Mother-Baby Workplace Awards a Great Success!
CWA was proud to again be a part of the California Breastfeeding Coalition's Mother-Baby Friendly Workplace Awards, recognizing businesses throughout California for their efforts to support lactating employees by creating lactation accommodation policies and working to come up with comfortable, appropriate solutions to meet the breastfeeding needs of staff when they return to work. We were encouraged that several California legislators were on hand this year to personally congratulate businesses from their districts on their work. The following Capitol Education Day was also a great success, and closely followed by the passage of SB 142(Wiener) through the Senate, and the budget proposal to increase the Medi-Cal reimbursement rate for breast pumps through the Assembly budget subcommittee, so we think the message was heard loud and clear!
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Why Breastmilk Helps Micro-Preemies' Brain Development
Micro-preemies who primarily consume breast milk have significantly higher levels of metabolites important for brain growth and development, according to sophisticated imaging conducted by an interdisciplinary research team at Children's National. While previous research established that vulnerable preterm infants who are fed breast milk early in life have improved brain growth and neurodevelopmental outcomes, it was unclear why, until researchers were able to measure metabolites essential for growth and answer that question. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 1 in 10 U.S. infants is born preterm.
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Reading With Toddlers Reduces Harsh Parenting, Enhances Child Behavior
Parents who regularly read with their toddlers are less likely to engage in harsh parenting and the children are less likely to be hyperactive or disruptive, a Rutgers-led study finds. Previous studies have shown that frequent shared reading prepares children for school by building language, literacy and emotional skills, but the study by Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School researchers may be the first to focus on how shared reading affects parenting. The study reviewed data on 2,165 mother-child pairs from 20 large U.S. cities, and found that that frequent shared reading at age 1 was associated with less harsh parenting at age 3, and frequent shared reading at age 3 was associated with less harsh parenting at age 5. Mothers who read frequently with their children also reported fewer disruptive behaviors from their children, which may partially explain the reduction in harsh parenting behaviors.
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Exercise During Pregnancy Improves Placental Health, Mother's Metabolism
New research in The Journal of Physiology finds a possible explanation for the benefits of maternal exercise on fetal development in obese mothers: it's down to improved placental function, which prevents the fetus from growing too big, and also better metabolism in the mothers. The placental function may be impaired due to maternal obesity, which could alter nutrient and oxygen delivery to the fetus. This study of mice found that exercise both improved the function of the placenta, but also the metabolism of the mother. Importantly, they found that the babies were not born larger (which is frequently associated with obesity and metabolic diseases in later life) when the obese mothers exercised.
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Report on Increasing WIC Program Research
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Dietary Guidelines: Updates and New Information
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