July 17, 2006

The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program of the Houston Department of Health and Human Services (HDHHS) will sponsor a series of nutritional programs to address obesity among recipients of WIC benefits.

Smart Shopping: A Supermarket Tour will feature a one-hour walk through a grocery store led by a nutritionist to help WIC recipients decipher food labels and learn about the sugar, fats and calories in the foods they purchase. The tours are all set for 2 p.m. at:

• Fiesta, 6200 Bellaire, July 20
• Fiesta, 6200 Bellaire, August 3
• Fiesta, 6200 Bellaire, August 31
• HEB, 10100 Beechnut, July 27
• HEB, 10100 Beechnut, August 10

A nutritionist in the Cooking with Flair classes will teach participants how to prepare healthy, quick, tasty and low-cost meals. The classes will be at the Alief WIC Clinic, 6787 Wilcrest Drive, Suite A, at 4 p.m. July 19 and the Braesner WIC Clinic, 8632 South Breaeswood, at 3 p.m. July 20.

The programs are funded through a $15,000 grant that HDHHS received from the Texas WIC program.

For more information or to sign up, call 713-794-9090.

Standards for participation in WIC are the same for everyone regardless of sex, age, handicap, race, creed and national origin. If you feel that you have been discriminated against, please call 1-800-942-3678.