"Poverty limits my life, especially my food choices. Healthy Start makes me feel proud of the food I make for my family. I can make food that tastes and looks amazing and I'm proud to serve it. Learning to make different recipes and never feeling judged is what keeps me coming back." (quote from a participant)

We reach out to pregnant and new families in 10 Winnipeg neighbourhoods. .

Healthy Start weekly groups are nestled into community centres and church halls and run year-round. These are not "classes" but are drop-in groups with clear, interactive content and easy style that participants choose to come to. There are no waiting lists, no cost and no start and end dates for sessions. Families may stay until their baby is a year old. 

Outreach worker, dietitian and public health nurse teams offer welcoming, support close to home in non-clinical surroundings. People come for timely, relevant health and nutrition information, to have their questions answered, to find out about other services and meet others from their community.

Healthy Start's presence in the city areas is part of the neighbourhood fabric. Families appreciate the practical things such as:

• Coupons for free milk and eggs for those who financially need it
• Healthy snacks and chance to try new foods
• Childminding for their other young children on site
• Language interpreting in up to 15 languages at one location
• Ready-to-cook (learn-to-cook) Meal Bags for $2.00 - ingredients and recipe to serve 4-6
• One-on-one support at another time, assisting with problem-solving, finding other resources or learning to cook or make food for baby

Goals and results include:

• Healthy pregnancies, families and babies
• Prevention of low birth weight (LBW) babies
• Increased breastfeeding and increased protective health factors for babies
• Increased nutritional and health knowledge for families
• Increased comfort and cooking skills
• Prevention of FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder)
• Identifying and referring infant with health issues
• Improved parent confidence, knowledge, skills and decreased stress
• Improve connections to other services in the community and to each other

"I love Healthy Start because it gives you knowledge, and when you have knowledge, it takes the fear away." (comment from participant)