Rates of Any and Exclusive Breastfeeding by Socio-demographics among Children Born in 2011 (Percentage +/- half 95% Confidence Interval)1,2
Any Breastfeeding Exclusive Breastfeeding
Ever Breastfed Breastfed at 6 Months Breastfed at 12 Months Exclusive Breastfeeding through 3 Months Exclusive Breastfeeding through 6 Months
Socio-demographic Factors n % ± half 95% CI % ± half 95% CI % ± half 95% CI n % ± half 95% CI % ± half 95% CI
US National 14456 79.2±1.2 49.4±1.5 26.7±1.3 14131 40.7±1.5 18.8±1.2
Gender
Male 7481 79.5±1.6 49.6±2.1 25.9±1.9 7312 40.5±2.1 18.4±1.7
Female 6975 78.9±1.7 49.3±2.2 27.6±1.9 6819 40.9±2.2 19.2±1.7
Race/Ethnicity
Hispanic 2801 83.8±2.4 48.4±3.8 24.8±3.3 2756 38.3±3.8 17.1±2.9
Non-Hispanic White 8382 81.1±1.4 52.3±1.8 28.4±1.6 8162 44.8±1.8 20.3±1.4
Non-Hispanic Black 1414 61.6±4.1 35.0±3.9 16.4±3.3 1386 26.9±3.8 13.7±3.2
Non-Hispanic Asian 648 90.9±3.0 71.2±7.1 47.3±7.8 634 52.5±7.6 26.6±7.0
Non-Hispanic Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 67 75.0±21.7 49.8±22.0 25.7±16.4 67 41.1±20.4 21.0±17.5
Non-Hispanic American Indian/ Alaska Native 221 77.1±8.3 37.3±11.8 25.0±9.7 216 45.5±14.7 15.6±7.4
2 or more races 923 75.0±5.3 48.4±5.8 29.3±5.0 910 40.1±5.5 19.6±4.3
Maternal Education
Less than high school 1582 69.1±3.7 34.4±4.0 19.7±3.4 1555 27.3±4.2 13.5±3.1
High school graduate 2622 69.2±2.8 38.2±3.2 19.6±2.8 2573 32.6±3.3 15.8±2.6
Some college or technical school 3859 81.0±2.3 46.1±2.9 23.6±2.6 3776 41.8±3.0 16.5±2.3
College graduate 6393 91.2±1.1 68.3±2.1 38.1±2.2 6227 53.5±2.2 25.5±1.9
Maternal Age
Under 20 201 66.9±10.6 19.4±8.2 13.1±7.1 201 19.3±8.7 5.6±5.0
20 - 29 5559 73.6±2.1 39.1±2.4 18.8±2.0 5458 36.4±2.5 15.2±1.7
30 or older 8696 84.2±1.3 58.8±1.9 33.6±1.9 8472 45.0±2.0 22.2±1.7
Poverty Income Ratio3
Less than 100 3690 70.5±2.5 37.8±2.9 20.3±2.5 3627 31.2±2.9 14.2±2.2
100 - 199 2919 77.9±2.6 45.5±3.1 24.7±2.7 2843 39.3±3.1 18.0±2.5
200 - 399 3732 85.8±1.9 57.7±2.9 32.1±2.7 3633 49.2±2.9 22.0±2.4
400 - 599 2237 87.1±2.2 61.9±3.4 34.9±3.5 2200 49.0±3.6 25.2±3.3
600 or greater 1878 90.6±2.2 67.9±4.0 33.5±4.4 1828 50.9±4.6 23.1±3.8
Marital Status4
Married 10371 86.7±1.2 60.1±1.8 33.3±1.7 10102 47.7±1.8 22.6±1.5
Unmarried 4085 67.1±2.4 32.1±2.6 16.1±2.2 4029 29.4±2.6 12.7±1.9
Geographic Location5
Metropolitan 2907 83.5±2.4 54.9±3.2 30.6±3.0 2841 43.2±3.3 21.7±2.8
Non-metropolitan 892 71.4±5.2 42.2±5.6 25.9±5.0 870 37.6±5.6 17.0±4.3
Birth Order
First born 8841 78.5±1.6 50.0±2.0 27.7±1.8 8634 41.3±2.0 19.0±1.6
Not first born 5615 80.3±1.8 48.4±2.3 25.2±2.1 5497 39.8±2.3 18.5±1.8
Receiving WIC6
Yes 6519 71.8±1.9 37.8±2.2 19.7±1.8 6408 31.7±2.2 13.9±1.6
No, but eligible 987 83.4±4.4 56.1±5.6 32.8±5.1 954 50.3±5.6 26.5±4.9
Ineligible 6883 89.8±1.1 66.0±2.0 36.2±2.1 6708 53.0±2.2 24.9±1.9

1 Breastfeeding rates presented in this table are based on dual-frame (landline and cellular telephone) samples from 2012 and 2013 National Immunization Surveys. See survey methods for details on study design.

2 Exclusive breastfeeding is defined as ONLY breast milk - NO solids, no water, and no other liquids.

3 Poverty Income Ratio = Ratio of self-reported family income to the federal poverty threshold value depending on the number of people in the household.

4 Unmarried includes never married, widowed, separated, divorced.

5 Metropolitan area is defined by the Census Bureau.

6 WIC = Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children.

Source: National Immunization Survey, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services Sample sizes appearing in the breastfeeding tables are slightly smaller than the numbers published in other NIS publications due to the fact that in the breastfeeding analyses, the sample was limited to records with valid responses to the breastfeeding questions.