More than four out of five babies in the U.S. started out breastfeeding at birth, though only a quarter were still breastfeeding exclusively at 6 months, researchers found.
The CDC's 2018 Breastfeeding Report Card indicated that 83.2% of infants born in 2015 started breastfeeding at birth. While 57.6% of infants were still breastfeeding at age 6 months, only 24.9% were breastfeeding exclusively at that time, the agency reported, stating that an American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) policy recommends exclusive breastfeeding until 6 months.
However, the CDC stated that the U.S. is meeting "over half" of the Healthy People 2020 breastfeeding goals.
In this report, CDC researchers examined data from 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico -- as well as data from Guam and the Virgin Islands for the first time.
Breastfeeding rates were slightly higher than in the 2016 Report Card, which said 81.1% of all babies born in 2013 started out breastfeeding at birth and 51.8% were still breastfeeding at age 6 months.
The 2018 report stated that rates of exclusive breastfeeding through 3 and 6 months have been "generally increasing each year," but remained virtually stable for infants born in 2015 versus 2014.
"These rates suggest that mothers may not be getting the support they need from healthcare providers, family members, and employers to meet their breastfeeding goals," the authors wrote, adding that "only one-third" of infants were breastfeeding at 12 months.
The report also found that almost half of employers provide worksite lactation programs. They also stated that in 12 states, over 40% of all births occur in "Baby-Friendly facilities," according to World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF standards.
The U.S. recently came under global fire for allegedly "watering down" a WHO resolution on encouraging breastfeeding, according to reports by the New York Times. The Department of Health and Human Services later released a statement denying the accusation, saying, "No, the Trump administration doesn't question the importance of breastfeeding."
The new report noted that 17.2% of breastfed infants born in 2015 received formula supplementation within the first 2 days of life.
CDC researchers stated that breastfed infants have reduced risks of asthma, type 2 diabetes, ear and respiratory infections and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and that breastfeeding "can lower a mother's risk" of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and ovarian and breast cancer.