Hi all -

I apologize this didn't get out to the list last Thursday as intended.
Please distribute (and USE) this information as widely as possible.  The
website has oodles of information about every state and many large
cities, as well as many demographic variables.

Katherine Shealy, MPH, IBCLC, RLC
Atlanta, GA USA
--------------------------------------------------------------

Press Release
	

Embargoed for:                          Contact: CDC National Center for
Chronic Disease    
August 5, 2004; 9:00 a.m. ET
Prevention and Health Promotion
	
Press Office: 770-488-5131
      

CDC's New State-Specific Breastfeeding Data Will Help 
States Better Target Programs

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), for the first
time, has state-by-state data on the percentage of mothers who are
breastfeeding their babies and for how long.

"There are many benefits from breastfeeding and we want to encourage new
and expectant moms across the country to nurse their babies if at all
possible," said Donna Stroup, Ph.D., M.Sc., acting director of CDC's
Coordinating Center for Health Promotion.   "With this new information,
state health departments can compare the breastfeeding rates in their
states and communities to national objectives.  The information will
help agencies concentrate their efforts where they are most needed and
develop targeted programs to promote breastfeeding."

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies be fed nothing
but breast milk for the first six months of life.  The national average
for mothers who exclusively breastfeed their babies for at least six
months is low - 14.2 percent.  Only Oregon had an exclusive
breastfeeding rate of over 25 percent at six months.

The new breastfeeding data were gathered as part of CDC's 2003 National
Immunization Survey (NIS), which surveyed mothers in 50 states, the
District of Columbia, and selected geographic areas within the states.
The survey revealed that six states - Hawaii, Idaho, Oregon, Utah,
Vermont, and Washington - met all of the Healthy People 2010 objectives
for breastfeeding:
        *       Seventy-five percent of new mothers initiate
breastfeeding;
        *       Fifty percent continued to breastfeed for at least six
months;
        *       Twenty-five percent continued to breastfeed for at least
12 months.

Fourteen states achieved the 75 percent initiation rate - the top five
states in this category were Oregon (88 percent), Washington (88
percent),  Utah (85.5 percent), Idaho (83.8 percent, and California
(83.7 percent).  

Eight states met or exceeded the objective of 25 percent of mothers
continuing to breastfeed for at least 12 months - the top three states
were Hawaii (31 percent), Vermont (30 percent) and Alaska (28.9
percent).  

The survey also confirmed previous findings that lower-income mothers
and non-Hispanic black mothers had consistently lower breastfeeding
rates. 

 "It's important for new and expectant mothers to know that breast milk
is the ideal food for newborns and young babies.  It's inexpensive,
convenient, and it's uniquely tailored to meet all of a baby's
nutritional needs for the first six months of life," said Dr. William
Dietz, director of CDC's division of nutrition and physical activity.
"Also, breastfed babies tend to gain less unnecessary weight that can
contribute to overweight and obesity later in life."

Both babies and mothers gain other benefits from breastfeeding according
to CDC experts.  Breast milk is easy to digest and contains antibodies
that can protect infants from bacterial and viral infections.  Breastfed
babies have fewer bouts of diarrhea, ear infections and respiratory
infections.   Research indicates that women who breastfeed their babies
may also have lower rates of certain breast and ovarian cancers.
Nursing mothers also burn more calories, making it easier for them to
return to their pre-pregnancy weight.

The NIS breastfeeding data is being released in conjunction with World
Breastfeeding Week.  For more information visit CDC's Web site at
www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/NIS_data/index.htm.   

###

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES




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