Data and Statistics

Breastfeeding Report Card
The CDC Breastfeeding Report Card provides state-by-state data so that health professionals, legislators, employers, business owners, community advocates and family members can work together to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding. The Report Card indicators measure types of support in key community settings as well as the most current data on the breastfeeding goals outlined in Healthy People 2020.

U.S. National Immunization Survey
This nationwide survey provides current national, state, and selected urban-area estimates of vaccination coverage rates for U.S. children ages 19 to 35 months. Since July 2001, breastfeeding questions have been asked on the NIS to assess the population's breastfeeding practices.

Infant Feeding Practices Survey II
CDC is collaborating with researchers from the Food and Drug Administration to conduct this nationwide longitudinal study which focuses on infant feeding practices and the diets of women from their 3rd trimester to 12 months postpartum.

Maternity Care Practices Survey
CDC has developed a survey of all labor and delivery service facilities in the United States in an effort to monitor maternity care practices associated with successful breastfeeding promotion and support. This systematic data collection of nationwide breastfeeding-related maternity care practices occurs every other year; the first survey was carried out in 2007, the second in 2009.

HealthStyles Survey
Healthstyles is a private proprietary national marketing survey that annually collects health-related opinions of men and women aged 18 years and above. Because Healthstyles includes a large, demographically diverse sample of the U.S. population, it reflects current social and cultural norms. CDC has contributed breastfeeding questions to the survey since 1999.

Other Monitoring Systems for Breastfeeding Data

National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES)
CDC's National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey is population-based research designed to collect information on the health and nutritional status of the U.S. household population. The survey consists of two segments: a home interview and a physical health examination. The 24 hour dietary recall has information about children who are breastfed during the recall period. In the reproductive health questionnaire, women who had one or more live born children were asked whether they breastfed their child or children. If they had they were then asked the number of children who were breastfed for at least one month. If any children were not breastfed for at least one month, women were asked the reasons for not breastfeeding. This information is not available for each individual birth but only as a summary for all children.

National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG)
The National Survey of Family Growth is sponsored by CDC's National Center for Health Statistics and provides valuable periodic data on factors affecting birth and pregnancy rates, adoption, and maternal and infant health. The data are the result of interviews with a national sampling of women 15–44 years of age in the civilian household population of the United States. In the 2002 round, men were added to the survey.

Breastfeeding questions on the survey assess whether an infant was breastfed, at what age supplemental foods or liquids were introduced, and the overall duration of breastfeeding. NSFG does not have information ion what other liquids or foods were given in addition to breast milk.

The Pediatric Nutrition Surveillance System (PedNSS)
PedNSS is a child-based public health surveillance system that monitors the nutritional status of low-income children enrolled in federally-funded maternal and child health programs, particularly

• The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
• The Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment Program (EPSTD)
• The Title V Maternal and Child Health Program
• Head Start

The most recent national PedNSS annual reports are available online, as is a comprehensive Web-based training module which contains extensive user-friendly "How-To" information for both PedNSS and PNSS.

The Pregnancy Nutrition Surveillance System (PNSS)
PNSS is a program-based public health surveillance system that monitors risk factors associated with infant mortality and poor birth outcomes among low-income pregnant women who participate in federally funded public health programs. PNSS uses data already being collected by the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and the Title V Maternal and Child Health Program (MCH). A majority of the data are collected by the WIC program that serves pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women.

Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)
The state-based Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System is conducted by CDC's Division of Reproductive Health. Surveys in selected states provide representative data on the incidence and duration of breastfeeding.

National Birth Certificate Data
The U.S. Standard Certificate of Live Birth was revised in 2003. For the first time in its history, the latest birth certificate includes a question on whether the newborn is being breastfed at the time of discharge from the birth facility. This information is collected from the birth facility's medical records.
2003 Revisions of the U.S. Standard Certificates of Live birth [PDF-84K]
(Rev. 11/2003)
Implementation of the revised certificate is being phased in by the states. As of the end of 2006, 19 states and Puerto Rico had implemented the revision. It is hoped that information on breastfeeding from the birth certificate will be available soon. CDC's National Center for Health Statistics develops annual reports on data collected from the nation's birth certificates. In the report entitled "Expanded Health Data from the New Birth Certificate, 2004," data from some of the revised items on the birth certificate are presented and described. These data were based on all birth records from the seven states that had implemented the revision as of January 1, 2004. The report is available at CDC/NCHS Web site.

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