In the United States, about 84% of women start breastfeeding after giving birth. That number drops sharply over time: roughly 36% are still breastfeeding at one year, and only about 25% breastfeed exclusively through the first six months. Globally, 48% of infants under six months are exclusively breastfed, up from 37% in 2013.
U.S. Breastfeeding Rates at a Glance
The most commonly cited figure is the initiation rate, meaning the percentage of mothers who breastfeed at all after delivery. In the U.S., that sits at roughly 84%. But initiation only tells part of the story. Health guidelines recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, and the country falls well short of that benchmark. Only about one in four infants (24.9%) are exclusively breastfed through six months. The U.S. government’s Healthy People 2030 initiative has set a target of 42.4% for exclusive breastfeeding at six months and 54.1% for any breastfeeding at one year.
How Rates Differ by Race and Ethnicity
Breastfeeding initiation varies significantly across racial and ethnic groups. Among infants born in 2019, initiation rates broke down this way:
- Asian mothers: 90.3%
- Hispanic mothers: 87.4%
- White mothers: 85.5%
- Black mothers: 73.6%
The roughly 17-point gap between Asian and Black mothers reflects longstanding disparities tied to differences in workplace flexibility, hospital support practices, and access to lactation assistance. These gaps tend to widen further when looking at duration and exclusivity, though birth certificate data (the source for national initiation numbers) doesn’t capture how long mothers continue.
Income, WIC, and the Breastfeeding Gap
Household income is one of the strongest predictors of whether a mother will breastfeed. Among children born in 2021, 92.4% of mothers who were ineligible for the WIC nutrition assistance program had ever breastfed, compared to 75.4% of mothers receiving WIC benefits. That 17-point gap mirrors the racial disparity and often overlaps with it.
Maternal age plays a role too. Mothers under 20 breastfeed at a rate of about 43%, compared to 65% among mothers aged 20 to 29 and 75% among those 30 and older. Younger mothers are more likely to face barriers like unstable employment, less partner support, and fewer resources for navigating early breastfeeding challenges.
Why So Many Women Stop Early
The steep drop from initiation to six-month exclusivity reflects a constellation of real-world pressures. Returning to work or school is the single most commonly cited reason, reported by 64% of mothers in survey data. Pumping at work requires time, a private space, and an employer willing to accommodate breaks, and many women lack one or more of those. Pain, difficulty with latching, concerns about low milk supply, and lack of support at home also push mothers toward formula earlier than planned.
An unintended natural experiment illustrated how sensitive these rates are to external conditions. During the 2022 infant formula shortage, when store shelves were empty and parents scrambled for alternatives, breastfeeding initiation jumped by about 2 percentage points nationally, peaking at 87.2% in June 2022. The increase was largest among populations that historically breastfeed at lower rates: mothers with lower education levels, Medicaid recipients, WIC participants, and Black mothers saw initiation rise by roughly 6 percentage points. Rates stayed elevated even after the shortage eased, suggesting that once barriers shift, behavior can change quickly.
Global Breastfeeding by Region
Worldwide, less than half of newborns (48%) are put to the breast within the first hour after birth, a practice associated with better outcomes for both mother and baby. Regional differences are dramatic. Eastern and Southern Africa leads the world at 69%, nearly double the rate in South Asia (38%). East Asia and the Pacific fall in the middle at 51%, with West and Central Africa at 46%.
These regional patterns are shaped by cultural norms, the availability of maternity leave, whether births happen in facilities that promote immediate skin-to-skin contact, and the marketing reach of formula companies. Countries with strong baby-friendly hospital policies and extended paid leave consistently post higher rates. The global target of 50% exclusive breastfeeding by 2025 is now within reach, with the current rate of 48% representing a meaningful climb from the 37% baseline measured in 2013.
What the Numbers Actually Mean
Breastfeeding statistics can be confusing because “ever breastfed,” “any breastfeeding,” and “exclusive breastfeeding” measure very different things. “Ever breastfed” counts any mother who nursed even once. “Any breastfeeding” at six or twelve months includes mothers supplementing with formula. “Exclusive breastfeeding” means breast milk only, with no formula, water, or food. The U.S. initiation rate of 84% sounds high, but by the exclusive-at-six-months measure, only about one in four families meets the recommendation. The gap between those numbers is where most of the public health challenge lies.