World Breastfeeding Week Starts
August 1st – Find Local Data on kidsdata.org

July 31, 2009

World Breastfeeding Week takes place this year August 1-7. If you are preparing a news story or blog post to mark the occasion, you can find local and statewide data on breastfeeding on www.kidsdata.org. These data show that Bay Area mothers have been exceeding California's overall breastfeeding rates. In 2007, as in previous years, mothers in the Bay Area were more likely than mothers statewide to breastfeed in the hospital after giving birth. The percentage of Bay Area mothers who exclusively breastfed (no formula) their newborns ranged from 76 percent in San Francisco to 61.1 percent in Contra Costa County, compared to 42.7 percent statewide.

Breastfeeding Data for the Bay Area and California Available on Kidsdata.org:

• Percentage of Mothers Who Breastfeed Newborns in the Hospital
• Percentage of Mothers, by Race/Ethnicity, Who Exclusively Breastfeed Newborns in the Hospital
• Duration of Breastfeeding Among Participants in the WIC Supplemental Nutrition Program

Contact Andy Krackov, assistant vice president for programs & partnerships, at (650) 736-0677 or andy.krackov@lpfch.org, if you have any questions about these newly posted data.