Nearly nine in ten American babies start. Fewer than a third of women who set out to breastfeed exclusively reach the length of time they themselves chose.
This is the sharpest gap in the whole postpartum year, and the one most often turned into a verdict on the woman.
85.7%
Ever breastfed
Babies born in 2022
27.9%
Exclusively breastfed through 6 months
Babies born in 2022
40.8%
Any breastfeeding at 12 months
Babies born in 2022
Those are the current national figures, for babies born in 2022. On their own they look like a story about women changing their minds. The studies that asked women beforehand show that it is not.
In a large US study that followed women from pregnancy through the first year, among those who set out intending to breastfeed exclusively, more than 85% intended to do it for three months or longer, and only 32.4% managed the length of time they had chosen for themselves. The authors wrote: Two-thirds of mothers who intend to exclusively breastfeed are not meeting their intended duration.
The companion study asked the women who had stopped whether they had stopped when they wanted to. About 60% had stopped earlier than they wanted. The things linked to stopping early were difficulty with feeding itself, worry about the baby's weight and nutrition, illness or needing to take medicine, and the sheer effort of pumping.
One finding from those studies is worth carrying into the hospital with you. Of the several hospital practices tested, the one that still mattered after everything else was accounted for was whether the baby was given supplementary feeds in hospital. Women whose babies were not given them were more likely to reach their own goal.
What this gap is a measurement ofThe distance between 85.7% starting and 27.9% still exclusively feeding at six months is not a measurement of how much women wanted it. It is a measurement of what happens when a recommendation is made to individuals while the conditions for meeting it, paid leave, skilled help in the first week, somewhere to pump at work, are not provided. Sixty per cent of women who stop, stop sooner than they wanted to. That is not sixty per cent of women failing. That is a structural result showing up one woman at a time.
A note on where these numbers come fromCDC no longer publishes the Breastfeeding Report Card. Its page now says: CDC is no longer publishing a Breastfeeding Report Card. A new report, the Early Childhood Nutrition Report, replaces the Breastfeeding Report Card. The figures above are from that new report. If you are shown older Report Card numbers, check which birth year they describe, because the two sets are not interchangeable.
Sentences that help, before and after"I want to be asked before anyone gives my baby formula, unless it is an emergency." "I am not meeting the goal I set. I would like help with feeding, and I would also like to talk about what stopping would look like." "Is there a lactation consultant I can see this week, not in three weeks?"
Where this comes from:
565. Perrine CG, Scanlon KS, Li R, Odom E, Grummer-Strawn LM. Baby-Friendly hospital practices and meeting exclusive breastfeeding intention. Pediatrics. 2012;130(1):54-60.
566. Odom EC, Li R, Scanlon KS, Perrine CG, Grummer-Strawn L. Reasons for earlier than desired cessation of breastfeeding. Pediatrics. 2013;131(3):e726-32.
567. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC Early Childhood Nutrition Report, National, 2025. Atlanta (GA): CDC; 2025.
568. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Breastfeeding Report Card. Atlanta (GA): CDC; page last reviewed 17 April 2026.
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