Department of Health: Statistical Press Release: Indicators on breastfeeding, smoking and obesity

The following statistics were released today by the Department of Health:

Quarter ending March 2010 and revised data for quarters ending June 2009, September 2009 and December 2009

The key points from the latest release are:

- The breastfeeding initiation rate in England was 72.7% in 2009/10, which is slightly higher than 2008/09 (71.7%) and 2007/08 (69.9%).

-  The prevalence of breastfeeding in England at 6-8 weeks at 2009/10 Quarter 4 was 45.2% of infants due a 6-8 week check; and 48.2% of those infants whose breastfeeding status was known. The improvement in data coverage that has been achieved since data collection began has affected the comparability of these prevalence estimates over time.  When this effect is taken into account, there is no statistically significant change in real prevalence over the period of collection.

-  The percentage of mothers smoking at delivery in England was 14.1% in 2009/10, which is slightly lower than 2008/09 (14.4%) and 2007/08 (14.4%).

Full tables are available below:

http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsStatistics/DH_116059

http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/Publicationsandstatistics/Publications/PublicationsStatistics/DH_116060

Contacts

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