Breastfeeding data: July 2014 to December 2024
Data includes breastfeeding status at birth, 10 days, 6 to 8 weeks, and 6 months by local health board for July 2014 to December 2024.
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Main points
Breastfeeding rates have risen this quarter for all ages except at birth which has remained the same as the previous quarter; with breastfeeding at 10 days, 6 weeks and 6 months being the highest on record.
Figure 1: Breastfeeding rates by age of child, July 2014 to December 2024
Description of Figure 1: A line chart which shows that the percentage of babies breastfed at each age point has increased steadily over the last decade, with highest levels recorded for each age point seen over the last year.
Source: National Community Child Health Database (NCCHD)
At birth, the breastfeeding rate for Wales was 64.4%. This is the same as the previous quarter, a decrease of 1.3 percentage points on the same quarter last year, but an increase of 6.8 percentage points on the first quarter for which there is comparable data (July to September 2014).
At 10 days, the breastfeeding rate for Wales was 58.1%. This is an increase of 0.9 percentage points on the previous quarter, an increase of 1.9 percentage points on the same quarter last year, and an increase of 13.5 percentage points on the first quarter for which there is comparable data (July to September 2014).
At 6 weeks, the breastfeeding rate for Wales was 45.7%. This is an increase of 0.9 percentage points on the previous quarter, an increase of 4.0 percentage points on the same quarter last year, and an increase of 15.1 percentage points on the first quarter for which there is comparable data (July to September 2014).
At 6 months, the breastfeeding rate for Wales was 33.6%. This is an increase of 1.0 percentage points on the previous quarter, an increase of 2.8 percentage points on the same quarter last year, and an increase of 15.3 percentage points on the first quarter for which there is comparable data (July to September 2015).
Note there is a high proportion of missing data at 6 weeks and at 6 months, although this is now reducing. For the latest quarter 17.3% and 18.3% of records had no breastfeeding status, respectively.
Contact details
Statistician: Craig Thomas
Email: stats.healthinfo@gov.wales
Media: 0300 025 8099