FW: Debbie Cafazzo
Falling short of the goal The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that babies be exclusively breast-fed (with no added water, juice or other foods) for the first six months of life. It supports breast-feeding for the first year and beyond as long as mother and child are willing. But in 2005, only 21 states achieved the national Healthy People goal for 75 percent of mothers to begin breast-feeding at birth, according to CDC data.
The goal is for at least half of all mothers to still be breast-feeding at 6 months, and 25 percent at the 1-year mark. But only five states — California, Hawaii, Oregon, Vermont and Washington — achieved all three benchmarks in 2005.
