The Infant Mortality Rate Declined In The US

Between 2005 and 2014 the infant mortality rate declined by 15%.

Great news for the US. The infant mortality rate has declined by 15% in the last years. Despite the fact that this is good news, doctors mentioned that the US should do much more in this area. This is because the rate is still too big.

Between 2005 and 2014, the infant mortality rate declined by 15%. The rate dropped from 6.89 infant deaths per 1000 births to 5.82. The rate of SIDS also declined by almost 30%. Several racial groups saw declines in infant mortality rates.

The biggest fall was among the US Asian populations. Infant mortality rates among this racial group declined by more than 20%. The only groups that did not experience a fall in the infant mortality rate were the Alaska Natives and American Indians.

The rates of the leading causes of infant deaths also went down. Congenital malformations declined by 11%. This is the primary cause of infant death. The only cause of death that increased was the rate of unintentional injuries which rose by 11%.

Two-thirds of all US states showed a significant decline in infant mortality rates. No state showed a significant increase. The states that had the lowest rates of infant mortality are Delaware, Colorado, Maryland, Virginia, South Caroline, and Mississippi. More than 33 states showed a big decline in the infant mortality rate.

The report that was completed by the CDC did not mention how the rate of infant mortality declined in these states more than in the others. Of course, we need to take into consideration the fact that Mississippi, for instance, had one of the biggest rates in 2005. This might be why the rate declined so much in this state.

The actions that were taken by health officials could be showing their effect now. The baby box program is one of those actions. Across the US, health care clinics and hospitals offer baby boxes filled with all the necessary things needed for taking care of an infant. The box can be used as a crib and it prevents parents from putting toys near the baby. It also makes the infants sleep on their back which can lower the chance of SIDS.

What is your opinion about this report? Did you know that the infant mortality rate was declining?

Image source: Pixabay

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Nancy Young

When I was younger I used to spend almost all of my free time playing computer games. My mom and dad would go mental over this. “You’re never going to do anything with your life if you are going to play games all day” they used to say. What was even more unusual was the fact that I played more games than most of the guys in my friend group. Looking back, I have to admit that I probably played a bit too much, but I also learned a lot of great things. When I turned 20 I decided that it was high-time to make some money of my own, but the only jobs I could get were that of waitress or cashier. How exciting. After several excruciating months of serving tables I had a great idea: since I love gaming so much, why don’t I write about it? That’s when I started doing small writing projects on Elance. Eventually, I got an offer for a part-time job. During that time I learned all about content marketing strategies and how search engines work. I started writing about various topics such as technology, health and lifestyle and discovered that I was actually good at it. On November 24, 2014, I became part of the ArgyllFreePress team.