Exclusive breastfeeding (% of children under 6 months) in India
India: Exclusive breastfeeding (% of children under 6 months) was 58.0% in 2018. ▲ Rising
Exclusive breastfeeding in India, 1993–2018
Source: State of the World's Children, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). Measured in % of children under 6 months.
Analysis
In 2018, exclusive breastfeeding in India stood at 58.0%. That is the highest value across all 6 years on record.
That represents a change of up 5.7% on the previous year and up 25.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, exclusive breastfeeding in India peaked at 58.0% in 2018 and was at its lowest, 37.0%, in 2000.
India ranks 19th of 72 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
Exclusive breastfeeding (% of children under 6 months) in India, year by year
| Year | % of children under 6 months | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1993 | 46.0% | — |
| 1999 | 46.8% | +1.7% |
| 2000 | 37.0% | -20.9% |
| 2006 | 46.4% | +25.3% |
| 2016 | 54.9% | +18.4% |
| 2018 | 58.0% | +5.7% |
India compared with similar countries
- India's 58.0% is above the median for lower middle income countries, which is 46.7%, 1.2× the median. (32 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 46.4% | 46.0% | 46.8% | 2 |
| 2000s | 41.7% | 37.0% | 46.4% | 2 |
| 2010s | 56.4% | 54.9% | 58.0% | 2 |
Countries ranked near India
More health data for India
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -2.12 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate 0.4372 % change on previous year (2090)
- Un projection of annual infant deaths 44,822 (2100)
- Neonatal tetanus - number of reported cases, gaps filled 38 (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, annual growth rate -0.3809 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, female, per capita 0.0372 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, annual growth rate -0.5922 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 00-04, male, per capita 0.04 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is exclusive breastfeeding in India?
- Exclusive breastfeeding in India was 58.0% in 2018, according to State of the World's Children, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF).
- What is the highest exclusive breastfeeding recorded in India?
- The highest recorded value was 58.0% in 2018.
- What is the lowest exclusive breastfeeding recorded in India?
- The lowest recorded value was 37.0% in 2000.
- How does India rank for exclusive breastfeeding?
- India ranks 19th out of 72 countries with data for 2018.
- Is exclusive breastfeeding rising or falling in India?
- Over the last ten years it is up 25.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this India data come from?
- The figures come from State of the World's Children, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), published as part of Exclusive breastfeeding (% of children under 6 months). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 6 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Exclusive breastfeeding refers to the percentage of children less than six months old who are fed breast milk alone (no other liquids) in the past 24 hours.