Infant health: low birthweight in United States of America
United States of America: Infant health: low birthweight was 8.5 Percentage of live births in 2024. ▲ Rising
Latest (2024)
8.5 Percentage of live births
Change on year
down 1.2%
World rank
11th
of 41 countries
All-time high
8.6 Percentage of live births
in 2022
All-time low
6.7 Percentage of live births
in 1984
Years of data
51
1970–2024
Infant health: low birthweight in United States of America, 1970–2024
Source: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Measured in Percentage of live births.
Analysis
United States of America recorded 8.5 Percentage of live births for infant health: low birthweight in 2024.
The figure is down 1.2% on the previous year and up 6.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, infant health: low birthweight in United States of America peaked at 8.6 Percentage of live births in 2022 and was at its lowest, 6.7 Percentage of live births, in 1984.
That places United States of America 11th out of 41 countries with data for 2024, putting it in the top quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 51 years of available data.
Infant health: low birthweight in United States of America, year by year
| Year | Percentage of live births | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 7.9 Percentage of live births | — |
| 1975 | 7.4 Percentage of live births | -6.3% |
| 1976 | 7.3 Percentage of live births | -1.4% |
| 1977 | 7.1 Percentage of live births | -2.7% |
| 1978 | 7.1 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1979 | 6.9 Percentage of live births | -2.8% |
| 1980 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | -1.4% |
| 1981 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1982 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1983 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1984 | 6.7 Percentage of live births | -1.5% |
| 1985 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | +1.5% |
| 1986 | 6.8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1987 | 6.9 Percentage of live births | +1.5% |
| 1988 | 7 Percentage of live births | +1.4% |
| 1989 | 7 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1990 | 7.2 Percentage of live births | +2.9% |
| 1991 | 7.1 Percentage of live births | -1.4% |
| 1992 | 7.1 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1993 | 7.2 Percentage of live births | +1.4% |
| 1994 | 7.3 Percentage of live births | +1.4% |
| 1995 | 7.3 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 1996 | 7.4 Percentage of live births | +1.4% |
| 1997 | 7.5 Percentage of live births | +1.4% |
| 1998 | 7.6 Percentage of live births | +1.3% |
| 1999 | 7.6 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2000 | 7.6 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2001 | 7.7 Percentage of live births | +1.3% |
| 2002 | 7.8 Percentage of live births | +1.3% |
| 2003 | 7.9 Percentage of live births | +1.3% |
| 2004 | 8.1 Percentage of live births | +2.5% |
| 2005 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2006 | 8.3 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2007 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | -1.2% |
| 2008 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 8.1 Percentage of live births | -1.2% |
| 2012 | 8 Percentage of live births | -1.2% |
| 2013 | 8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2014 | 8 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 8.1 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2016 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2017 | 8.3 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2018 | 8.3 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 8.3 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 8.2 Percentage of live births | -1.2% |
| 2021 | 8.5 Percentage of live births | +3.7% |
| 2022 | 8.6 Percentage of live births | +1.2% |
| 2023 | 8.6 Percentage of live births | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 8.5 Percentage of live births | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 7.28 Percentage of live births | 6.9 Percentage of live births | 7.9 Percentage of live births | 6 |
| 1980s | 6.84 Percentage of live births | 6.7 Percentage of live births | 7 Percentage of live births | 10 |
| 1990s | 7.33 Percentage of live births | 7.1 Percentage of live births | 7.6 Percentage of live births | 10 |
| 2000s | 8.02 Percentage of live births | 7.6 Percentage of live births | 8.3 Percentage of live births | 10 |
| 2010s | 8.15 Percentage of live births | 8 Percentage of live births | 8.3 Percentage of live births | 10 |
| 2020s | 8.48 Percentage of live births | 8.2 Percentage of live births | 8.6 Percentage of live births | 5 |
Countries ranked near United States of America
More health data for United States of America
- Un projection of annual infant deaths, annual growth rate -1.67 % change on previous year (2100)
- Heat deaths vs projected death rates, annual growth rate -0.1867 % change on previous year (2090)
- Estimated changes in temperature-related death rates compared to projected death rates 1,069 deaths per 1,000 people (2090)
- Number of infants who die before age 1 4,015 deaths (2100)
- Population ages 0-14, female, annual growth rate -0.7786 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, female, per capita 0.0833 units per person (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, annual growth rate -0.7908 % change on previous year (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Population ages 0-14, male, per capita 0.0877 units per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is infant health: low birthweight in United States of America?
- Infant health: low birthweight in United States of America was 8.5 Percentage of live births in 2024, according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
- What is the highest infant health: low birthweight recorded in United States of America?
- The highest recorded value was 8.6 Percentage of live births in 2022.
- What is the lowest infant health: low birthweight recorded in United States of America?
- The lowest recorded value was 6.7 Percentage of live births in 1984.
- How does United States of America rank for infant health: low birthweight?
- United States of America ranks 11th out of 41 countries with data for 2024.
- Is infant health: low birthweight rising or falling in United States of America?
- Over the last ten years it is up 6.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this United States of America data come from?
- The figures come from Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, published as part of Infant health: low birthweight. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
This dataset presents time series on the number of live births weighing less than 2500 grams as a percentage of the total number of live births. Please refer to the Sources and Methods for detailed country-specific information.