The Jersey births and breastfeeding profile 2018 uses data collected over the period 2016 – 2017 to examine and update changes in birth and breastfeeding patterns on the Island. The profile refers to all births to Jersey resident mothers, including those babies born off-Island.

In 2017

• there were 954 live births to Jersey residents, the smallest annual number of births since 2002
• the proportion of births by caesarean section (30 per cent) was higher than in England
• older mothers were more likely to elect to have a caesarean section
• the proportion of mothers classed as 'older' (aged 35 or over) in Jersey has been increasing from around a quarter (24 per cent) of all live births in 2000 to around a third (33 per cent)
• over three-quarters (78 per cent) of mothers were breastfeeding their babies before being discharged from maternity care
• three out of five babies (60 per cent) were being breastfed at 6-8 weeks of age
• at the 9 month – 1 year check, one in five (20 per cent) babies were receiving breastmilk
• rates of breastfeeding  continue to be higher in rural parishes than in urban and sub-urban parishes
• over the period 2014-2016, infant mortality in Jersey was 0.7 per 1,000 live births, significantly lower than the rate of 3.9 per 1,000 live births in England