Children's Health Defense By
U.S. infant mortality from all causes rose 3% in the year 2021 to 2022 — the first increase since 2001, according to a report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS).
The trend represents a sharp reversal, as between 2000 and 2020, infant deaths decreased by 21%.
Danielle Ely, Ph.D., a co-author of the NCHS report, told Decatur, Illinois, TV station WAND he wasn’t sure if the increase was an anomaly or the start of a new, disturbing trend.
“The study provides a description of some of the basic relationships between risk factors and infant mortality rates,” said Ely, adding that it was just a “first step in determining what is going on with infant health in our country…
