Infant Mortality, Deaths Per 1,000 Live Births (LGHC Indicator)
This is a source dataset for a Let's Get Healthy California indicator at https://letsgethealthy.ca.gov/. Infant Mortality is defined as the number of deaths in infants under one year of age per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality is often used as an indicator to measure the health and well-being of a community, because factors affecting the health of entire populations can also impact the mortality rate of infants. Although California’s infant mortality rate is better than the national average, there are significant disparities, with African American babies dying at more than twice the rate of other groups. Data are from the Birth Cohort Files. The infant mortality indicator computed from the birth cohort file comprises birth certificate information on all births that occur in a calendar year (denominator) plus death certificate information linked to the birth certificate for those infants who were born in that year but subsequently died within 12 months of birth (numerator). Studies of infant mortality that are based on information from death certificates alone have been found to underestimate infant death rates for infants of all race/ethnic groups and especially for certain race/ethnic groups, due to problems such as confusion about event registration requirements, incomplete data, and transfers of newborns from one facility to another for medical care. Note there is a separate data table "Infant Mortality by Race/Ethnicity" which is based on death records only, which is more timely but less accurate than the Birth Cohort File. Single year shown to provide state-level data and county totals for the most recent year. Numerator: Infants deaths (under age 1 year). Denominator: Live births occurring to California state residents. Multiple years aggregated to allow for stratification at the county level. For this indicator, race/ethnicity is based on the birth certificate information, which records the race/ethnicity of the mother. The mother can “decline to state”; this is considered to be a valid response. These responses are not displayed on the indicator visualization.
Data files
| Data title and description | Access data | File details | Last updated |
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Infant Mortality, Deaths Per 1,000 Live Births (LGHC Indicator 01) (CSV) This is a source dataset for a Let's Get Healthy California indicator at https://letsgethealthy.ca.gov/. Infant Mortality is defined as the number of deaths in infants under one year of age per 1,000 live births. Infant mortality is often used as an indicator to measure the health and well-being of a community, because factors affecting the health of entire populations can also impact the mortality rate of infants. Although California’s infant mortality rate is better than the national average, there are significant disparities, with African American babies dying at more than twice the rate of other groups. Data are from the Birth Cohort Files. The infant mortality indicator computed from the birth cohort file comprises birth certificate information on all births that occur in a calendar year (denominator) plus death certificate information linked to the birth certificate for those infants who were born in that year but subsequently died within 12 months of birth (numerator). Studies of infant mortality that are based on information from death certificates alone have been found to underestimate infant death rates for infants of all race/ethnic groups and especially for certain race/ethnic groups, due to problems such as confusion about event registration requirements, incomplete data, and transfers of newborns from one facility to another for medical care. Note there is a separate data table "Infant Mortality by Race/Ethnicity" which is based on death records only, which is more timely but less accurate than the Birth Cohort File. Single year shown to provide state-level data and county totals for the most recent year. Numerator: Infants deaths (under age 1 year). Denominator: Live births occurring to California state residents. Multiple years aggregated to allow for stratification at the county level. For this indicator, race/ethnicity is based on the birth certificate information, which records the race/ethnicity of the mother. The mother can “decline to state”; this is considered to be a valid response. These responses are not displayed on the indicator visualization. | Download | CSV | 12/08/23 |
All resource data | Download | ZIP | 12/08/23 |
Supporting files
| Data title and description | Access data | File details | Last updated |
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Infant Mortality – Deaths per 1,000 Live Births California’s infant mortality rate is lower than the nation’s and has reached a record low.[1] Infant mortality is an important indicator of the overall health and well-being of the population. The infant mortality rate is regarded as a highly sensitive measure of population health because there is an association between the causes of infant mortality and other factors that influence the status of whole populations such as economic development, general living conditions, social well-being, rates of illness, quality and access to medical care, public health practices, and quality of the environment. The infant mortality rate is measured as the number of infant deaths before one year of age for every 1,000 live births in that population. About two-thirds of infant deaths occur before a baby is one month old, and the remaining third between two and 12 months of life.[2] Infant mortality is linked to women’s health status with healthier moms having healthier babies. Considering nearly half of pregnancies are unplanned, it is critical for women to get healthy now. Women’s health is multifaceted and includes good nutrition, reducing or quitting smoking, and avoiding excess alcohol use. Optimal health also includes managing stress, strong social support, education, economic stability, and being able to live in healthy neighborhoods for physical activity and community safety. Of course, being able to access high quality health care also matters. Learn more at [Let's Get Healthy California](https://letsgethealthy.ca.gov/goals/healthy-beginnings/reducing-infant-mortality/) [1] March of Dimes. (n.d.). Stress and Pregnancy. Retrieved December 14, 2015, from marchofdimes.org: http://www.marchofdimes.org/materials/Maternal-Stress-Issue-Brief-January2015.pdf [2] [California Department of Public Health, Birth and Death Statistical Master Files, 2012] | CHART | 12/08/23 |