Infant Health and Mortality and Asian Americans

Asian Americans tend to have lower infant mortality rates than the overall population.

  • In 2022, non-Hispanic Asian American infants had the lowest total neonatal mortality rates (2.47 per 1,000 live births).1
  • In 2023, non-Hispanic Asian American mothers had the lowest rate of smoking during pregnancy (0.2%) of all racial and ethnic groups.2

Visit MedlinePlus for information about Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and Common Infant and Newborn Problems in multiple Asian languages.

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Infant mortality rate

Infant mortality, rate per 1,000 live births, 2023
Non-Hispanic AsianTotal PopulationNon-Hispanic Asian /
Total Population Ratio
3.405.610.61
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 2025. Infant Mortality in the United States, 2023: Data from the Period Linked Birth/Infant Death File. National Vital Statistics Reports Volume 74, Number 7. Table 2.
Infant mortality by age of mother, rate per 1,000 live births, 2023
Age of MotherNon-Hispanic AsianTotal PopulationNon-Hispanic Asian /
Total Population Ratio
15-19 yearsNot Reported10.44Not Reported
20–24 years5.947.230.82
25–29 years3.995.240.76
30–34 years2.974.590.65
35–39 years3.144.940.64
40–54 years4.266.770.63
Source: CDC, 2025. Infant Mortality in the United States, 2023: Data from the Period Linked Birth/Infant Death File. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 74, no. 7. Table 2.

Leading causes of infant mortality

Infant mortality rate for the top 5 leading causes of death for Asian Americans, rate per 100,000 live births, 2023
Cause of DeathNon-Hispanic AsianTotal PopulationNon-Hispanic Asian /
Total Population Ratio
Congenital Malformations69.1112.10.62
Low Birthweight53.881.40.66
Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)9.740.20.24
Accidents (unintentional injuries)8.335.80.23
Maternal complications of pregnancy25.531.90.80
Source: CDC, 2025. Infant Mortality in the United States, 2023: Data from the Period Linked Birth/Infant Death File. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 74, no. 7. Table 4

Medical and health characteristics of births

Mother received late or no prenatal care, percentage, 2023
Non-Hispanic AsianTotal PopulationNon-Hispanic Asian /
Total Population Ratio
4.97.00.70
Source: CDC, 2025. Births: Final Data for 2023. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 74, no. 1. Tables 13 and 14.
Mother smoked during pregnancy, percentage, 2023
Non-Hispanic AsianTotal PopulationNon-Hispanic Asian /
Total Population Ratio
0.23.00.07
Source: CDC, 2025. Births: Final Data for 2023. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 74, no. 1. Tables 13 and 14.

1 CDC, 2024. Infant Mortality in the United States, 2022: Data from the Period Linked Birth/Infant Death File. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 73, no. 5. Table 2. (Back to top)

2 CDC, 2025. Births: Final Data for 2023. National Vital Statistics Reports, vol. 74, no. 1. Tables 13 and 14. (Back to top)


Date Last Reviewed: September 2025