as it is very difficult to force a child to breastfeed. Practice by country or region North America Elizabeth Baldwin says in Extended Breastfeeding and the Law, "Because our culture tends to view the breast as sexual, it can be hard for people to realize that breastfeeding is the natural way to nurture children." In Western countries such as the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, extended breastfeeding is a taboo act. It is difficult to obtain accurate information and statistics about extended breastfeeding in these countries because of the mother's embarrassment. Mothers who nurse longer than the social norm sometimes hide their practices from all but very close family members and friends. This is called "closet nursing". In the United States, breastfeeding beyond 1 year is considered extended breastfeeding, and in contrast to WHO recommendations which recommend exclusive breastfeeding until six months, and "continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or beyond" [with the addition of complimentary foods], the American Academy of Pediatrics stated in 1997 that, "Breastfeeding should be continued for at least the first year of life and beyond for as long as mutually desired by mother and child". In the United States overall, according to a 2010 CDC "report card", 43% of babies are breastfed until 6 months and 22.4% are breastfed until 12 months, though breastfeeding rates varied among the states. Breastfeeding rates in the U.S. at 6 months rose from 34.2% in 2000 to 43.5% in 2006 and the rates at 12 months rose from 15.7% in 2000 to 22.7% in 2006. The U.S. Healthy People 2010 goals were to have at least 60% of babies exclusively breastfed at 3 months and 25% of babies exclusively breastfed at 6 months so this goal has yet to be met. There have been several cases in the United States where children have been taken away from their mother's care because the courts or government agencies found the mother's extended breastfeeding to be inappropriate. In 1992, a New York mother lost custody of her child for a year. She was still breastfeeding the child at age 3 and had reported experiences of sexual arousal while breastfeeding the child. The authorities took the child from the home in the fear that the mother might sexually abuse the child. Later, the social service agency that took over the case said that there was more to the case