"Data released by the California Department of Public Health shows that babies are hit the most by whooping cough in the state, reports the Los Angeles Times online Friday.
Out of 196 hospitalized whooping cough patients in California, 74% were under the age of six months and 57% of patients were younger than three months.
Whooping cough is reportedly spread to babies by parents, siblings and other family members; babies are more susceptible since infant vaccinations do not occur till a child is two months old.
""People with respiratory conditions and cold-like conditions should not have contact with small infants,"" Los Angeles County Department of Public Health director, Dr. Jonathan Fielding, told the LA Times.
Earlier data from the week shows that California holds the record for most whooping cough cases since 1955.
10.3 cases per 100,000 people have been reported, marking the highest incidence rate since 1962."
