FEWER TEENAGERS DRINKING, SMOKING, CDC REPORTS

American teenagers are smoking and drinking less than they were 15
years ago, fewer have sex and the number who carry weapons has fallen,
a federal survey found.

The percentage of high school students who engaged in these and other
risky behaviors fell from 1991 to 2005, according to findings released
yesterday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Alcohol
use fell from 51 percent to 43 percent, but marijuana use rose from 15
percent to 20 percent, and cocaine use jumped from 1.7 percent to 3.4
percent .

Almost 14,000 students took part in the biennial National Youth Risk
Behavior Survey.

"We're delighted that we're seeing some progress, but the realities
are that the risk behavior levels are just way too high," said Howell
Wechsler, of the division of adolescent and school health.

About 71 percent of deaths involving people ages 10 to 24 in the
United States are caused by motor-vehicle crashes, unintentional
injuries, murder or suicide, according to the survey.