Study: Youngsters Smoking Less, Avoiding Crime

A U.S. government study finds that more children are practicing healthy and safe behaviors, including turning away from cigarettes and avoiding crime, Time magazine reported July 26.

According to the study conducted by 20 federal departments and agencies, fewer youngsters are smoking. The smoking rate among high-school seniors is the lowest it has been in 29 years. Furthermore, 81 percent of youngsters under age 7 live in homes where no one smokes regularly.

"There are a lot of favorable developments," said Duane Alexander, director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

The study also found that teen crime rates are on the decline. "Over the last decade, 4.2 million serious crimes against youth did not occur that would have otherwise occurred," said Lawrence Greenfeld of the U.S. Department of Justice.

The report, America's Children in Brief, is available on the National Center for Health Statistics website.