A report courtesy of Good News Network is good news that should be encouraging for parents of well-behaving teens. Data over a 12-year span shows that teens in America are less likely to abuse alcohol, smoke and take illicit drugs. They are also less likely to engage in delinquent behaviors.

“We’ve known that teens overall are becoming less likely to engage in risky behaviors, and that’s good news,” said first author Richard A. Grucza, a professor of psychiatry. “But what we learned in this study is that the declines in substance abuse are connected to declines in delinquency. This suggests the changes have been driven more by changes in adolescents themselves more than by policies to reduce substance abuse or delinquent behavior.”

Other researchers have found that teens are delaying sex and using seat belts more often than their grandparents.

Based on the survey data, Mr. Grucza and his team estimated that in 2014, there were nearly 700,0000 fewer adolescents with substance-use disorders than in the 2003.

This data comes from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an annual survey of 12-17-year-olds from 50 states that is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration.

We can conclude from this good news is that not all of today’s youth are engaging in premarital sex and  taking drugs.

(Source: Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis)