WASHINGTON (Reuters Health) - American children continue to be less likely to die as infants or have babies of their own when they reach their teens, but are still at risk of other preventable health problems such as low birth weight and drug use, according to a federal task force report released this week.

The report, a sampling of several health, education and economic conditions among US youth, shows that several children's health trends are continuing to improve thanks to research breakthroughs and an expanding economy.

But officials said that they also remain troubled by persistent rates of drug use in US teens and by continuing disparities in health quality along racial and ethnic lines.

Infant mortality, defined as death before the first birthday, dropped from 7.2 per 1,000 births in 1998 to 7.0 per 1,000 in 1999, according to the report, which was issued this week for the sixth straight year. The drop continues an ongoing trend that has seen infant mortality fall from as many as 9.2 deaths per 1,000 births in 1990.

Dr. Duane Alexander, director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, attributed the trend to a falling incidence of respiratory distress syndrome and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). New drugs to prevent respiratory distress in newborns and updated recommendations urging that infants sleep on their backs instead of their bellies caused the drop, he said.

"We are particularly pleased with this accomplishment," Alexander said of the improved infant mortality rate.

The report also found that US children were significantly more likely to have access to health insurance in 2000 than in 1999. Eighty-eight percent of children had access to healthcare, usually through their parents' employers or through a government-funded state children's health insurance program (SCHIP).

It remains unclear how those numbers will change in light of 2002's economic downturn, officials said. Children are usually less likely to receive regular healthcare or health coverage when their parents become unemployed. Firms are also less likely to offer health insurance to workers and their dependents during recessions.

Researchers said they are concerned that ethnic minorities and the poor continue to lag in overall health measures. Eighty-six percent of white children but only 74% of blacks and 75% of Hispanics in 2000 were rated by their parents to be in good or excellent health. Immunization rates and rates of healthy eating remained similarly disparate.

"There is a consistent gap by race," said Dr. Edward Sondik, director of the National Center for Health Statistics.

The annual report was first compiled in 1997 by a task force known as Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. Twenty federal agencies dealing with healthcare, social policy and education contribute to its figures.

The report also tracks an increasing prevalence of low birth weight among US newborns. As many as 7.6% of all births are now below 2500 grams (5.5 pounds), up a full percentage point since the 1970s.

The trend most likely owes to the use of in vitro fertilization techniques, which increase the likelihood of conceiving twins, Alexander said. Twins and other multiple births are more prone to low birth weight and to a later increased risk of death and disability.

Officials also noted that while cigarette use continued to drop significantly in 8th and 10th graders, 12th graders were only marginally less likely to smoke daily in 2001 than in 2000. At the same time, rates of illicit drug and alcohol use are "straight, flat," Alexander said.

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