Along with pregnancies, the rate for the sexually transmitted disease chlamydia in teens went up 20 percent between 2004 and 2006 and another 13 percent between 2006 and 2007, the latest year of complete demographic data.

On a positive note, the percentage of women receiving prenatal care and the number of child-abuse cases continue to make slight improvements. And while substance-abuse cases among children have fluctuated in the past few years, the number of cases of violent crimes has fallen slightly over the same time period.

Less positive is the apparent capacity to be part of a well-educated work force. If math and science are the keys to innovation and competing well in the future for jobs that will be the foundation of the coming generation's economic future, Utah youngsters are hardly showing signs of proficiency, according to the data book.

Current test scores indicate that only 65 percent of Utah's students are proficient in science, and only 71 percent are proficient in math. The numbers are worse for minority students. In 2008, only 35 percent of Hispanic students were proficient in science and 49 percent in math.

"Clearly, this achievement gap must be addressed if these students are to thrive in the future," Haven said.

Another perhaps wider gap is the abiding lack of health insurance and access to medical care as children grow up. Few indicators have more influence on a child's capacity to thrive later in life than regular medical and dental checkups and care, Haven said.

Like the number of uninsured adults, the number of uninsured children has continued to rise in Utah, with a 57 percent increase just between 2003 and 2006.

Nearly 90,000 children are uninsured in Utah. Efforts to increase access to care through the joint state and federal Children's Health Insurance Program is helping slow the increase, "but the more quality health care, the better their chances for success at home, in school and as adults," Haven said.

"It would be nice if we had a crystal ball that would tell us how our children would be doing two, five or 10 years down the road," Haven said. "But connecting the dots between now and the past can do a lot to help us make thoughtful, calculated policy decisions that are truly in their best interest."

The Utah Kids Count Project is funded by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, whose primary mission is to foster public policies, human-service reforms and community supports that more effectively meet the needs of today's vulnerable children and families.

E-Mail: jthalman@desnews.com