Washington ? Death is on the decline for babies, adults and older people alike, with AIDS, homicide, cancer and heart disease all claiming fewer lives, the government reports in its annual look at American health.

Life expectancy reached a record high of 76.9 years, with the gaps between blacks and whites as well as men and women narrowing over time.

The report released Thursday looks at health trends spanning the second half of the 20th century and finds improvement on almost every measure.

“When you take the long view, you see clearly how far we’ve come,” said Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson.

Throughout the century, women and whites have lived longer, but those gaps are closing, the report shows.

In 1950, whites lived 8.3 years longer than blacks. By 2000, the gap was 5.6 years. For gender, the gap was at its peak in 1970, when women lived 7.6 years longer than men. By 2000, the gap was 5.4 years.

The report found drops in death at every stage of life. Specifically:

Infants: The portion of babies dying before their first birthday was at a record low in 2000, 6.9 per 1,000 live births, down 75 percent since 1950.

Youths: Mortality among children and young adults, between 12 months and 24 years, declined by more than half since 1950.

Adults: Death among adults age 25 to 44 declined by more than 40 percent between 1950 and 1999.

Older adults: Mortality among adults age 45 to 64 fell by nearly 50 percent.