Scots children are eating more fruit and leading healthier and happier lifestyles than many other young people around the world, a major health survey has revealed.

But health professionals found "areas of concern" remained over alcohol and cannabis use among young teenagers.

The report by the World Health Organisation and the NHS compared Scottish youngsters with children from 40 other countries in Europe and North America.

Researchers found that 11-year-olds in Scotland ranked second in the world for their fruit consumption with 55% of girls aged 11 eating fruit on a daily basis, just 1% behind the Portuguese and compared to 50% in England.

However, the healthy diet becomes less popular through adolescence in Scotland, with 40% of 13-year-old girls taking fruit on a daily basis and 34% of 15-year-old girls.

Scots were placed sixth in the international league for physical exercise, with 40% of 11-year-old girls and 25% of boys taking part in at least one hour of activity a day.

The survey also showed that Scots were less likely to feel pressured at school. Scotland also came third overall in the number of respondents who reported that they had at least three close friends.

The results come as the Scottish Government embarks on a £56.6m spending plan on obesity, healthy eating and physical activity, which will develop over the next three years.

However, risky behaviour remains prominent among teenage Scots, who featured near the top of the league of those who have been drunk at least twice by the time they are 13 years old.

Around 37% of 15-year-olds said that they drank alcohol at least once a week, which is slightly fewer than peers in England and Wales, but the study found that 17% of Scottish 15-year-olds consumed spirits weekly - the highest in the UK and in the top 10 internationally.

Cannabis use in Scotland is also above the international average, with 11% of girls aged 15 and 13% of boys the same age reporting that they had smoked the drug within the last month.

This compares to 8% of girls and 10% of boys in England. Canada recorded the highest cannabis use among 15-year-olds, with 15% of girls and 17% of boys indulging in the substance.

Tobacco use was also higher then normal in Scotland, with 34% of females reporting they had smoked cigarettes before they were 13, compared to 27% in England.

The Health Behaviour in School-aged Children report, published in Copenhagen yesterday, looked at 204,000 young teenagers and their lifestyles, with more than 6000 Scots children aged 11, 13, and 15 included in the sample.

The majority of the young people (43%) came from families of high affluence, when based on car ownership, the number of holidays taken and home computer access.

Research director Professor Candace Currie, of Edinburgh University, said: "Scotland has always had a pretty poor profile when it comes to healthy eating and the results on fruit consumption for 11-year-olds were a surprise.

"The other notable finding is the dropped ranking on sugary drinks consumption. We were always near the top on that one, but this time we have dropped to 21st, which is really amazing."

Graham Robertson, chief executive of NHS Health Scotland, said: "The findings in this report are enormously important to the improvement of our children's health.

"Governments in all of the 41 countries involved can now identify areas of greatest need, as well as areas where they are performing well."

Minister for Public Health Shona Robison said there were many "encouraging" results in the report but that there was more to be done.

"We recognise that we must get better at diverting young people from misusing alcohol and work is going on to achieve this, including the launch of our consultation document on tackling alcohol misuse."