The reason family meal benefits go beyond food
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While making time to gather for family meals seems like it can be impossible when life is busy, the benefits of doing so go far beyond healthier eating habits. “There are additional benefits to family time over a meal for children, including lower rates of depression and anxiety, higher self-esteem, and academic performance with lower rates of risky behavior,” Margie Saidel told Real Simple. Despite these additional positives, during regular times, only about 30 percent of families eat together regularly, according to a Harvard report.
In addition to better mental health, self-esteem, and grades, having regular family meals could lead teenagers to make better choices. “Family dinners nurture body and soul—and in teens specifically, those who regularly eat with their families have lower rates of drug and alcohol use,” Liz Weiss explained (via EatingWell). To reap these benefits, families need to gather at least three times each week to break bread. The nice thing is, that can occur during any one of the traditional 21 meals you eat every week, and they don’t have to be perfect. Part of the benefits families experience simply comes from spending time together eating. As life gets back to normal in the coming months, you might want to preserve a few mealtimes with your household.
Here’s Why Family Meals Are So Good For Your Health
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By Rachel Dillin/March 28, 2021 7:24 pm EST
However, one of the keys to reaping this benefit of eating together is to keep things positive around the dinner table (via EatingWell). Liz Weiss, MS, RDN told the publication, “The key is to keep things positive. Research from the University of Illinois finds that setting a happy emotional tone at the table increases the positive effects of families eating together.” Ultimately, children who have more positive mealtimes tend to eat an additional serving of healthy fruits or vegetables than those who had less positive dinners. Children who ate as a family exhibited better weight management later in life, too (via Real Simple).
The reason family meal benefits go beyond food
While making time to gather for family meals seems like it can be impossible when life is busy, the benefits of doing so go far beyond healthier eating habits. “There are additional benefits to family time over a meal for children, including lower rates of depression and anxiety, higher self-esteem, and academic performance with lower rates of risky behavior,” Margie Saidel told Real Simple. Despite these additional positives, during regular times, only about 30 percent of families eat together regularly, according to a Harvard report.
In addition to better mental health, self-esteem, and grades, having regular family meals could lead teenagers to make better choices. “Family dinners nurture body and soul—and in teens specifically, those who regularly eat with their families have lower rates of drug and alcohol use,” Liz Weiss explained (via EatingWell). To reap these benefits, families need to gather at least three times each week to break bread. The nice thing is, that can occur during any one of the traditional 21 meals you eat every week, and they don’t have to be perfect. Part of the benefits families experience simply comes from spending time together eating. As life gets back to normal in the coming months, you might want to preserve a few mealtimes with your household.
In addition to better mental health, self-esteem, and grades, having regular family meals could lead teenagers to make better choices. “Family dinners nurture body and soul—and in teens specifically, those who regularly eat with their families have lower rates of drug and alcohol use,” Liz Weiss explained (via EatingWell).
To reap these benefits, families need to gather at least three times each week to break bread. The nice thing is, that can occur during any one of the traditional 21 meals you eat every week, and they don’t have to be perfect. Part of the benefits families experience simply comes from spending time together eating. As life gets back to normal in the coming months, you might want to preserve a few mealtimes with your household.
