Eat Together, Happy Together

The family dinner isn’t just about the food. Research has shown that it can bestow long-term benefits that will improve family ties and instill good values in the younger members of the family.

- Lim Teck Choon

When was the last time your family ate dinner together? These days, it is common for the younger family members to eat among themselves or with the grandparents or caregivers first, with the parents coming in to eat later once they get home from work. Teenagers may opt to skip eating at home, going out for dinner with their friends. Nothing wrong with such a routine, right, as everyone is well nourished and happy?

As far back as a few decades ago, however, both family experts and medical researchers have argued that it is worth taking the effort to eat together as a family. It is not just about food (although that is just as important!), it is also about other benefits to the well-being of every member of the family, especially the younger ones.

BETTER NUTRITION FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

• A 2000 study by Harvard found that families that eat together consume higher amounts of calcium, dietary fibre, iron and vitamins B6, B12, C and E.

• The same study also found that members of such families also consume less fat.

• Another study conducted among families in Washington, DC (USA) found that children from families that eat together consume more fruits and vegetables as well as less unhealthy snacks.

• Many researchers believe that these positive outcomes are due to the fact that when families eat together, children are more likely to eat healthier, due to positive influence of or encouragement by the older family members at the dining table.

POSITIVE EFFECTS ON THE KIDS

• Happier kids! A research published in the