Do you want your child to have a healthier diet? Sit down for a meal with him.

Busy with work, taking children to kindergartens, schools or extracurricular activities, we sit down for meals together less and less often . This trend has been visible for years - already in 2014, the MOSSO brand conducted research showing that only 4 out of 10 families sit down at the table together every day. ¹ . 98% of respondents openly say that although celebrating family meals is an important part of family life, this awareness does not translate into action. As many as half of Poles sit down to eat together only on weekends , and 14 percent – occasionally. we eat lunch together more often (57%), less often dinner (29%) and breakfast (only 14%). Similar conclusions come from research by the Institute of Food and Nutrition: they showed that only half of the surveyed children eat meals together with their families every day ² .

However, it is worth setting aside half an hour for breakfast or dinner together. During the week, we often eat lunch at work, and our children - at school or kindergarten. Many studies, carried out both in Poland and abroad, show that sitting at the table together has only benefits.

Eating together is a way to deal with picky eating.

All parents know that introducing new flavors to a child's menu is not easy. Meanwhile, introducing your toddler to new dishes during a shared meal makes it easier to convince the child to give up chicken soup in favor of cream soup with pumpkin. When young family members see that parents and older siblings eagerly eat a dish new to the child, they are more willing to try it. In such a situation, the child feels safe, important and "adult". All this promotes the development of good eating habits ³ .

We are social creatures, and eating together has always been an activity that cements bonds within the "herd". You can not only eat the meal together, but also prepare it - even the little ones can help in the kitchen. Breaking eggs for omelets or washing vegetables for dinner is great fun, and at the same time - time for conversations, cuddles, learning to count or family fooling around. It is worth trying to avoid spending this time talking about bills or everyday problems. A shared meal should be associated with a time of relaxation , not with responsibilities ⁴ .

Eating together means a healthier diet for your child.

"Children who ate dinner with family members more often had healthier food consumption patterns, including higher consumption of vegetables and fruits, fiber and trace elements, and lower consumption of fried foods, sweetened drinks, saturated fats and trans fats," we read on website of the National Center for Nutrition Education ⁵ . The diet of these children was also richer in calcium, folic acid, iron, vitamins B6, B12, C and E.

Children learn by modeling. So if our table includes groats, fish and vegetables as well as water or homemade compote instead of carbonated drinks during a shared meal, this is what they will eat in the future. All this also affects maintaining a healthy body weight - eating together affects BMI in children ⁶ . The same conclusions come from the report of the Institute of Mother and Child ⁷ . It turns out that in the group of 13-year-old boys who regularly ate dinner with their families, the subjects had normal body weight. Girls who were overweight or obese were least likely to sit at the table with their families. The correlation is obvious.

Eating together develops speech.

And that's not the end of the benefits. Eating together as a family helps children develop speech and communication skills faster. Children who eat meals with their parents or in a larger group have a larger vocabulary and communicate better. ⁸ .

Moreover, family eating not only shapes positive eating habits in children and teenagers, but also reduces stress , reduces the risk of depression and is associated with better performance at school. ⁹ . In addition, it has a positive impact on family relationships. Anne Fishel, a British therapist and director of the Family Dinner Project, summed it up beautifully. “If more families ate together, I wouldn't have patients. Half of the matters we deal with in the office can be solved during meals together," she said in one of the interviews ¹⁰ .

Bibliography:

1. “As at the table, so in life. Why do we eat less and less often with our family and how does it affect us?", dziennik.pl, May 19, 2014
2. Wolnicka K., "Common meals at home prevent overweight and obesity in children and adolescents", National Center for Nutrition Education, accessed December 1, 2021.
3. Bąkowska M., “For mommy, for daddy – a way to deal with a fussy eater. How to shape proper eating habits in children at different stages of development. 2017, Warsaw, REA-SJ.
4. Rawa-Kochanowska A., Turska D., "Food and the psychological needs of an individual" in: Skrzypek M., Kulik T. (eds), " Practical dietetics in an interdisciplinary approach", pp. 73-88, Lublin, KUL.
5. Wolnicka K., op.cit.
6. Wolnicka K., Jaczewska-Schuetz K., “Weight status related to eating behaviors of school aged children in Wars aw.” Advances in Medical Sciences, 2016
7. Fijałkowska A., Oblacińska A., Stalmach M (ed.), “Overweight and obesity in Polish 8-year-olds in the light of biological, behavioral and social conditions. WHO Childhood Obesity Surveillance Initiative (COSI) International Research Report. Institute of Mother and Child 2015
8. Snow CE, Beals DE, “Mealtime talk that supports literacy development.” New Dir Child Adolesc Dev. 2006
9. Lee SY et al., “Eating habits and eating behaviors by family dinner frequency in the lower-grade elementary school students.” Nutr Res Pract. 2014
10. Anderson J., “Harvard EdCast: The Benefit of Family Mealtime.” Harvard Graduate School of Education, April 1, 2020