In a study conducted in 2005 by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, experts compared teenagers who have dinner with their families at least five times a week with teenagers who have dinner with their families two times a week or less.
They found that teens who have fewer family meals are:
Three times more likely to try marijuana.
Two and a half times more likely to smoke cigarettes.
One and a half times more likely to drink alcohol.
Also, teens who eat with their families nightly are 40 percent more likely to bring home A’s and B’s on their report cards.
These numbers show there are concrete, quantifiable payoffs to eating with your kids, including brighter futures.
There also are softer results in the study, but they are no less telling:
Seventy percent of teens who eat with the family five times a week say their parents are “very proud” of them, compared with 48 percent of teens who have family dinners twice a week or less.
Twenty percent of the twice-a-
week teens report “a great deal” of stress at home, compared with 7 percent of five-times-a-week teens.
Teens who eat often with their families say they’d be more likely to confide in a parent if they had a serious problem. Teens who eat less frequently with parents are more likely to turn elsewhere.
To encourage family mealtimes, Viacom babies TV Land and Nick at Nite are working with CASA to sponsor an upcoming national event, “Family Day – A National Day to Eat Dinner With Your Children.” (Visit familytable.info for more.)
Just last week, the initiative (which began in 2001) won an award from the Broadcast Designers Association in the educational category.
I’m glad there are people reminding us about the importance of the family table, but it’s sad that there has to be a national marketing push to nudge us to set aside one night out of 365 to have dinner with the kids. (This year, the big night is Sept. 26, so mark your busy calendars now.)
I say we, as a city, one-up these guys and do it every week. Let’s commit to having dinner as a family one night more every week than we do now. If you eat together twice, make it three times. If you eat together five nights, make it six.
I’m not a parent, so it’s hard for me to relate to all the demands on the precious time and energy it requires to raise great children.
But I was a kid once, and looking back, I sure wish we’d had more dinners together.
I suspect what most often keeps families from eating together is the effort it takes to shop for and cook a meal. I love to cook, but I can relate. So let someone else deal with that. Hit a restaurant.
While there’s virtue in making dinner (and there’s nothing like cooking for, or even better cooking with, your kids), dinner out counts as family time too.
No need to spend a lot of money. Go someplace cheap! Find that great Ethiopian restaurant you keep hearing about, or try that dinky little diner you drive by every day. Grab taquitos or Vietnamese sandwiches and stake out a picnic table at the park up the street.
A new restaurant, or a new cuisine, or a new part of town takes your family conversation in a new direction. It’s something you experience together. You know, bonding and all that.
Even better, find your favorite inexpensive neighborhood restaurant (preferably one with some personality) and go there every Tuesday. Be regulars. Make it a standing date, like karate lessons or ballet practice. The benefits to your kids, and to your family, will be even stronger than any of those résumé-builders.
Five good family-friendly neighborhood restaurants that won’t break your budget: The Handle Bar and Grill near Washington Park, Yanni’s Greek Taverna at South Monaco Street and East Evans Avenue, Castle Cafe in Castle Rock, Jewel of India in Westminster, Romano’s in Littleton.
Eating dinner together as a family has undeniably positive benefits. The more you eat together, the stronger your family – and your kids – will be.
Dining critic Tucker Shaw can be reached at 303-820-1958 or at dining@denverpost.com.
