2024-04-04 00:24:03
Eating is also a social act. Especially in our culture, where many of the celebrations take place around a table. We sit together to celebrate with family or co-workers, important holidays are accompanied by good food, we even have work meals. And it is not so much because of what is shared on the tablecloth, but because of what surrounds the fact of sitting together to share. But eating with others shouldn’t be reserved just for special moments.
The family meal is the time when all or almost all the members of the same family meet to share a structured meal, regardless of the time it is held; It constitutes a central activity and a particular meeting point in the daily life of its members, vital to strengthening family unity and cohesion. In the case of children, eating regularly as a family favors the acquisition of eating habits and behaviors. It helps them explore new foods, learn about recipes linked to their own tradition and culture and contributes to improving their eating pattern. The greater the number of family meals, the lower the risk of obesity.
In recent years, various studies have shown that eating together offers many other health benefits. A recent survey from the American Heart Association supports this. An overwhelming 91 percent of parents said their family is less stressed when they eat together. Sharing meals with others is a great way to reduce stress, increase self-esteem, and improve social connection, especially for children. In addition to improving eating habits, participation at the family table improves school performance and prevents the appearance of mental health problems in adolescents.
However, in Spain, the frequency with which the family eats together has decreased in recent decades, as stated in the report “Eating as a family: making the routine healthy” prepared in 2014 by doctors Beltrán and Cuadrado for the International Institute of Studies. about the Family. Only 37.3% of Spanish parents eat regularly with their children (ten or more meals a week), while 28.6% of those surveyed have less than one lunch or dinner a day with them.
Perhaps there is no greater legacy we can give to our children than having shared time with them. And in that space, family meals occupy a main place. José Manuel Moreno. department director
of pediatrics. University of Navarra Clinic.
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