We're all busy. We all have things to do. In an age when we value efficiency to such a high degree, we are all looking for ways to multitask and corners to cut. Fast food, TV dinners, drive thrus, meals on the go, snack bars, Hungry? Why wait?: it seems that one facet of life that is commonly streamlined is the meal.
Of course, we know that such routes to alimentary fulfillment are not optimal for our health. Fewer nutrients, more trans fat, high caloric content, and that nasty postprandial bloating. But, apparently, there's more!
The Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine report a study showing that teenage girls benefit from sitting down to eat meals with their families. This idea goes beyond, though includes, the idea of direct nutrition to encompass a psychological element as well.
New research shows girls who regularly have family meals are much less likely to adopt extreme weight control behaviours such as vomiting, binge eating and using laxatives or diet pills.
The study is a longitudinal evaluation. In 1999, 2500 girls between the ages of 13 and 17 were polled regarding their eating habits. Follow-up investigation has found that the girls who eat with their families at least five times a week have much healthier relationships with food.
Of course, this is a correlational research study, so we are not able to disentangle the various potential causes from one another. But at the same time, this study hints at the idea that family meals help to encourage young girls to form healthier connections with eating. In fact, these results were found to be independent of factors including family relationship, socio-economic status, and weight. Such studies can never provide concrete evidence of causal mechanisms, but some researchers have hypotheses regarding these results.
"When adolescents are feeling that they're not coping they turn to something that they can control and food is something available and accessible for them to control. Clearly, if they're sitting with their family on a regular basis then their family can be more in control of their eating," Ms Dalton [director of eating disorders clinic The Oak House,] said.
A little speculative, perhaps, but interesting nonetheless.
And boys? Well…it appears family meals had no such effects on the male population.
And just in case you're wondering, Fatality eats. And eats a lot. Though her family right now consists of two dogs.
I would think that the element in operation here would more be that regular family dinners illustrate a family that is (potentially) more tightly knit and actively supportive of the girl. I mean, I'd bet you could probably substitute family game night or mini-golf or something on a regular basis for the dinners and get similar results.
I can see how correlation could be messed up a couple ways here...tight knit families who do eat together probably have children who are more mentally healthy to begin with. Plus, I know that I would never purge my mom's chicken and dumplings, but I'm tempted to purge McDonald's everytime I eat it. I think quality food could make a difference too.
StarBelliedBoy said:
I would think that the element in operation here would more be that regular family dinners illustrate a family that is (potentially) more tightly knit and actively supportive of the girl. I mean, I'd bet you could probably substitute family game night or mini-golf or something on a regular basis for the dinners and get similar results.
It's about food being part of family cohesion.
I previously read something similar about obesity and family-eating-together patterns.
It's much harder to have a messed up relationship with food if your family watches you eating at least one meal a day. You're not going to get away with starving yourself, binging, or vomiting if someone is there keeping an eye on you--it just becomes much more difficult.
I'm sure there is more to it than that, but that has to play a part, I would think.
It can be viewed as such a pain to get home from work and have to jump into the kitchen straightaway and prepare a meal.
My daughter, a tween, not yet a teen, often calls me in anticipation. Tonights masterpiece is lasagna, and you have reminded why this is the most worthwhile work I could be doing.
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SUICIDEGIRL
Florida, USA
JAN 09, 2008 10:02 AM