Mealtime Matters

Benefits of Family Mealtime

While the number of meals a child must eat with his family each week in order to meet the "ideal" standard is still up for debate, experts do agree that frequent, meaningful family mealtime supports development and child wellbeing on many counts. Among the benefits are strengthened physical, emotional and social development, positive academic and behavioral outcomes, and stronger family connections⁴. In this review, "frequent" family mealtime refers to four or more times per week. When compared with their peers, children who eat with their families frequently throughout week are advanced in these areas:

• Physical development. Fiese and Schwartz reported that nearly all "kids' meals" served at fast-food and sit-down restaurants offer unhealthy choices that are low in nutritional value and too high in calories for children. They also noted that the frequency with which families eat out has increased dramatically over the last 25 years⁴. Among other factors, these may contribute to the finding by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that "94 percent of children between ages thirteen and eighteen years show poor-quality diets or diets in need of improvement"⁷ (p. 91). However, studies also show that family mealtime can combat this pattern.

Researchers report that adolescents who eat frequently with their families eat more fruits, vegetables, and other foods high in essential nutrients than their peers who do not eat with their families often. They also consume less soft-drinks, prepared foods and foods high in saturated and trans fat⁷. These associations were based strictly on frequency of meals eaten as a family, but the quality of mealtime interaction also has an effect on nutrition. Viewing television during mealtime has a negative effect on the amount of fruits and vegetables adolescents consume, and meals where family members (especially parents) were unresponsive or disinterested in the conversation are "associated with overweight conditions in youth"⁴ (p. 6). In sum, frequent family meals where healthy food is served, distractions are minimized, and families enjoy positive interaction can promote increased nutrition and healthier eating habits in adolescents.

• Emotional development. Frequent, high-quality family meals lead to fewer emotional difficulties in children. Teens who eat with their families have been found to experience less depression, entertain fewer suicidal thoughts, and have higher self-esteem⁶. When communication at the dinner table is clear and direct, children experience fewer difficulties with affect management, interpersonal involvement, and communication. The structure provided through family meals with direct and clear communication helps children feel less overall distress, as well. When symbolic meaning is attached to family mealtimes and other family rituals, children are less prone to develop anxiety disorders³).

• Social development. Mealtime is an ideal place for children to learn the social norms of the culture in which you live, as well as those of your own family's culture. Children will learn these norms through the observation and interaction that occur naturally in a mealtime setting. According to Snow and Beals⁹, mealtime is a place where "they learn what appropriate topics are, how to stay on topic, how to give enough information to the listener, and what the socially acceptable means of communication are" (p. 53). Aside from appropriate conversation etiquette, children learn table manners, cultural expectations regarding children and elders, gender roles, and more at the dinner table⁸. Family culture is also perpetuated through mealtime traditions. Family values are transmitted both intentionally and unintentionally through mealtime interaction. Topics of conversation, the way children and parents treat each other, the type of food eaten, the way the table is set, and mealtime activities all contribute to a child's perception of family culture. Children will observe this culture and behave according to the standards they perceive².

• Academic outcomes. Children who eat with their families get better grades in school, and are advanced in literacy.

- Grades. In their annual survey of teens and their parents, CASA¹ found that children who eat dinner with their families five to seven times a week were much more likely to get A's and B's in school than those who did not. Children who ate with their families less than three times a week were one and a half times more likely to get grades of C or lower¹.

- Literacy. Children have the opportunity to listen to and engage in two types of talk at mealtime: explanatory and narrative. Through explanatory talk, children build their vocabulary and learn new things about their world. This is significant because "vocabulary knowledge is one of the most powerful predictors of reading abilities"⁹ (p. 60). Through narrative talk, children learn to tell about past experiences and plan future ones. All of these skills lend to a better understanding of language, and better literacy achievement in school. In fact, researchers found that mealtime was even more influential in vocabulary development than reading books to children⁹.

• Behavioral outcomes. In the 2009 CASA survey, researchers found that "one of the most effective ways parents can keep their kids from using substances is by sitting down to dinner with them"¹ (p. ii). Teens who ate meals with their family less than three times a week were much more likely to have used marijuana and alcohol than those who ate more than five meals per week with their family. Those who ate less often with their family were more likely to have friends who used drugs and alcohol, and to expect to use drugs in the future. On the other hand, teens who ate with their family five or more times per week were half as likely to drink or use marijuana, ecstasy or methamphetamine. They were also less than half as likely to know how to obtain marijuana within the hour if they wanted to. Overall, teens who ate dinner their family frequently enjoyed protection against the use of drugs and alcohol¹.

• Family connection. Time spent together around the table provides an opportunity for your family to create strong family connections. It is a place where your family can establish traditions, share experiences and feelings, and join in laughter and joking. The type of interaction your family engages in at the dinner table will contribute to the formation of a family identity. If positive and direct communication is employed, the family will form an identity of trust and inclusion³. Family relationships flourish as a result of meaningful family mealtime. Teens who eat dinner with their families report having great relationships with their parents, and easier and more positive communication with both mother and father¹. However, children and teens are not the only ones who benefit from family mealtime. Jacob and colleagues reported that parents' perception of success in life (at work, in family relationships, and in personal matters) was affected by how much work interfered with family dinnertime. When parents were able to be home for dinner they experienced less conflict between work and family, even if they worked more hours⁵.

Obstacles to Family Mealtime

If there are so many benefits offered through family mealtime, why don't more families eat together, and do it more often? While mealtime sounds like a great idea on paper, planning, preparing, serving, and cleaning up after a meal while juggling the schedules of every family member makes it quite impractical. When asked what the greatest obstacles were to eating dinner as a family, teens and their parents most frequently reported that they were too busy, were involved in activities, or had work conflicts. Other obstacles included involvement in sports and extracurricular activities, time spent with a girl- or boyfriend, and family members just plain not being home¹. Some parents reported it was hard to fit in time to shop for and prepare nutritious meals⁴. Ideas for how to overcome these obstacles and make mealtime meaningful are found in the following section.

Making Mealtime Matter

It's not only the frequency of mealtimes in a week that matter, but the quality of time spent together as a family. Seven family meals a week eaten in front of the TV will not bring the same benefits to your family as four meals a week around a table, with lively conversation involving all family members. So, how can you make mealtime matter in your home? Here are some small ways you can make a big difference in the way your family meals turn out:

• Plan ahead. Try planning meals ahead of time, even a week or two in advance. That way, you will know what to buy at the grocery store and you'll avoid the last-minute scramble to pull something edible together before the kids get hungry! Planning ahead will also help you make your meals more nutritious for your growing children¹⁰.

• Choose a regular mealtime. Predictability is important to children. If they know what to expect, they will pose less resistance when it's time to come to the table. If you can't have a meal at the same time every day because of changing schedules, try taking a moment at tonight's dinner to decide together on a time for tomorrow's meal¹⁰.

• Involve everyone in meal preparation and clean-up. Involving the whole family in preparation and clean-up will help each member feel ownership and responsibility for making mealtime happen. You may try following a nightly routine (for example, mom prepares the meal, kids set and clear the table, dad does the dishes), or you might like to use a chore rotation system where each member gets to do something different each night. Try a few ideas until you find what works best for your family¹⁰.

• Turn off the television. While TV is a tempting distraction, that's all it is: a distraction. Watching TV during family mealtime makes it difficult to engage in conversation, thus preventing the important family connections that could be made during that time. Save TV time for later and you will find that mealtime becomes more enjoyable for everyone⁴.

• Leave electronic devices (cell phones, blackberries, gameboys) in another room. Similar to TV, all of the gadgets and gizmos we have these days can be a distraction from what really matters at mealtime. Leaving these things in another room will allow the whole family to participate in mealtime conversation and receive the benefits of a meaningful family meal¹.

• Eat around a table. Sitting around a table allows everyone eating to be part of the mealtime activity. When you and your child are able to see the faces of everyone else at the table, you will be more able to join in conversation and less likely to be excluded¹⁰.

• Have pleasant conversation. Try to eliminate (or at least reduce) conflict at the dinner table by saving tense conversations for another time. While it is important for you as parents to use mealtime as an opportunity to check in with your children, it is also important for children to feel a desire to join the family at dinner. Repeatedly choosing to discuss tense topics (poor grades, misbehavior that occurred earlier today or this week, financial difficulties) at family meals can make children want to avoid eating with the family¹⁰.

• Be flexible! Do what works for your family. Rigidity in carrying out family meals can have the opposite effect than the one you're aiming for. If something doesn't go as planned, have a good laugh about it with your kids and move forward. Be okay with eating slightly burnt casserole on paper plates every once in a while. Let a child eat dinner with another family occasionally. Your flexibility will have a great effect on how much your children enjoy mealtime with the family².

Mealtime as a ritual. According to William Doherty², mealtime can either be a routine or a ritual for families. He states, "Family rituals are repeated and coordinated activities that have significance for the family. To be a ritual, the activity has to have meaning or significance; otherwise, it is a routine but not a ritual" (p. 10). If mealtime is practiced intentionally as a ritual, it has the power to connect and bind a family, while also bringing previously-mentioned benefits to children and adolescents. However, if mealtime is a routine in the home practiced only to get the family fed and on their way, it loses power.

There are three key phases of a ritual. Here, we will apply them to family mealtime:

• Transition phase. This is a clear indication that the ritual has begun. For mealtime, this may involve ringing a dinner bell, saying a prayer or blessing on the food, beginning the food preparations, or any number of things that indicate to you and your family that the meal or mealtime ritual has begun².

One family dims the lights, closes the door between the dining room and the kitchen, and lights a candle on the table to set the mood for family dinner. When the candle is lit, everyone knows the meal has begun.

• Enactment phase. In this phase, your family is participating in the ritual itself. This is the actual consumption of the meal, along with any activity involved in mealtime. There are countless ways you can intentionally turn the eating of a meal into something meaningful and fun for your family. During this phase, some families choose to go from youngest to oldest and tell one good thing and one bad thing that happened in their day. Others choose a specific current event to discuss².

One family made it a practice to have educational placemats based on a specific theme at each place at the table. For example, for several nights they used placemats with a map of the United States on them. Family members would take time during the meal to memorize the names and locations of the fifty states and their capitals, then quiz each other to see how much they had learned. This made dinner enjoyable and productive all at once.

• Exit phase. This indicates the end of the ritual, when everyone is free to go about their personal business again. In a family meal, this may be when every member of the family has finished eating, when a parent leaves the table, or when all of the mealtime mess is cleaned up and out of sight².

In one family, dinnertime lasted through clean-up. When everyone was finished eating, a few family members would go to the kitchen to wash dishes and put away leftovers, while the rest would sit in the adjacent room and read stories out loud for all to hear. This way, the whole family could enjoy the stories while the kitchen still got clean.

Making it Work for Your Family

Does all this seem overwhelming and nearly impossible for you with your hectic schedule? Don't worry, it seems that way to lots of people. You don't have to completely transform your mealtimes overnight. Just start small. Choose one idea or one way you can improve your family mealtime. Ask family members to share their ideas for how mealtime can be more meaningful for your family. Try incorporating a new idea every week or every month, even. You will be amazed at how the littlest things can make a big difference for your family¹⁰.

Suggested Reading & Further Resources

Making Mealtime Meaningful:

• The Intentional Family: Simple Rituals to Strengthen Family Ties, by William Doherty
• http://casafamilyday.org/familyday/
• http://www.sharethetable.com/

Meal Planning:

• http://www.mealsmatter.org/

Written by Amy M. Scoville, Research Assistant, and edited by Jenet J. Erickson and Stephen F. Duncan, professors in the School of Family Life, Brigham Young University.

References

1. CASA. (2009). The importance of family dinners V. New York: Columbia University.
2. Doherty, W. J. (2002). The intentional family: Simple rituals to strengthen family ties. New York: Quill.
3. Fiese, B., Foley, K., & Spagnola, M. (2006). Routine and ritual elements in family mealtimes: Contexts for child well-being and family identity. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.),Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
4. Fiese, B., & Schwartz, M. (2008). Reclaiming the family table: Mealtimes and child health and wellbeing. Social Policy Report: Giving Child and Youth Development Knowledge Away, 22(4), 1-19.
5. Jacob, J.I., Allen, S., Hill, E. J., Mead, N. L. & Ferris, M. (2008). Work interference with dinnertime as a mediator and moderator between work hours and work and family outcomes. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 36(4), 310-327.
6. Larson, R., Branscomb, K., & Wiley, A. (2006). Forms and functions of family mealtimes: Multidisciplinary perspectives. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
7. Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2006). Eating among teens: Do family mealtimes make a difference for adolescent's nutrition? In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
8. Orchs, E., & Shohet, M. (2006). The cultural structuring of mealtime socialization. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization(pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
9. Snow, C., & Beals, D. (2006). Mealtime talk that supports literacy development. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization(pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
10. USDA. (2010). Enjoying the Family Meal. Retrieved January 16, 2010 fromwww.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/Nibbles/enjoying.pdf

Benefits of Family Mealtime

While the number of meals a child must eat with his family each week in order to meet the "ideal" standard is still up for debate, experts do agree that frequent, meaningful family mealtime supports development and child wellbeing on many counts. Among the benefits are strengthened physical, emotional and social development, positive academic and behavioral outcomes, and stronger family connections⁴. In this review, "frequent" family mealtime refers to four or more times per week. When compared with their peers, children who eat with their families frequently throughout week are advanced in these areas:

• Physical development. Fiese and Schwartz reported that nearly all "kids' meals" served at fast-food and sit-down restaurants offer unhealthy choices that are low in nutritional value and too high in calories for children. They also noted that the frequency with which families eat out has increased dramatically over the last 25 years⁴. Among other factors, these may contribute to the finding by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that "94 percent of children between ages thirteen and eighteen years show poor-quality diets or diets in need of improvement"⁷ (p. 91). However, studies also show that family mealtime can combat this pattern.

Researchers report that adolescents who eat frequently with their families eat more fruits, vegetables, and other foods high in essential nutrients than their peers who do not eat with their families often. They also consume less soft-drinks, prepared foods and foods high in saturated and trans fat⁷. These associations were based strictly on frequency of meals eaten as a family, but the quality of mealtime interaction also has an effect on nutrition. Viewing television during mealtime has a negative effect on the amount of fruits and vegetables adolescents consume, and meals where family members (especially parents) were unresponsive or disinterested in the conversation are "associated with overweight conditions in youth"⁴ (p. 6). In sum, frequent family meals where healthy food is served, distractions are minimized, and families enjoy positive interaction can promote increased nutrition and healthier eating habits in adolescents.

• Emotional development. Frequent, high-quality family meals lead to fewer emotional difficulties in children. Teens who eat with their families have been found to experience less depression, entertain fewer suicidal thoughts, and have higher self-esteem⁶. When communication at the dinner table is clear and direct, children experience fewer difficulties with affect management, interpersonal involvement, and communication. The structure provided through family meals with direct and clear communication helps children feel less overall distress, as well. When symbolic meaning is attached to family mealtimes and other family rituals, children are less prone to develop anxiety disorders³).

• Social development. Mealtime is an ideal place for children to learn the social norms of the culture in which you live, as well as those of your own family's culture. Children will learn these norms through the observation and interaction that occur naturally in a mealtime setting. According to Snow and Beals⁹, mealtime is a place where "they learn what appropriate topics are, how to stay on topic, how to give enough information to the listener, and what the socially acceptable means of communication are" (p. 53). Aside from appropriate conversation etiquette, children learn table manners, cultural expectations regarding children and elders, gender roles, and more at the dinner table⁸. Family culture is also perpetuated through mealtime traditions. Family values are transmitted both intentionally and unintentionally through mealtime interaction. Topics of conversation, the way children and parents treat each other, the type of food eaten, the way the table is set, and mealtime activities all contribute to a child's perception of family culture. Children will observe this culture and behave according to the standards they perceive².

• Academic outcomes. Children who eat with their families get better grades in school, and are advanced in literacy.

- Grades. In their annual survey of teens and their parents, CASA¹ found that children who eat dinner with their families five to seven times a week were much more likely to get A's and B's in school than those who did not. Children who ate with their families less than three times a week were one and a half times more likely to get grades of C or lower¹.

- Literacy. Children have the opportunity to listen to and engage in two types of talk at mealtime: explanatory and narrative. Through explanatory talk, children build their vocabulary and learn new things about their world. This is significant because "vocabulary knowledge is one of the most powerful predictors of reading abilities"⁹ (p. 60). Through narrative talk, children learn to tell about past experiences and plan future ones. All of these skills lend to a better understanding of language, and better literacy achievement in school. In fact, researchers found that mealtime was even more influential in vocabulary development than reading books to children⁹.

• Behavioral outcomes. In the 2009 CASA survey, researchers found that "one of the most effective ways parents can keep their kids from using substances is by sitting down to dinner with them"¹ (p. ii). Teens who ate meals with their family less than three times a week were much more likely to have used marijuana and alcohol than those who ate more than five meals per week with their family. Those who ate less often with their family were more likely to have friends who used drugs and alcohol, and to expect to use drugs in the future. On the other hand, teens who ate with their family five or more times per week were half as likely to drink or use marijuana, ecstasy or methamphetamine. They were also less than half as likely to know how to obtain marijuana within the hour if they wanted to. Overall, teens who ate dinner their family frequently enjoyed protection against the use of drugs and alcohol¹.

• Family connection. Time spent together around the table provides an opportunity for your family to create strong family connections. It is a place where your family can establish traditions, share experiences and feelings, and join in laughter and joking. The type of interaction your family engages in at the dinner table will contribute to the formation of a family identity. If positive and direct communication is employed, the family will form an identity of trust and inclusion³. Family relationships flourish as a result of meaningful family mealtime. Teens who eat dinner with their families report having great relationships with their parents, and easier and more positive communication with both mother and father¹. However, children and teens are not the only ones who benefit from family mealtime. Jacob and colleagues reported that parents' perception of success in life (at work, in family relationships, and in personal matters) was affected by how much work interfered with family dinnertime. When parents were able to be home for dinner they experienced less conflict between work and family, even if they worked more hours⁵.

Obstacles to Family Mealtime

If there are so many benefits offered through family mealtime, why don't more families eat together, and do it more often? While mealtime sounds like a great idea on paper, planning, preparing, serving, and cleaning up after a meal while juggling the schedules of every family member makes it quite impractical. When asked what the greatest obstacles were to eating dinner as a family, teens and their parents most frequently reported that they were too busy, were involved in activities, or had work conflicts. Other obstacles included involvement in sports and extracurricular activities, time spent with a girl- or boyfriend, and family members just plain not being home¹. Some parents reported it was hard to fit in time to shop for and prepare nutritious meals⁴. Ideas for how to overcome these obstacles and make mealtime meaningful are found in the following section.

Making Mealtime Matter

It's not only the frequency of mealtimes in a week that matter, but the quality of time spent together as a family. Seven family meals a week eaten in front of the TV will not bring the same benefits to your family as four meals a week around a table, with lively conversation involving all family members. So, how can you make mealtime matter in your home? Here are some small ways you can make a big difference in the way your family meals turn out:

• Plan ahead. Try planning meals ahead of time, even a week or two in advance. That way, you will know what to buy at the grocery store and you'll avoid the last-minute scramble to pull something edible together before the kids get hungry! Planning ahead will also help you make your meals more nutritious for your growing children¹⁰.

• Choose a regular mealtime. Predictability is important to children. If they know what to expect, they will pose less resistance when it's time to come to the table. If you can't have a meal at the same time every day because of changing schedules, try taking a moment at tonight's dinner to decide together on a time for tomorrow's meal¹⁰.

• Involve everyone in meal preparation and clean-up. Involving the whole family in preparation and clean-up will help each member feel ownership and responsibility for making mealtime happen. You may try following a nightly routine (for example, mom prepares the meal, kids set and clear the table, dad does the dishes), or you might like to use a chore rotation system where each member gets to do something different each night. Try a few ideas until you find what works best for your family¹⁰.

• Turn off the television. While TV is a tempting distraction, that's all it is: a distraction. Watching TV during family mealtime makes it difficult to engage in conversation, thus preventing the important family connections that could be made during that time. Save TV time for later and you will find that mealtime becomes more enjoyable for everyone⁴.

• Leave electronic devices (cell phones, blackberries, gameboys) in another room. Similar to TV, all of the gadgets and gizmos we have these days can be a distraction from what really matters at mealtime. Leaving these things in another room will allow the whole family to participate in mealtime conversation and receive the benefits of a meaningful family meal¹.

• Eat around a table. Sitting around a table allows everyone eating to be part of the mealtime activity. When you and your child are able to see the faces of everyone else at the table, you will be more able to join in conversation and less likely to be excluded¹⁰.

• Have pleasant conversation. Try to eliminate (or at least reduce) conflict at the dinner table by saving tense conversations for another time. While it is important for you as parents to use mealtime as an opportunity to check in with your children, it is also important for children to feel a desire to join the family at dinner. Repeatedly choosing to discuss tense topics (poor grades, misbehavior that occurred earlier today or this week, financial difficulties) at family meals can make children want to avoid eating with the family¹⁰.

• Be flexible! Do what works for your family. Rigidity in carrying out family meals can have the opposite effect than the one you're aiming for. If something doesn't go as planned, have a good laugh about it with your kids and move forward. Be okay with eating slightly burnt casserole on paper plates every once in a while. Let a child eat dinner with another family occasionally. Your flexibility will have a great effect on how much your children enjoy mealtime with the family².

Mealtime as a ritual. According to William Doherty², mealtime can either be a routine or a ritual for families. He states, "Family rituals are repeated and coordinated activities that have significance for the family. To be a ritual, the activity has to have meaning or significance; otherwise, it is a routine but not a ritual" (p. 10). If mealtime is practiced intentionally as a ritual, it has the power to connect and bind a family, while also bringing previously-mentioned benefits to children and adolescents. However, if mealtime is a routine in the home practiced only to get the family fed and on their way, it loses power.

There are three key phases of a ritual. Here, we will apply them to family mealtime:

• Transition phase. This is a clear indication that the ritual has begun. For mealtime, this may involve ringing a dinner bell, saying a prayer or blessing on the food, beginning the food preparations, or any number of things that indicate to you and your family that the meal or mealtime ritual has begun².

One family dims the lights, closes the door between the dining room and the kitchen, and lights a candle on the table to set the mood for family dinner. When the candle is lit, everyone knows the meal has begun.

• Enactment phase. In this phase, your family is participating in the ritual itself. This is the actual consumption of the meal, along with any activity involved in mealtime. There are countless ways you can intentionally turn the eating of a meal into something meaningful and fun for your family. During this phase, some families choose to go from youngest to oldest and tell one good thing and one bad thing that happened in their day. Others choose a specific current event to discuss².

One family made it a practice to have educational placemats based on a specific theme at each place at the table. For example, for several nights they used placemats with a map of the United States on them. Family members would take time during the meal to memorize the names and locations of the fifty states and their capitals, then quiz each other to see how much they had learned. This made dinner enjoyable and productive all at once.

• Exit phase. This indicates the end of the ritual, when everyone is free to go about their personal business again. In a family meal, this may be when every member of the family has finished eating, when a parent leaves the table, or when all of the mealtime mess is cleaned up and out of sight².

In one family, dinnertime lasted through clean-up. When everyone was finished eating, a few family members would go to the kitchen to wash dishes and put away leftovers, while the rest would sit in the adjacent room and read stories out loud for all to hear. This way, the whole family could enjoy the stories while the kitchen still got clean.

Making it Work for Your Family

Does all this seem overwhelming and nearly impossible for you with your hectic schedule? Don't worry, it seems that way to lots of people. You don't have to completely transform your mealtimes overnight. Just start small. Choose one idea or one way you can improve your family mealtime. Ask family members to share their ideas for how mealtime can be more meaningful for your family. Try incorporating a new idea every week or every month, even. You will be amazed at how the littlest things can make a big difference for your family¹⁰.

Suggested Reading & Further Resources

Making Mealtime Meaningful:

• The Intentional Family: Simple Rituals to Strengthen Family Ties, by William Doherty
• http://casafamilyday.org/familyday/
• http://www.sharethetable.com/

Meal Planning:

• http://www.mealsmatter.org/

Written by Amy M. Scoville, Research Assistant, and edited by Jenet J. Erickson and Stephen F. Duncan, professors in the School of Family Life, Brigham Young University.

References

1. CASA. (2009). The importance of family dinners V. New York: Columbia University.
2. Doherty, W. J. (2002). The intentional family: Simple rituals to strengthen family ties. New York: Quill.
3. Fiese, B., Foley, K., & Spagnola, M. (2006). Routine and ritual elements in family mealtimes: Contexts for child well-being and family identity. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.),Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
4. Fiese, B., & Schwartz, M. (2008). Reclaiming the family table: Mealtimes and child health and wellbeing. Social Policy Report: Giving Child and Youth Development Knowledge Away, 22(4), 1-19.
5. Jacob, J.I., Allen, S., Hill, E. J., Mead, N. L. & Ferris, M. (2008). Work interference with dinnertime as a mediator and moderator between work hours and work and family outcomes. Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal, 36(4), 310-327.
6. Larson, R., Branscomb, K., & Wiley, A. (2006). Forms and functions of family mealtimes: Multidisciplinary perspectives. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
7. Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2006). Eating among teens: Do family mealtimes make a difference for adolescent's nutrition? In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization (pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
8. Orchs, E., & Shohet, M. (2006). The cultural structuring of mealtime socialization. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization(pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
9. Snow, C., & Beals, D. (2006). Mealtime talk that supports literacy development. In Larson, R., Wiley, A., & Branscomb, K. (Eds.) Family mealtime as a context of development and socialization(pp. 1-15). San Francisco, CA: Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
10. USDA. (2010). Enjoying the Family Meal. Retrieved January 16, 2010 fromwww.fns.usda.gov/tn/Resources/Nibbles/enjoying.pdf