The Parenting Buzz : Recipe for Smarter Kids: Family Dinners

We’ve all heard the adage – A family that eats together, stays together. Sitting down as a family to eat and talk together on a regular basis has several positive effects, including promoting intergenerational communication and bonding. No one is expecting a gourment meal every night - one-dish wonders or even ordering a pizza will do just fine. It’s the act of finding the time to reguarly sit down together as a family, without interruptions or distractions (translation: no TV, iPods, text messages or phones!) that makes the difference.

And now, thanks to a new study out of Columbia University, you can add “better grades” and “better citizens” to the laundry list of benefits of a family dinner.

According to the study, teenagers who eat with their families at least five times a week are more likely to get better grades: in fact, they are 40% more likely to get A’s and B’s in school. You can also credit better behavior to family meals: the study found that teens who enjoyed frequent family meals were 42% less likely to drink alcohol, 59% less likely to smoke cigarettes and 66% less likely to try marijuana. The stable, loving environment that family meals foster also sets the foundation for strong, stable teenagers: they are less likely to be depressed, contemplate suicide, get into fights, engage in promiscuous behavior or get into trouble at school.

Get into the habit of breaking bread with your kids, you’ll be happy you did!

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