Let’s Make Dinner-Time Matter
By Gina Stear, Accredited Dietitian
As the festivities of Christmas, New year, Australia day and summer holidays have come to an end, there is an opportunity to reflect on the season and its powerful message of togetherness – coming together to share an occasion and a meal.
Building on the connections made with family and friends, through family meals and dinnertime, can provide a powerful platform for encouraging healthy eating behaviours and making positive food choices for you and the whole family.
Current research unequivocally shows that meal times shared with family and/ or friends are positively associated with health benefits and wellbeing as well as building stronger family relationships. Family meals provide the ideal opportunity for spouses, parents, friends and grandparents to role model good eating behaviour.
Some of the benefits associated with eating family meals include:
Healthier and more varied food choices and eating patterns seen in children, adolescents and adults, with increased vegetable and fruit intake and decreased soft drink consumption.
Less disordered eating, less use of tobacco, alcohol and marijuana, better manners and communication skills in adolescents.
Better mental health and happiness and reduced levels of stress and depressive symptoms in children and adults.
Improved academic performance and increased vocabulary in teens and young children eating 5-7 family dinners per week.
Reduced prevalence of overweight due to eating more regular, nutritious, home cooked meals, being involved in preparation and serving of the meals with better portion control.
The potential to strengthen family bonds and forge better relationships as it provides an opportunity for the whole family to be together and discuss issues from the day, positive or negative.
Dinners at home are more cost effective, costing half that of a meal prepared outside the home.
“Dinnertime” as we currently know it dates back to the 18th century and the nightly tradition of sharing a meal while reconnecting with loved ones remains an important ritual in many households. The practice of preparing and sharing a meal together is however decreasing worldwide.
Dinnertime is often put aside due to changes in family dynamics, work commitments, school activities etc. Eating healthy and nutritious food regularly as a family can be challenging as our lives are busy and finding time to cook and eat together can prove harder than we think. In order to be realistic for your individual circumstances, try to keep it simple and plan ahead.
Here are some tips to encourage healthy shared meals in your home even on busy evenings:
Remember the basics and keep it simple – Make 1 meal for the whole family (unless small tweaks are needed for confirmed allergies). Meals should be made of whole foods, mostly plants (vegetables and fruit, legumes, pulses, whole grains), a combination of smart carbohydrates, lean protein, good fats.
Get into the meal habit and maintain structure. Aim to eat dinner together (with family or friends) 5-7 times a week, setting regular meal times to share the same food at the same time. Important components include sitting facing each other, sharing the same food, turning off the TV, putting away toys and electronic devices.
Do a little planning. Use the weekend or an ‘off day’ to plan meals, shop and prep for the week ahead. Involve the family in choosing meals they like or wish to try. Pair familiar with unfamiliar food, preferred with less-preferred food. Have a ‘cook-up’ and prepare some meals beforehand. This will ensure regular meal times can be achieved on busy nights.
Make your freezer work for you. When you make a meal that the family enjoys (e.g. roast, stew or stir-fry), double it and freeze the other half for crazy nights. Keep frozen vegetables in the freezer as quick go-to’s.
In winter, slow cookers are a great way to prep wholesome meals early in the morning, ready for dinner in the evening.
Keep it fun and interesting. Have picnics outside in summer, carpet picnics inside in winter, pizza and burger nights, themed nights e.g. Mexican. Don’t be afraid to use disposable plates and cups for easy clean up.
Use the weekends to encourage the fun element of food. Creating meals together in the kitchen will reinforce the pleasurable aspect of food preparation, and encourage nutritious meals shared together. This could include making pizza on a Friday night together, helping decorate the table or mixing a random salad.
Make mealtimes pleasant, cultivate the attitude that it is a privilege to be there, expect family members to contribute to the pleasure of it all. Allowing self-serving is a great way to involve individuals in their own meal as well as learning to self-regulate portions.
Making small changes towards regular dinnertime will generate positive emotions and memories for you and your family that can contribute to long-term behaviour food change. So, as we welcome in a new decade, consider protecting this sacred family ritual at all costs. Think about prioritising shared meals and regular dinnertime and making it part of you and your family’s healthy lifestyle.
Let’s make dinnertime matter again!