Teen health and wellbeing – and the simple act of sharing a meal

A new study undertaken by the Families Commission Research Fund has shown how taking the time to share a family meal has surprising health and wellbeing benefits for young people in New Zealand.

Carl Davidson, Families Commission, Chief Commissioner, says “teens who eat frequent meals with their family also report better health, including fewer indicators of depressive mood and fewer risk taking behaviours such as binge drinking, smoking, marijuana use, and inconsistent contraception use.”

He says, “our research has shown that despite busy lifestyles and schedules, families who are able to make the time to eat together will see a number of unexpected benefits – the simple act of sharing food and spending time together seems to be a positive activity for our young people.”

The research, which used data collected from the Youth 07 national survey of 9107 young people from 96 secondary schools, found that approximately one-third of young people in New Zealand shared meals with their families on seven or more occasions in the previous week. An additional 40% of young people shared meals between three and six times. Mr Davidson says, “this really is a unique piece of research - it is the first study of its kind to happen in a New Zealand context”.

Students who had more frequent family meals were more likely to report better family relationships and parental monitoring. In addition students who frequently shared meals were also more likely to report that their mum and dad encouraged them to eat healthy foods including fruits and vegetables.

“We probably all know that eating together is worthwhile, but this research shows that those shared meals aren’t just ‘nice to have’ but are actually a fundamental contributor to family wellbeing. Students who ate more frequently with their family were more likely to report better family connections, relationships and parental monitoring,” says Mr Davidson. “This is a simple activity that families can do to support their adolescents through the transition to adulthood”.

“Families today are complex and it may be hard for some families to always eat together. When families can make the time, the research shows that there are many associated and ongoing benefits. This research is important not only for my family but many families around New Zealand. Making sure that this activity remains enjoyable, affordable and can happen within time constraints is important”