The Return of the Family Dinner
Want your young daughters to stay off drugs? Encourage them to eat dinner at home. 
A recent study, including 800 Minnesota school kids, examined the relationship between family dinners and alcohol and substance abuse in adolescence. The study found that young girls who routinely ate dinner at home, with their family, were less likely to abuse drugs and alcohol. Young boys, did not appear to be any more resistant to drugs and alcohol based on sit-down meals with family, but other positive affects were documented.
Girls who ate dinner with their families at least five times a week during middle school, according to a report published in the Star Tribune, were “much less likely to drink, smoke or use marijuana five years later.
Why the gender gap?
While family meals are a great way to bring families together and encourage connections, healthy eating and building close bonds, there is no real understanding why when it comes to alcohol and substance use, there seems to be a gender gap. Marla Eisenberg, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health explains that family meals are very valuable because they give parents a time to “check in” with their kids, “be role models,” and see if they are adapting any negative behaviors. Another key reason to bring back the family dinner is that studies suggest kid’s connecting with adults who are supportive and care about them is more “protective” than income or religion.
Healthy Eating
A third benefit to the family meal is health. Sitting down to a dinner cooked at home is a great way for parents to eat healthy, and insure their kid’s are too.
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