Family meals

It turns out that family meals are the cure for almost everything that ails American families.  Kids who eat meals with their families eat better and have better eating habits. They are less likely to be drug and alcohol dependent, smoke. They're less likely to be depressed and suicidal. (Some of this is documented in an article in ChildTrends Data Bank, http://www.childtrensdatabank.org/indicators/96FamilyMeals.cfm)..

 A new study by the University of Minesotta shows that teenage girls are less likely to have eating disorders like bulimia and anorexia. http://www.ahc.umn.edu/news/releases/meals110904.

This is great news for those of us who are toiling away at the stove each night cooking meals for our families and insisting that everyone sit down to dinner and talk to each other. I'm sure this gets more difficult as kids get older and have more activities. But the benefits far outweigh the costs. See my column at nj.com/times/features on Feb. 19.