There are MANY benefits of gathering for family dinner. The first one I would like to address is Better Nutrition for healthier kiddos.
Would you believe me if I said that research has found that families who eat together almost every day take in more healthy nutrients such as calcium, fiber, iron, vitamins B6 and B12, vitamins C and E? Well it’s true! That study was conducted by Harvard researchers and published in the Archives of Family Medicine.
Another study done by the University of Minnesota found that children whose families ate meals together more often consumed more fruits and vegetables and fewer snack foods than those who did not.
I have seen this play out in my own home. We live by the mantra “If you cut it up, they will eat it”. I say that with a smile but it is SO true! If I cut up any sort of fruit or vegetable and set it on the table with our meals, my kids will munch on it without even realizing it! They normally don’t go and get a cucumber or head of broccoli out of the fridge and peel it or cut it themselves, but if the work is done for them, they eat it! This is important because a colorful diet is key to taking in all the vitamins and minerals we need in a day. Color (as long as it’s from nature and not man-made!)=nutrients.
Because my husband and I are the ones cooking the meals, we know the exact ingredients going into it! We can buy ingredients to fit our families’ health needs. We have a few children who are dairy sensitive and it is so helpful to find meals to make with very little or no dairy all together. We can also watch the salt, sugar and fat amounts going into each serving.
Don’t get me wrong, we love a good restaurant! You can still have the wonderful benefits of CONNECTING with your loved ones over a meal at an Olive Garden. You can have wonderful conversation and look into the eyes of your children and ask them how their day was. BUT you may not know exactly what is going into the food you are eating. Research shows that both children AND adults consume more calories and fat when they go out to eat or drive thru somewhere. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5401643/). This is not a negative thing unless it is happening more and more frequently because it can lead to obesity and other health problems in young people. The point? Keep the fast food/restaurants to a minimum.
I was AMAZED to find the resources out there on healthy cooking! Even a platform as fun and simple as Pinterest has had great ideas for healthy and SIMPLE meals for my family. The rule I like to stick with is: cook with as few ingredients as possible. I try to follow that rule for the main part of the meal and then, if my kids want to add different flavors to the meal, they can have some control there.
For example: I make my potato soup very basic because, as I mentioned, I have some dairy sensitive kids. I basically soften the potatoes in water and chicken broth, add salt and some montreal seasoning with a little nutmeg and boom! You have a basic but healthy soup that you can add all sorts of things to in moderation (a sprinkle of cheese, a dollop of sour cream, chives, bacon bits, etc.)
I also do the same thing for taco night. I crock pot a nice big, lean roast with store bought or homemade salsa and salt. It has a wonderful flavor and is pull-apart ready after a day of cooking. We put it in taco shells or over chips and then we can add lettuce, tomato, salsa, avocado, beans, etc. It gives my children a lot of freedom and helps them stay on the healthier side as my husband and I guide them in topping choices and portions
Remember, you don’t have to be perfect at cooking healthy meals or gathering your family every night all in a week! It can take months and months to learn and incorporate healthy rhythms. Slowly add more meal times together at home and learn to make nutritious dishes when you have time to spare. Your family is worth it…you got this!!
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