As an aside, I've often noted to people that people are simply bigger in the Midwest - taller, not as scrawny, etc. - while in NYC and to an extent LA, people are much shorter and smaller. I've posited that perhaps this is due to a greater obsession with looks and fashion, and therefore, an overemphasis by many to not eat to avoid being fat, but this article threw in other factors which may play a role, too:
This makes me think that perhaps it's the overly busy lifestyles of people in places such as NYC and LA that causes people to not spend as much time together... and therefore, based on this research, eat less. Eating less means growing less, which in turn translates into me being on the short end of my elementary class at 6 feet tall, but one of the tallest people while I was in college or now at work. Interesting.The biggest effect was seen among the kids who didn’t eat regular family meals at all. Girls who dined alone ate fewer fruits, vegetables and calcium-rich foods and more soft drinks and snack foods than girls who ate with their parents. And girls who ate with their parents ate more calories — up to 14 percent more, suggesting that dining alone puts girls at higher risk for eating disorders. Boys who didn’t eat with their parents had fewer vegetables and calcium-rich foods than family diners.
The lesson for parents, say the study authors, is that being together at dinner is what counts. Having the TV on during the meal, while not desirable, can also serve a purpose if it helps bring sullen teenagers and families to the table.
Why a family meal can make such a difference isn’t entirely clear. It may be that parents simply put better food on the table when everyone gets together. People dining alone tend to eat pizza, for instance, while families who order pizza together tend to put vegetables or a salad on the table, Ms. Feldman noted.
It may also be that dining together allows parents to set a better eating example for their kids. And mealtime is often the only chance parents have to actually look over their busy teenagers, catch up on their lives and visually assess behavioral or physical changes that might signal problems.
Yet another reason to move, right? ;)
As someone who grew up a) outside New York, and b) eating family dinners I have a few other points:
ReplyDelete1. Sitting at the table waiting for others to finish encourages overeating. There is a pressure to continue, or to "clean your plate" that doesn't exist while alone.
2. Maybe it isn't eating with their family so much as eating what their family cooks for them.
3. Teenagers make poor eating choices. Duh. I used to eat two waffles with ice cream in between them for breakfast. EVERY DAY. (NB: I was also playing two sports concurrently)
1. Agreed to an extent; we have large meals at our house, and you'll often find that some people are sitting there with empty plates for a while... but then decide they're still hungry. I don't think that's overeating.
ReplyDelete2. Agreed (that was in the article).
3. Duh. I never did that kind of stuff, actually. My only really "bad" eating choice was buying Entenmann's on the way back from basketball every week in college. I'd generally end up eating about 6 of the crumb-topped. THAT is bad. :P
hmmm interesting theory. you think it provides any answers as to why jewish boys (specifically yeshivish ones) are so small vs. their not jewish and mo-do counterparts?
ReplyDeleteNo, that's likely something else; Jewish boys everywhere are smaller than their counterparts. From my POV, it seems that non-Jews are smaller in NYC as well.
ReplyDeleteAs for MO vs. Yeshivish, that could simply be a matter of money. More money = more likely to eat well. It also could be a greater emphasis/understanding of health issues, eating healthy, etc.; MO parents are more likely to be doctors than Yeshivish ones, I'd assume.
This is all very interesting but until an actual serious study is done I'm not sure I would buy into the
ReplyDeleteMO vs. Yeshivish idea.
As for MO vs. yeshivish - or it could be that yeshivish guys spend all day inside getting very little exercise so you get either skinny, scrawny guys or big gimungo guys. Not so much the in between healthy looks.
ReplyDeleteBut what about people who live in big cities who eat take out all the time? That's REALLY unhealthy and generally causes people to gain weight.
Yeshiva boys are thinner because the food at the Yeshiva SUCKS. Or so say my boys. Also teenagers tend to be thinner than adults, especially when they are growing.
ReplyDeleteBut I will have the last laugh on them. Oh yes. I was also very skinny at that age.
JBM - Hey, everything is speculation.
ReplyDeleteThe Apple - As for MO vs. yeshivish - or it could be that yeshivish guys spend all day inside getting very little exercise so you get either skinny, scrawny guys or big gimungo guys. Not so much the in between healthy looks.
True.
But what about people who live in big cities who eat take out all the time? That's REALLY unhealthy and generally causes people to gain weight.
a) Doesn't apply as much to kids.
b) Because adults do that, that means kids at home might be more likely to prepare their own food - less healthy.
c) I'm not talking so much about being fat as being bigger/taller. That comes from what you eat when you're young (and obviously, genes).
PT - It's not really that bad. Of course, when I was there, I would go into the kitchen and make my own food. :)
Again, I'm looking more for "bigger/taller" than fatter.
LOL. I, too, was very skinny at that age. HA!
I think that has to do with family values and how the parents run their household. maybe LA & NY are "busier" than the midwest or other smaller towns which menas ppl may have more time for family dinners and preparing meals but it's what the parents do that would effect their children.
ReplyDelete(my family would be one of the 'bigger/taller' kind - we always had our meals together, there was always salad (so we ate mostly healthy) and we're from very out of town.)
Again, I'm looking more for "bigger/taller" than fatter.
ReplyDeleteSheesh. You sound like a teacher.
I didn't even notice this part when I first read the post:
"Having the TV on during the meal, while not desirable, can also serve a purpose if it helps bring sullen teenagers and families to the table."
WHY would anyone think that this is a good idea?!? If the TV's on, that means nobody's talking, nobody's connecting - this reminds me of Matilda, when the family just sat around the TV and ate off of trays. Horrible.
"And mealtime is often the only chance parents have to actually look over their busy teenagers, catch up on their lives and visually assess behavioral or physical changes that might signal problems."
How's that supposed to happen if they're all staring at a TV, huh? Some contradictory points in this article. Hmph.
Thank G-D for shabbos meals and holidays meals!
ReplyDeleteHmm...nice theory, but I seem to have grown the wrong direction. Chaval.
ReplyDeleteMy family always ate dinner together, and when we're all home at the same time, we still do. :)