teen issues
7
Jan
8 Reasons Why You Should Eat Dinner With Your Family
Can eating dinner together help teens and their parents stay better connected?
A report by the US Health Resources and Services Administration found significant differences between teens who eat dinner with their parents at least five times a week and those who do not. Similarly, significant differences were found for teens who reported feeling “close” to their mother and/or father and those who did not.
• Smoking
Among teenagers aged 15 to 16, 42 % of teenagers who do not feel close to their mother and/or father smoke, compared with 26 % of teenagers who do feel close to at least one parent. In this same age group, over 34 % of teenagers who do not regularly eat supper with their parents smoked, in contrast to just 25 % of teenagers who do eat supper regularly with their parents.
• Drinking
The prevalence of drinking is nearly twice as high among 15 to 16 year olds who do not feel close to a parent and among those who do not eat supper with a parent, compared with those who do.
• Drug Use
About 50 % of 15 to 16 year olds who aren’t close to their parents have used marijuana, compared with just 24 % of those who are close to their parents.
• Violence
Less than 30 % of teenagers aged 15 to 16 who eat supper with their parents have been in a serious fight, compared with more than 40 percent of those who do not eat supper with their parents.
• Sexual Activity
Over 50 % of teenagers who do not eat supper with their parents have had sex by age 15 to 16. By contrast, only 32 % of teenagers who do eat supper with their parents have had sex.
• Suicidal Thoughts
Teenagers aged 15 to 16 who do not feel close to their parents are about three times as likely to think about suicide as teenagers who are close to their parents.
• Suicide Attempts
Teenagers aged 15 to 16 who don’t eat supper with their parents regularly are twice as likely to have attempted suicide.
• Educational Achievement
Teenagers of all ages who eat with their parents, or feel close to their parents, perform very well at school. In general, they are more likely to go to university and less likely to have been ever suspended from school.
You can read the full U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration. U.S. Teens in Our World report: Here
Do you think having dinner together as a family can help teens avoid risky behavior and better connect with their parents? Tell me your thoughts!
Like Russ On Facebook
