Eating with family prevents obesity in children

Eating together with the family rather than spending more time in front of the TV prevents children from getting fat. Families need to work together to help children maintain a healthy weight. Even simple things, like how often families eat together and the amount of time that children spend watching television, play a role in children's weight status. Researchers from the University of Missouri, Columbia followed 8,000 children from kindergarten to third grade. They divided the children into three groups: those who had never been overweight; those who began the study at a normal weight, but then became overweight; or those who were overweight throughout the study. The risk of being persistently overweight increased by 3 percent for every additional hour a child spent watching TV each week, while each family meal missed per week increased the risk of persistent overweight by 8 percent. Living in a neighborhood perceived as unsafe for outside exercise also substantially increased the risk of being overweight. Children who stayed at a normal weight throughout the study watched 14.12 hours of TV a week, compared with 15.63 hours for those who became overweight and 16.09 hours for those who were overweight for the entire study period. Children who did not become overweight ate 10.26 meals a week with their families, compared with 9.54 for children who became overweight and 9.57 for persistently overweight children. While the actual percentages for increased risk were small, the investigators note that even a small effect matters when the base rate of the phenomenon in question is as high as the prevalence of overweight in a general population. They add that 17% of the children in the current study were overweight by third grade. Children rely on parents to initiate such things as family mealtimes and to set limits on children's TV time. Teaching children about healthy habits requires the whole family's involvement; as they don't learn these things on their own.