# Why You Need To Make Time For Family Dinners

- Link: https://stayathomemum.com.au/family/parenting/why-you-need-to-make-time-for-family-dinners/
- Published: 2017-01-05T10:00:12+11:00
- Author: Clare Whitfield

## _A modern life is a busy life. For families, these hectic schedules mean that activities sitting around the table and eating dinner together don’t happen all that often._

So is this for the best? Or are there actually reasons to sit down and have dinner
together as a family?

![Why you need to make time for family dinners](https://i0.wp.com/stayathomemum.
com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Why-You-Need-To-Make-Time-For-Family-Dinners.jpg?
resize=507%2C760&quality=89&ssl=1 "Making Time for Family Dinners")

Well as it turns out, there are a few _very_ good reasons to keep family dinners
a modern tradition. Here are just a few.

## **1. It’s Easy To Introduce New Foods**

In a family dinner table setting, it’s easy to introduce new foods to kids and expand
their taste for different foods. In fact, a 2003 study found that children who were
exposed to a new vegetable (in the case of the study, sweet red pepper) instead 
of being forced to eat it, were more likely to rate its taste highly. Also, children
seeing parents enjoying new foods might be more interested to try them.

[⌊Family enjoying a meal together at home highlighting the importance of family dinners⌉⌊Family enjoying a meal together at home highlighting the importance of family dinners⌉ ](https://i0.wp.com/stayathomemum.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/famlia__5_.jpg?quality=89&ssl=1)

## **2. Dinners Help Kids Love Veggies**

Family dinner provide a great opportunity to talk to children about healthy foods
and nutrition in a relaxed and easy way that doesn’t make it seem like a lesson.
A 2000 survey discovered that kids aged 9-14 who ate dinner regularly with their
families tended to eat more fruits and vegetables, and less fizzy drinks and fried
foods. Their diets were generally in better shape, something that researchers put
down to those family dinner conversations.

[⌊Child appears uninterested during family dinner with healthy vegetables on the plate⌉⌊Child appears uninterested during family dinner with healthy vegetables on the plate⌉ ](https://i0.wp.com/stayathomemum.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Kids-Who-Hate-Vegetables.jpg?quality=89&ssl=1)

## **3. Parents Can Spot Issues**

During adolescence, it’s easy for parents and kids to lose touch with each other,
particularly as societal pressures to be a ‘cool’ teen take over. However, maintaining
these connections with regular family dinners can actually negate this effect. Family
dinners offer a chance to parents and kids to talk, debrief about their day, discuss
things, and generally connect. Studies have shown that kids who eat frequently with
their families have any problems identified early, and dealt with in a positive 
way.

## Next Page: More Reasons Why You Need To Make Time For Family Dinners

![author avatar](https://i0.wp.com/stayathomemum.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2025/
12/clare_whitfield_profile.webp?quality=80&ssl=1)

 Clare Whitfield Chief Editor

 Clare Whitfield is the Editor of Stay at Home Mum and a recognised voice in practical
home management for Australian families. Based in the northern suburbs of Sydney,
she balances editorial leadership with life as a stay at home mum to two school 
age children. Her background in home economics and more than a decade of experience
in recipe development, family budgeting, and household systems inform her work.

 [See Full Bio](https://stayathomemum.com.au/author/clare_whitfield/) [  ](https://stayathomemum.com.au/author/clare_whitfield/)