TV or not TV?
January 7, 2008
Did you know? A study at Baylor Medical College found that kids who are overweight were more than twice as likely as normal-weight kids to eat supper in front of the TV.
It's called mindless eating – eating without paying attention to what's going into your mouth. In addition, with some ads promoting nutritiously-questionable snack foods or "extra-sized" meals, tv watchers often get a skewed view of what constitutes a meal, a reasonable portion – even what we mean by "food."
But there's another reason to hit the off-button when it's dinnertime: When we all sit facing the pretend people who live inside the tv screen, we pass up the chance to share time, conversation, and caring, with the real people in our lives.
Your kids don't need one more opportunity to fantasize about being celebrities. They need, and want, time spent with siblings, and with you.
If your family always has an electronic background, there may be some grumbling when you turn it off. But don't be discouraged. Those complaints will soon be replaced with conversations – the real kind. And just as with food, canned laughter is nowhere near as delicious as when it's fresh.
Mealtimes Matter Video
from Miriam Weinstein
About Miriam
Miriam Weinstein is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. As a journalist, she has won several awards from the New England Press Association. Her work has appeared in Boston Magazine, the Boston Globe magazine, Hope, and ParentSource. A former staff member for North Shore Weeklies and freelancer for Essex County Newspapers, she writes restaurant reviews and food columns as well as features on a wide variety of subjects. She lives in Gloucester, Massachusetts, with her husband and has two grown children.
The Surprising Power of Family Meals
In her book, The Surprising Power of Family Meals, Miriam Weinstein shows how this basic human institution helps nourish and strengthen our families today. You can buy this book from our friends at Smucker's® Online Store.
