There are a multitude of studies out there on parent child interaction. In Parenting with Love and Limits (the family therapy program I facilitate) we tell the families that the average father spends 4 minutes a day interacting with his child and the average mother 7 minutes a day. I've seen quite a few different numbers in various studies but I've never seen an average of above 15 minutes of interaction a day. Parents spend very little time actually interacting with their child without TV or some other distraction!
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| Image courtesy of akarakingdoms at FreeDigitalPhotos.net |
In the reading that I have done about healthy families one of the biggest common factors is eating meals together. Eating meals as a family is linked to lower rates of substance abuse, depression, and teen pregnancy; as well as higher grades and self esteem. Research also shows, not surprisingly, that kids who eat meals with parents are healthier and have lower rates of obesity. Not to mention parents save a lot of money by not eating out as often.
So turn off your TV and put away your cell phone and make it a goal to sit down and eat with your kids. Is 15 minutes a day too much to ask? You'll be doing better than most if you just eat one meal a day together, imagine if you ate all three!
Here are a few links to read more:
The Importance of Eating Together - Includes a lot of ideas on how to create better meal times.
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