Longer Family Meals may improve Fruit and Vegetable Intake among kids

Extending family mealtime duration by about 10 minutes is a simple, low-threshold intervention that can enhance the quality of children's food and eating behavior as per a new trial that was published in the journal JAMA Network Open. This trial suggested focusing on quality mealtime that is accommodating, transparent and successful. 

Family dinners provide a formative learning environment for children, shaping their eating habits and preferences. Thus, they are a perfect environment for attempts to enhance the nutritional health of children. There is an increased risk of non-communicable diseases in children whose intake of fruits and vegetables is low. Hence researchers conducted a study to examine the effect of extending the duration of family meals on the fruit and vegetable intake in children. 

The trial employed a within-dyad modification design and was done in a family dinner laboratory in Berlin, Germany, from November 8, 2016, to May 5, 2017. Children aged 6 to 11 years who did not follow a special diet or had food allergies were included in the research, as were adult parents who functioned as the nutritional gatekeeper in the household (ie, the family member responsible for at least half of the food planning and preparation). All participants were subjected to two conditions: control (normal family mealtime duration) and intervention (50 percent increased mealtime duration (10 minutes longer on average). Participants were randomized to the condition they would finish first. Participants were given two free evening dinners under various situations. In the control or regular condition, each dyad ate for the same length of time as their stated normal mealtime duration. In the intervention or longer condition, each dyad had 50% extra time to eat than their stated typical mealtime duration. The number of pieces of fruits and vegetables eaten by the child during a meal was the primary outcome. 

Key findings: 

• A total of 50 parent-child dyads participated in the trial.
• The mean (range) age of parents is 43 (28-55 years) years and were predominantly mothers (36 [72%]) while the mean age range of Children is 8 (6-11) years and included an equal number of girls and boys (25 [50%]).
• More pieces of fruits and vegetables were significantly consumed by children in the longer condition than in the regular mealtime duration condition.
• Consumption of bread and cold cuts did not significantly differ between conditions.
• The children’s eating rate (bites per minute over the regular mealtime duration) was significantly lower in the longer than in the regular condition. 
• Higher satiety was significantly reported by children after the longer condition (V = 36.5, P < .001). 

Thus, extending family mealtime duration by essentially 10 minutes is a simple, low-threshold intervention that can improve the quality of children's food and eating behavior.

Further reading: Dallacker M, Knobl V, Hertwig R, Mata J. Effect of Longer Family Meals on Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Intake: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(4):e236331. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.6331