MINNEAPOLIS, July 24, 2008 — Researchers from the University of Minnesota Project Eating Among Teens II (Project EAT) have found that adolescent girls who frequently eat meals with their families are less likely to smoke cigarettes, consume alcohol, and use marijuana.

Marla Eisenberg, Sc.D., M.P.H., assistant professor in the U of M Medical School and lead author of this study, along with Project EAT colleagues, studied 806 adolescent middle-school students at public schools in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area.

Participants were surveyed at two time points five years apart regarding how often they ate with their family, as well as how often they had used cigarettes, alcohol, or marijuana.

Girls who reported at least five family meals per week had approximately half the odds of reporting regular use of cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana during their high school years compared with teen girls whose families did not have regular meals, even after accounting for earlier substance use and their general family dynamic. This was true for girls who reported both strong and poor relationships with their parents, suggesting that regular family meals may offer some protection against initiation of substance use.

The study reinforces the notion that family meals are a valuable protective factor in the lives of young people. Previous Project EAT studies have shown that family meals may provide more benefits for females than males, as adolescent girls are less likely to use extreme measures to control their weight five years later; watching TV during family meals negatively influences teens’ diets; and, the dietary habits of young adults are positively influenced by family meals during
youth.

Regular family meals increase the opportunity for discussions about high-risk behavior, such as substance abuse as well as increased parental monitoring.

Source: U of M news release