Eating Together, By Barbara Fiese And Marlene Sehwartz

In many stories women are portrayed as the less important to the two genders. Women and men should be treated equally, but why are they not? In the story “The Dinner party” by Mona Gardner women were not being treated as equals, but in the end it proved that they were the same at reacting in scary situations. The story is located in India and they were getting together at the hostess Mrs.Wynnes house. They spirited conversation soon went to men saying that women couldn't control themselves.

The best place to begin the discussion regarding the family meal and how it has changed is to discuss where the idea of dinner originated. A fairly new concept, dinner came about roughly 150 years ago. While many people consider family mealtime to be a “natural phenomenon; it is a social construction.” (Carroll, xvi) During colonial times the family functioned as one unit, with everyone in the family having a

Parents influence children 's eating behaviors because they choose food choices for their families, serve as models, and reinforce eating patterns. Parenting practices are also influenced by the child’s traits like, age, gender, weight status, and eating behavior. It is influenced by the age because as the child gets older, their image of themselves change. Parents and children affect and react to each others eating behavior. Although the parent selects food choices for there family, the FITS study suggests that “bigger is better” when it comes to food. The portion size and energy density

Clementine Paddleford was an American food writer active from the 1920s through the 1960s, writing for several publications, including the New York Herald Tribune, the New York Sun, The New York Telegram, Farm and Fireside, and This Week magazine. She was also a pilot, and flew a Piper Cub around the country to report on America's many regional cuisines. "Tell me where your grandmother came from and I can tell you how many kinds of pie you serve for Thanksgiving," wrote Clementine Paddleford in her most famous book How America Eats. Paddleford was an expert in the culinary arts from all around the country at a time when people only knew about their own cultural foods.

The goal of any educational institution should be to have postive impacts on the whole child. Nutrition is one aspect of the whole child that schools could improve upon. For a variety of reasons, there is a disconnect between the educators of a school building and those responsible for student’s nutrition. At school, students have a unqiue opportunity to make decisions about their nutrition, with the assistance of their parent in some cases. The following literature review investigates the National School Lunch Program in its effects on childhood obesity. The workshop to follow offers a plan to help impact childhood obesity through family education.

Have you ever been grocery shopping and witness a family with a cart full of junk food, sugar-sweetened sodas and microwavable dinners? These things are bought because they are a quick fix for parents having to cook for their children which creates unhealthy eating habits. Research suggest that children develop most of their food habits through exposure and repeated experiences. Studies also show that eating dinner together as a family promotes healthful eating habits in children by increasing their consumption of fruits, vegetables and whole grains, as well as decreasing the consumption of fats. Establishing a meal time increases the likelihood that children are getting a notorious and balanced diet (M.W Gillman 235:40.) Parents play a crucial role in the growth and development in children, if children see that their parents sit at home and eat unhealthy snacks, children cannot be expected to eat

The ways of the past are becoming more and more obsolete as the years go by, because our society is rewriting how we should live our lives on a daily basis. With this world constantly changing we have shattered our socialization for the worst when nit comes to communication with other people on a daily basis. Mealtimes have become scares, because everyone wants to do their own thing, get done quick for the day light is fleeting fast, and most importantly no one has anything to talk about when they come home. According to Elinor and Shohet in their article "The Cultural Structuring Of Mealtime Socialization” expresses the issue of mealtime socializing. They state the mealtimes are more of a tradition passed down from generation to generation and then becomes a symbol with in a home. (Elinor and Shohet, 36) With them implying that parents actually have to take effort in passing this tradition down to their children and so forth has become a dying art form, because of the lack of parenting and teaching. According to Mona and Benga their article "The Relationship Between Cultural Model, Socialization Goals And Parental Ethnotheories: A Mixed Method Study” Brings up a lot of good points about how children learn from their parents. There are three main key factors that help out with these socialization issues passed on to each generation. They are, Parental Cultural Models,

One factor that keep families from dining together is that many parents have multiple jobs

​Parents must take proper care to ensure their child is receiving adequate nutrition every day, especially in combination with school or other day programs. The behavior and attitude of the parents have the greatest effect upon a child’s developing habits, especially as the amount of meals eaten together at home increases (Escobar, 1999). That being said, ensuring a child continues to eat healthily outside of the home can be a struggle without the support of a regulated school lunch

In the new age of cell phones and jam-packed schedules, many families find it difficult to sit down for family meals together. In the article “Teens Get Extra Helping of Emotional Welfare at Frequent Family Dinners” we are taught that adolescents, as they grow older, are becoming less likely to eat a meal with their family. There could be many reasons that teens are not spending this time with their families. The three main reasons why some families don’t have more family meals together are the children’s extracurricular activities, fast food outings, and the parents’ work schedule.

In the article “ Teens Get Extra Helping of Emotional Welfare at Frequent Family Dinners”, Sharon Jayson explores the benefits of family dinners on the youth. Sharon Jayson reviews different studies done on family dinners and concludes that the more meals a child eats with their family, the better the child's mental state. Although having family dinners has its benefits, many families do not eat together on a regular basis. In today's society, family dinners are becoming less frequent due to various reasons such as a busy schedule, the convenience of not cooking, and the distractions of modern day technology.

Environments in lower socioeconomic status areas are generally not safe and accessible for children. As stated earlier, more parents are driving their children to school now due to far distance, no safe walking route, fear of predators and convenience. Sociocultural factors also play a large role in our environment. In society today, many families will use food as a reward or it is used as a form of social gathering. The type of food available in a child’s home can be a big contributing factor. This can lead to developing unhealthy relationships and a reliance on food for children. It has been shown that family habits are what reflect onto the child; so having overweight parents with poor habits will directly affect the child

The fast-paced lifestyle of Americans today results in unhealthy frozen T.V. dinners and take-out meals. In present day society, the role of woman and men are virtually equal. With this making both the mother and father of families busy, there is little time for home cooked meals. A hardy breakfast is replaced with sugary pop-tarts, hand packed lunches is replaced with money for fast food, and frozen T.V. trays take the place of a healthy dinner. These foods may all taste good, but they are not healthy. By giving children lunch money, the children are having the choice to buy whatever foods they please. It could be easily assumed that a child would choose a candy bar, chips, and a soda over a school lunch. Again, the children are not the only ones to be blamed here. The parents need to take time to guide their children towards what food is healthy and what food is unhealthy. By taking a little more time out of the day and making healthier food choices, the rate of childhood obesity could slow down, if not stop altogether.

Also, any families spend their time together by eating meals while watching television, which can cause children to overeat (Denney-Wilson). Often partnered with fast food, soft drinks have risen to popularity. Many parents are unaware that one 12 ounce can of soda is filled with 10 teaspoons of sugar. Just one additional serving of soda increases a child’s odds of obesity by 60% (“1 Can of…”). If parents are made aware of what they are feeding their children, it might help reduce the percentage of obese children in the United States. Although most families would react to obesity by trying to feed their children healthier meals, some lower-income families are unable to afford the best quality food for their families. One study showed that children from households that are experiencing financial insecurity are more prone to health issues than those who are not experiencing these same issues (Yoo). The government should help these lower-income families by providing them with monetary support to purchase healthy food. Not only will the incorporation of a healthy diet help children overcome their weight problems, it can have an added benefit of helping them academically. Researchers have found that children who eat healthy meals will report better scores on standardized tests (Williams). By changing the diet of their children, parents can help their children to overcome their weight problems.

Mealtime is the perfect time for families to get together, catch up and wind down. This time can be used to catch up with each other and learn new things about the people that we live with and love. Many families feel that there is not enough time in the day to cook and sit down together. In the article “ How Eating at Home Can Save Your Life” written by Mark Hyman, MD he states “Americans spend more time watching cooking on the Food Network, than actually preparing their own meals.” If families are saying there is not enough time to cook a meal and sit down and enjoy it together what does that say about their priorities? Meal time with our families need to become a priority