Did you know that the way you are used to eating regularly affects your relationships? If you regularly eat with your partner and children, you have a much better chance of relaxing relationships and your family will not just fall apart. Why is it? And what other benefits does eating together bring?
Today is full of paradoxes. We often take the utmost care to eat healthily. We examine the origin of each food, recalculate calories and anxiously consider whether we have chewed the food sufficiently. Usually, however, we no longer think about with who and in what atmosphere we spend our time on our healthy diet. And that’s a pity. Who we talk to during food has a significant effect on our relationships. What will the time spent with the family spend with you?
1. Your relationship with your partner will improve
The time spent at one table has a great value. It will force you to communicate with those with whom you share a common space. And so a call often develops that would not otherwise occur. Thanks to this, you will find out what your partner experienced during the day, what pleased him or what bothers him. Eating together is also a time when you get a unique opportunity to discuss issues that you would not otherwise have a chance to get to due to the hustle and bustle of the day. You can easily plan the activities that await you the next day or week, and come up with a common strategy for how to proceed in your plans.
By “having to” chat together, your communication skills naturally improve. As a result, you will not become estranged from your partner, which could easily happen if you are used to eating separately. Life worries and daily hustle and bustle usually force us to postpone communication with our partner indefinitely. And that is definitely not good for relationships.
2. Children will be surrounded by love
Studies have long shown that children who spend time with their parents at the same table at least once a day are much less prone to depression and even poor academic performance.
And no wonder. They feel loved and can share their worries.
Thanks to the fact that children meet their parents at the same table at least once a day, they are also able to accept the values that are set in the family much better. For example, without working on it, their eating habits will improve. Children have a natural opportunity to watch and listen to you at food. They will learn things you never thought about. And that’s not all. Spending time together also gives them a unique opportunity to start talking to you about things that are not always time.
3. Find out what others are going through
Eating together means talking together. And joint talks naturally lead to debates on a wide range of topics that would not otherwise occur. You may be wondering what you will learn at dinner.
If you come across what is bothering your children or partner, in such a situation you have an immediate opportunity to develop this topic spontaneously, find out what others are actually experiencing and find out the causes of a number of problems. In the same way, you can share your feelings with others and get the opportunity to tell others what you would like to change or what you need to “get off track”. As a result, one of the family members does not suffocate certain feelings that come to light until it is too late to start dealing with them.
4. Prevent quarrels and problems
Whether you decide to spend time together at breakfast, lunch or dinner, eating together is the perfect time to learn everything important. If you learn to listen to others, you can guess the problem that might arise.
For example, if a child tells you that someone at school laughs at them for not having the latest cell phone or expensive brand T-shirt, you can find a way together to prevent bullying. And it’s certainly much easier to deal with before it happens. Likewise, eating together is likely to tell you what bothers you about how it works at home. So you can find a common way out before there is an unnecessary quarrel.
5. Better eating habits will benefit your health
When you learn to eat with your family, you will probably all set a certain regular daily rhythm. And it will have a positive effect not only on your psyche, but also on your physical health. After all, if you teach your body that you eat food at a certain time of day, your body will begin to accept this perception and process food better. In the same way, your brain promotes a feeling of fullness, so you avoid the urge to overeat and start unhealthy eating habits.
How to begin? Set clear rules
Do you want to spend time eating with your family? Great! But how about having a different schedule with your partner and children? It is important to plan well and set rules that apply in all circumstances. If you realize that spending time at a meal together is invaluable, then you will definitely find some way.
Arrange a meal with other family members and try to accommodate each other.
If you all follow this rule honestly, you will gradually get used to it and it will no longer be a difficult task for you. Exactly opposite. You can even look forward to spending time together.
