These changes in family life bring a myriad of issues that impact the family dinner table, and consequently, family health. We live in societies that are a faster pace and more affluent, which is a blessing and a curse. Our children's lives are as hectic as their parents, a consequence of our desire to give our kids endless opportunities. We taxi them from ballet to baseball and book club, to after school social or sporting commitments and back. This often means the family dinner is lower on the totem pole of priorities. In addition, work pressures for both parents may mean late nights or overtime at the office, and this often equates to someone not making it home for dinner. Often work demands leave us so exhausted we can't be bothered cooking so we pick up a take home meal. Our modern lives have had a huge impact on the family dinner table and it is no longer the epicenter of the home.

I was interested to read the results of a study on family mealtime conducted at De Paul University in Chicago in which 527 adolescents aged 12 to 18 had taken part. Those who ate five meals a week with one parent, both parents or a grandparent, at home or in a restaurant, showed lower substance use or abuse, less depression, higher academic motivation and better peer relationships than youths who ate with adults three times a week (Bowden and Zeisz, 1997). Given this finding, it seems plain that family time spent at the dinner table is a ritual we all need to reconsider. As Zig Zigler said in his book Raising Positive Kids In A Negative World, "For a child, love is spelled T-I-M-E." Spending time with our children seems to be one of the greatest gifts we can give them. Children thrive on ritual and rhythm in their day, something I have learned about from having our children attend a Rudolph Steiner School. I have found that sitting down to a family dinner, if it is embraced with mindfulness, invites communication and fosters connectedness. Family rituals ground children in the family and add stability to family life. It has bought richness to our family meal times.

How do the demands of today affect what we eat? Well, fast food options are tempting when we are exhausted and many mothers are overloaded by society's demands. Pre-planning for the week ahead is a huge help. I prepare stocks and soak beans and legumes for the week's evening meals on the weekend before, and I don't necessarily consider myself an especially organized person. I have to force myself to stick to plans to avoid making ice cream or vacuuming at 11:00 pm. When we can't do everything and commercially made take home or restaurant meals find their way into our lives, I give my family an extra dose of fish oil and fiber and resolve to start again tomorrow.