Today’s families are spread very thin. Between soccer games and track practice, jobs and choir rehearsal, and the many meetings, appointments, homework assignments and work responsibilities, parents and children are, quite simply, busy. It can be challenging to find the time to be together and connect as a family, but this time is so valuable. Families should ensure spending time together is built into their weekly schedule. And since we all have to eat, why not make it a point for family time to be spent sharing a meal together?

It is often heard that family meals are important for children’s development and family dynamics, but that is just the tip of the iceberg. The vast benefits to families eating meals together are astounding. Here are just a few:

• Lower risk for eating disorders: A study of over 13,000 preadolescents and adolescents found that female youth who ate dinner with their family members most days or every day were less likely to engage in disordered eating behaviors than those who never or rarely engaged in family mealtimes[i]. Researchers suggest that family dinners may protect against eating disorders because eating meals together may encourage regular meal consumption. They also propose that eating meals together enhances the parent-child relationship and fosters open communication.
• Greater nutritional balance in meals: Project EAT, a study that investigated the factors that influence adolescents’ eating behaviors, found that family meals were associated with improved intake of fruits, vegetables, grains, calcium-rich foods, protein, iron, fiber and vitamins A, C, E, B-6 and folate.[ii]
• Stronger family communication: Family mealtimes give parents the chanceto ask about their children’s days at school. This time provides an opportunity for families to brainstorm together to solve problems that may have arisen during the school day.[iii] A study by the Kraft Company found that youth who eat meals with their families experience enhanced family communication and a stronger sense of identity and belonging. Additionally, having meals with the family may also improve an adolescent’s coping skills because they are able to talk to their parents about the issue.[iv]
• Better grades in school: A study by Dr. Catherine Snow at Harvard University found that conversations around the family table increase children’s vocabulary, which leads to improved reading ability. Greater reading skills lead to better
  performance in all subjects.[v]
• Less likelihood of illegal substance use by teens: Teenagers who engage in regular family meals are less likely to use tobacco, alcohol, marijuana and other drugs[vi].

Convinced of the benefits, but still think it is near impossible for your family to find time to sit down to dinner together each night? Well, you’re not alone! With some creativity, your family can reap the benefits of family meal times too. Here are some tips:

• Can’t schedule dinner for everyone to be home together? No problem. Wake up 15 minutes earlier in the morning and sit down to a family breakfast a few days each week.
• Enjoy a family meal out a restaurant in between games, rehearsals and appointments.
• Skip the cooking part to save time and sit down to cold cuts and your favorite salad for sandwich night.
• Be realistic. Many families today can’t fit seven days of meals a week into their schedule, so figure out what you can do. Perhaps three or four is reasonable for your family. Schedule those meals and stick to it as best you can.

Kristen Snow wrote this post for Together Counts on behalf of A Chance to Heal (ACTH), a nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention of eating disorders. Prior to ACTH, Kristen worked for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, fostering her commitment to enhance the lives of youth. She currently lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband and three-year-old son. 

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Autumn brings so many welcome changes — it is the season of nature’s beautiful color show, aromas and tastes of pumpkin and apple are abundant, cooler air sets in and the promise of new learning and fresh starts are brought by the school year. With this fresh, new season upon us and the humidity and rain of the summer behind us, autumn is a fantastic time to get outside and enjoy the cooler weather. And what better way to enjoy this beautiful time of year than to embrace activities you love and simply play.

In the hustle and bustle of the school year and everyday live, it is common that we get stuck in whatneeds to get done for school, work and family responsibilities, and often leave “play” off that long, daunting “to do” list. But experts agree that play is incredibly important for our well-being. The Association for Childhood Education International states that play is “dynamic, active, and constructive behavior [that] is an integral part of all children’s healthy growth, development and learning across all ages, domains and cultures.”

Other benefits of physical activity include a reduced risk for many diseases, strengthened bones and muscles, a longer lifespan and increased mental health and mood according to the CDC. In fact, when activities are exploratory and based on pure enjoyment, there are even more advantages. Play enhances empathy, flexibility, self-awareness and self-regulation. Playing has the potential to minimize anxiety, depression, aggression and sleep problems.

With today’s busy, over-programmed schedules for both parents and children, it can be difficult finding time to add anything extra to your schedule. But our well-being and our children’s development depends on enjoying time to be active and play. See the list below for ideas for play that families can enjoy together. This season, try some games and activities with your family and fall into play!

Five Fun Family Play Activities for Fall

• Nature walk treasure hunt (complete with a map and list of nature items to find)
• Tag or other interactive games (i.e. capture the flag, red rover)
• Neighborhood baseball game (or another team sport–football, soccer, etc.)
• Apple or pumpkin picking
• Raking leaves (and of course jumping in the piles afterward!)

Rain keeping you from enjoying the outdoors? No need to worry, there are still plenty of ways to play inside. Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Hide-and-seek around the house
• Construct a fort using blankets, pillows and chairs from around the house
• Race toy cars or stuffed animals from one end of the room to the other
• Dance competition or charades with family member contestants and/or friends from the neighborhood

What are your family’s favorite games and activities for the Fall?

Kristen Snow wrote this post for Together Counts on behalf of A Chance to Heal (ACTH), a nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention of eating disorders. Prior to ACTH, Kristen worked for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, fostering her commitment to enhance the lives of youth. She currently lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband and three-year-old son. 

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Friends Don’t Let Friends Fat Talk

“Do I look fat in these jeans?”
“Uh, I think I need to lose 10 pounds.”
“Wow, she really should not be wearing that shirt.”

Have you ever heard a friend make a comment like one of the above? Have you said something similar? As summer is in full swing and we attempt to beat the heat with beach trips and swimming, there is an increased likelihood of hearing these types of commentary. Such remarks that speak negatively about body weight or shape are what anthropologist Mimi Nichter named “fat talk.” Although these comments are very common and accepted in today’s society, they may actually be harmful to you and your friends.

In one study by Wertheim, Paxton, Schutz, & Muir (1997), adolescent girls, ages 14-16 years old, said they felt more self-conscious about their bodies after hearing fat talk comments from their friends. This tells us that what we say to our friends in conversation may unintentionally impact their selfperceptions. Additionally, the same girls reported that a friend’s attempts at dieting have caused them to feel as though they too needed to diet and change their body shape. The alarming reality is that the everyday conversations we have with our friends surrounding body weight and shape may be very powerful and influential.

As fat talk may affect body dissatisfaction and dieting behaviors, it is important to surround ourselves with friends who do not talk negatively about their bodies. With fat talk so common and accepted, it undoubtedly will be difficult to stop these conversations altogether, but we have to begin somewhere. Start the trend within your social circle! Be the friend who stands up against fat talk comments. In doing so, you could help your entire group of friends reduce their participation in fat talk, and therefore lessen their likelihood of negative body thoughts and dangerous weight loss behaviors.

Dr. Carolyn Black-Becker, a leading researcher in the field of eating disorders, teamed up with the Tri Delta sorority to develop the Reflections Body Image Project. The Reflections team used the concept of fat talk to create Fat Talk Free Week (FTFW), wherein students pledge to stop fat talk among their friends. This pledge is paired with the message that we should focus on health, and not weight, and that beauty comes in many different shapes and sizes. Learning these principles has been shown to help in the prevention of eating disorders by reducing various risk factors, including body dissatisfaction and dieting behaviors. As such, it is essential to make the pledge with our friends, and to live by the FTFW motto, “Friends don’t let friends fat talk”!

 Written By Alyssa Compeau, Program Development Intern

Produced by A Chance to Heal for The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation – July 2011

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Obesity and Eating Disorders – The Common Element

As we all work to tackle the issues of obesity and eating disorders, it is important to recognize the critical link between these two epidemics. In her recent article, “The Blind Spot in the Drive for Childhood Obesity Prevention: Bringing Eating Disorders Prevention Into Focus as a Public Health Priority,” S. Bryn Austin, ScD, says, “The evidence is mounting that obesity and eating disorders are linked in myriad ways.” And one of the most significant links is body dissatisfaction.
As stated by Austin, “Simply put, youths who do not like their bodies seem to take worse care of them.” And is it not true for all of us, that we take care of those things we love far better than those things we do not?

So how can we help our children really embrace, be satisfied with and take care of their bodies?

A Chance to Heal, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing eating disorders, disseminates an evidence-based eating disorder prevention program for youth called The Body Project, developed by Drs. Eric Stice and Katherine Presnell. One of the most powerful portions of the program occurs when we invite the students to participate in “Self Affirmation” exercises. Such an exercise is below.

Self Affirmations

Stand in front of a mirror and look at yourself and write down all your positive qualities. Please list at least 15. This includes physical, emotional, intellectual, and social qualities. For instance, you may like the shape of your arms, the strength of your legs, your long dark hair, the sound of your laugh, or the fact that you are a good friend. Please make sure to include at least some physical attributes on your list.

In addition to this type of exercise, we encourage youth to make the following promises:

I Promise Myself I Will…

1. Care for my body in a loving way, always remembering I treat those things I love, well.

2. Maintain a balance in my nutrition and exercise, allowing my body to be healthy, strong and the right size and shape for me.

3. Listen to my body and respond to its needs.

4. Exercise for the 4 F’s: Fun, Fitness, Friendship, and improved Function.

5. Treat myself as well as I treat my best friend. Helping our youth understand there is no “perfect” body, and that the unique qualities of their own bodies should be celebrated, will go a long way in reversing the growing trends of body dissatisfaction, eating disorders and obesity.

1 Austin, S. Bryn. The Blind Spot in the Drive for Childhood Obesity Prevention: Bringing Eating Disorders Prevention Into Focus as a Public Health Priority. American Journal of Public Health: April 14, 2011. Austin is Director of Fellowship Research Training in the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at Children’s Hospital in Boston. She is Associate Professor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and Associate Professor in Society, Human Development, and Health at the Harvard School of Public Health.

Produced by A Chance to Heal for The Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation – April 2011

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