More than manners

A Welsh study has found that the old tradition of family mealtimes may have been more important than we thought.

Sitting at a table to eat with their family helps children learn social skills and good eating habits, but almost a quarter of children surveyed said that they ate without their parents and usually while watching TV.

Mealtimes are a great opportunity to interact with kids and check on their emotional wellbeing, and eating together at the dinner table makes mindless overeating less likely. Attempts at reducing childhood obesity often focus on structured, social mealtimes, eating more slowly and appreciating food.

One in five of the children also said they struggle to use cutlery, a skill which helps kids to learn how to use a pen – without it they may have problems in the classroom.