Sharing meals refers to “family-style eating” where the food
is served on large platters from which everyone partakes
It is not the same thing as going out to dinner with a group
of friends during which each person orders an individual
entrée
Sharing food presents a perfect opportunity to think about
fairness and other acts of altruism
By Dr. Mercola
In the realm of family dinners, Thanksgiving is king. Perhaps
no other day of the year do so many Americans sit down to break
bread together, often sharing their meal “family style” and
passing each dish from person to person until everyone has been
served.
This tradition feels intrinsically good – and this is no
coincidence. People have been sharing food since the beginning
of time. In those days, during primitive times, there was no
choice, of course. Societies had to work together to not only
hunt and gather their meal but also to distribute it fairly.
Today, many of us have access to individual meals and
single-sized portions, such that sharing is no longer a
necessity. But the Thanksgiving tradition of sharing food is one
that deserves to be experienced all year long.
Sharing Food with Others Is Good for You and Your Children…
Sitting down to a meal with others is beneficial in multiple
ways. A recent study by researchers from the University of
Antwerp in Belgium looked specifically at the act of sharing
food with everyone at the table.1
They analyzed data about frequency of shared meals during
childhood and showing characteristics of an altruistic
personality in early adulthood, and a strong association was
found.
Those who shared meals more often as children scored higher
on the altruism scale, exhibiting such positive pro-social
personality traits as giving directions to strangers, offering
their seats on public transportation, helping their friends
move, and volunteering.2
To be clear, this refers to sharing food with others at a
meal, such as by eating “family style” where the food is served
on large platters from which everyone partakes. It is not
the same thing as going out to dinner with a group of
friends during which each person orders an individual entrée.
The researchers explained that sharing food presents a
perfect opportunity to think about fairness and other acts of
altruism. They noted:3
“In contrast to individual meals, where consumers eat
their own food and perhaps take a sample of someone else's
dish as a taste, shared meals are essentially about sharing
all the food with all individuals.
Consequently, these meals create situations where
consumers are confronted with issues of fairness and
respect. One should not be greedy and consume most of a
dish; instead, rules of polite food sharing need to be
obeyed.”
90-Year-Old Man Arrested for Feeding the Homeless
In an ironic turn of events, while sharing food helps
children develop altruistic behaviors, showing altruism in
public might get you arrested. This was the case for 90-year-old
Arnold Abbott, who is facing 60 days in jail after being
arrested in Fort Lauderdale, Florida for feeding the homeless.
The city recently passed a controversial ordinance that
restricts where charitable groups can feed the homeless on
public property, in what is described as a way to control the
area’s growing homeless population.
Abbott, however, has no plans of stopping. After being
arrested on November 2 along with two pastors, he was cited
again by police on November 6. Mayor Jack Seiler has defended
the arrest, and told Abbott to secure an indoor location
instead.
In response, Abbott said that no indoor venues to feed the
homeless are available, and he intends to continue with his
mission outside until the mayor finds him a suitable location
indoors.4
84 Percent of US Families Say Dinner Together Is Their Favorite
Part of the Day
A 2014 study found that the majority of American households
eat meals together less than five days a week.5
This is unfortunate as a separate study found 84 percent said
the time their family eats together is actually one of their
favorite parts of the day.6
Beyond simple enjoyment, research shows that children who
share family meals three or more times a week are more
likely to be in a healthy weight range and have healthier eating
patterns. They’re less likely to eat unhealthy foods, more
likely to eat healthy foods and less likely to have an eating
disorder.7
Meanwhile, teens who eat with their families at least five
times a week are 40 percent more likely to get As and Bs in
school than their peers who don’t share family meals.
They’re also 42 percent less likely to drink alcohol, 59
percent less likely to smoke cigarettes and 66 percent less
likely to try recreational marijuana. They were also less
depressed.8
The benefits are truly profound. Separate research showed that
with each additional family dinner, adolescents had:9
Fewer emotional and behavioral problems
Greater emotional well-being
More trusting and helpful behaviors toward others
Higher life satisfaction
The reality is that family relationships appear to grow
stronger around the dinner table, with another study concluding:10
“Our findings suggest that family meals may provide a
unique opportunity for building stronger families and young
people. Creating environments where frequent family meals
are normative, valued and feasible for families may result
in benefits for young people that extend beyond good
nutrition.”
12 Tips to Avoid Food Waste on Thanksgiving and Every Day
Another reason to eat family meals together, of course, is
because it allows you to choose what types of food to eat. A
large part of the benefit is the time you spend preparing your
meal and cleaning up. Getting your children involved teaches
them invaluable lessens about food preparation and how you
function together as a family, as well as how to plan and
prepare healthy meals.
As part of that lesson, you can teach your children (and
learn yourself) how to avoid and reduce food waste. The average
consumer
wastes 61 percent of the food he or she purchases, and
Thanksgiving dinner is one of the worst offenders. You can help
to reduce your waste and use of your leftovers with the
following 12 tips:11
Buy only what you need: Try to make an
accurate guess of how much food you’ll need so you’re not
left with leftovers you can’t use up.
Check the clearance section: This can
save you money, but you’ll also be helping to consume a food
before it ends up in the landfill. You may be surprised at
what types of healthy foods can be found in your grocery
store’s bargain bin.
Use the whole vegetable: Rather than
peeling your veggies, leave the skin on. You’ll get more
nutrients and reduce waste (ideally choose organic
vegetables if you’ll be eating the skin). If you’ll be
eating beets or turnips, you can also eat both the root and
the greens.
Help charities find “blemished” produce:
If you volunteer on Thanksgiving, use the app Food Cowboy,
which helps connect produce shipments that have been
rejected for aesthetic reasons with charities.
Compost your food scraps: Many of your
Thanksgiving leftovers can be turned into
compost.
Freeze your leftovers: If you can’t
finish all of your turkey, freeze them for later use.
Create new meals: Get creative with
your leftovers, repurposing them as soup, salad, or healthy
casseroles.
Send your leftovers to someone in need:
If you have prepared foods that weren’t served, or packaged
goods you didn’t eat, certain organizations, such as City
Harvest, will distribute them to people in need.
Donate leftover produce to AmpleHarvest.org:
If you purchased produce you can’t use, AmpleHarvest.org is
a national service that distributes fresh produce to hungry
people. This one is also useful if your garden produces more
produce than your family can consume.
Download a food waste app: A growing
number of apps aim to connect hungry people with other
people’s leftovers or excess ingredients. Two to try are
CropMobster and SpoilerAlert.
Try LeftoverSwap.com: This site
connects people with too many leftovers with others who want
to eat them. You simply take a picture of your leftovers,
post it, and arrange for a pick up.
Donate scraps to a zoo or farm: Local
zoos or farms will sometimes take leftover food scraps for
animal feed. Check with those in your area for details.
Enjoying Family Meals Takes Proper Planning
One of my favorite sayings with respect to your meals is if
you fail to plan, then you are planning to fail. Family meals
don’t just happen… you’ve got to make them happen. This means
not only shopping ahead of time so you have the food available
to cook, but also setting aside the time to eat
together. Many sports for kids are scheduled at the family
dinner hour, for instance, or parents may have a hard time
getting home from work at a reasonable hour.
If you value the importance of a family meal, however, you
must make it a priority. This might mean your family meal takes
place at lunchtime instead of dinnertime on certain days of the
week, but ideally strive to eat together as often as you can,
scheduling non-essential activities around your dinner, and not
the other way around. Most Americans make time for this on
Thanksgiving… but chances are you can make time for it on
“regular” days as well.
Copyright 1997- 2014 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.