Family Meals Nourish Teens' Mental Health: Study

Having regular family suppers is good for teens' mental health, according to a new study. This is true whether or not youngsters feel they can easily talk to their parents. For their study, the researchers examined data from about 26,000 adolescents, aged 11 to 15, who took part in a 2010 study on health behaviors in school-aged children in Canada. "More frequent family dinners related to fewer emotional and behavioral problems, greater emotional well-being, more trusting and helpful behaviors towards others and higher life satisfaction," study co-author Frank Elgar, of McGill University in Montreal, said in a university news release. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_135246.html