A survey in an ethnically and socioeconomically diverse urban community revealed that about one quarter of nearly 5,000 adolescents ate seven or more meals with their families in a single week. Almost as many adolescents ate two or fewer meals with their family. Teens who partook of family meals often were less likely than those who did not to use tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana; to have a low grade-point average; and to have symptoms of depression. This association persisted even after correction for other measures of family connectedness (Eisenberg ME et al: Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2004; 158:792).
