Good Question: What Are We Missing When We Dine Alone?
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - By now, you should have had your three meals of the day, but how many of them did you eat by yourself? A new study says we're eating nearly half of our meals and snacks solo.
So what are we losing out on when we dine alone? Good Question.
Midtown Global Market is the perfect way to escape the elements, fill up on worldly food and find solitude -- unless a reporter happens to stop by.
"I do eat a lot of meals alone," Leo Vondracek told WCCO.
One survey found the number of people who ate alone tripled between 1960 and 1990. By 2006, 60 percent of Americans said they regularly ate on their own.
About half of us are alone for breakfast and lunch, and 25 percent are for dinner.
Susanne Jones is an associate professor in the department of communication studies at the University of Minnesota.
"When you think about it, humans are a social species," she said. "We're not meant to live on islands all by ourselves. As a matter of fact, the worst punishment we confer on people is solitary confinement."
Experts say trends in our home life -- later marriages, fewer kids -- play the biggest part in our eating habits.
One in 5 people over 25 has never been married. In 1960, it was 1 in 10. Family or not, Jones says it's about quality rather than quantity.
We should make time for at least one meal with others a week.
"No electronics at the dinner table," Jones said. "We profit more from the meals that we have if we eat in the presence of other people."
Jones said it's important to remember the reason a table is shaped like it is.
"Make the time," she said.
A U of M study found that when families eat regular meals together, their kids reported fewer problems at school, less binge eating, less substance abuse and less violent behavior. Another study found people felt better after eating together than alone, no matter what was on the menu.
