Monday, September 26 marks the 11^th annual Family Day – A Day to Eat Dinner with Your Children.   The day was launched in 2001 by The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA) at Columbia University. Family Day is a national movement geared towards informing parents about the benefits of family dinners. According to CASA, having frequent family dinners is an effective tool that helps keep your kids substance-free. Sixteen years of research at CASA has found that the more often children and teens eat dinner with their families, the less likely they are to use alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs.

        The Treasure Valley Alcohol/Drug Coalition is encouraging families to eat dinner together and then try their new Challenge game on their website, tvadc.org, to promote education and conversation on underage drinking. According to Treasure Valley Alcohol/Drug Coalition, alcohol is the number one abused substance by our youth and parental influence is one of the most crucial factors in determining substance use by teens.

        Family dinners can also have an effect on your child’s academic success. According to Ann K. Dolin, M.Ed. and author of Homework Made Simple: Tips, Tools and Solutions for Stress-Free Homework, students who eat dinner with their families are 40 percent more likely to earn As and Bs in school. In addition, they have healthier eating habits and lower levels of stress. Here are some other benefits for children who participate in frequent family dinners:

•  Less likely to use alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs
•  More emotionally content
•  Have positive peer relationships
•  Believe their parents are proud of them
•  Have higher achievement test scores
•  Have improved vocabulary skills
•  Have improved reading skills

        It is important to remember that family meals don’t consist of just eating at the same time. Enjoying a family dinner means sitting down at the table together without distractions like the TV or radio. These dinners should include conversations that focus on the positive and refrain from discussing shortcomings. And there’s nothing wrong with ordering take-out food for a family dinner; what is important is to be together, not who prepares the meal or what is being served.

        So on September 26, be sure to sit down to a nice family dinner and make dinner together a family tradition. For more information on Family Day and on how to talk to your kids about substance abuse, visit www.tvadc.org or www.casafamilyday.org.

Janelle DiOrio is a freelance writer who enjoys family dinners with her husband and two kids at least three times a week!