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Bisto Takes A Stand
 The importance of family values is in decline, particularly at mealtimes, according to a survey by the Family Dining Survey. Commissioned by Bisto, it revealed that less than a third (29%) of the British working public eat together as a family more than once a week.
The continuing decline of the family meal has prompted Bisto, the nation’s favourite gravy, to launch ‘aah! Night’, a major national campaign to put family mealtimes back on the household agenda. Aah! Night encourages people to ‘make a pledge’ to spend one extra weekday evening socialising with their family over a proper, home-cooked meal.
Top psychologist, Dr Linda Papadopoulous, is supporting the Bisto campaign by highlighting the numerous benefits of sharing meals with loved ones on a regular basis. Several scientific studies have found a link between regular family meals and a range of social and psychological benefits. The family meal provides an opportunity for family members to bond, plan, connect and talk to each other, which can help build strong relationships by fostering warmth, security and love; mealtimes can be a unifying experience for all. There is also strong evidence that families who eat together, eat better. It seems that family meals tend to be more healthy and balanced than meals eaten alone.
Commenting on the benefits for children, Dr Linda Papadopoulous adds:
“Children and teenagers who eat with their family on a regular basis tend to do better at school, have better mental health and show evidence of greater social interaction and adjustment. In fact, the government sees family meals as part of the solution to Britain’s declining “culture of respect”, blaming a lack of family interaction and bonding for turning youngsters into yobs.”
Hectic lifestyles are the principal obstacle to family meals. With already busy schedules, many parents feel that they don't have time to cook dinner. In the last decade, meal preparation times have fallen 37% to just 19 minutes and the number of people cooking from scratch has declined by 32% to just 12%*.
Rob Devonport, Brand Director for Bisto said: “People are working longer hours and spending less time with our families during the week. The Bisto aah! Night campaign has taken on the tough mission of trying to get the nation back into the habit of eating together. By making an ‘aah! Night’ pledge to eat one weekday meal with their loved ones, people everywhere can begin enjoying the proven benefits of family meals.”
To join in with aah! Night, visit www.aahnight.co.uk, where you can ‘make the pledge’ to your family and get some ideas for making the most of your aah! Night. Bisto has come up with some top-tips to help make family meal times so enjoyable it will soon become a habit your family will not want to break:
1) Make it a Priority: Make an effort to ensure that at least some meal times are spent sitting together round the table rather than in front of the TV.
2) Involve Children in the Preparation: Children love to be involved, find age-appropriate ways for them to help with dinner. A toddler for instance could put napkins on the table or break up lettuce for salad. The older children can perhaps help with the shopping, cooking and setting of the table.
3) Keep it Simple: You don’t need to have a five-course meal every day. Simple meal ideas can ease the transition to the table and make it a more enjoyable experience – visit the Aah! Night website for some really simple, family favourite dishes like Sizzling Bangers and Mash, Meaty Bolognaise Bake, Fisherman’s Pie or Cheesy Macaroni.
4) Keep the Conversation Light: A family mealtime is not the time to engage in serious debate over issues like money or discipline. If the discussions are too heavy, children will rebel at coming to the table and parents will come away with indigestion!
5) Turn Off The Television: About half of all families have the television switched on during dinner time. Families can’t communicate with each other if their attention is focussed on the TV.
6) Make Double: It can be difficult to find the time to prepare a family meal, make it easier by preparing twice what you need and freezing half so you can use it another time.
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