Eat Better, Eat Together is a blog series by registered dietitians and parents whose stories and advice help families start or strengthen a commitment to balanced family meals and create healthy, successful families. Take the Eat Better, Eat Together Family Meal Pledge at Facebook.com/DairyCouncilofCalifornia.

Many of us know the important role calcium plays in developing and maintaining strong bones, which is especially important for children. But do you know the benefits of consuming calcium-rich foods extend to all ages of life?  Whether you're 6 or 60, the importance of eating a variety of high-calcium foods is critical for many reasons, such as:

• Building strong bones and teeth. High-calcium foods help build peak bone mass and also slow the natural loss that can occur with age.
• Lowering blood pressure. A diet rich in low-fat dairy products, fruits, vegetables and whole grains works as well as some medications to improve blood pressure.
• Keeping your heart healthy. Calcium is a mineral that helps contract muscles and regulate your heart beat.
• Decreasing your risks of some types of cancer. Calcium in foods may slow down the growth of cells that lead to cancer.
• Managing your weight. Getting 3 servings of milk and milk products each day may help you manager your weight and lower your body fat.
  

Sharing the benefits of calcium in our diets and helping ensure all of us are getting enough is extremely important, which is why we have recently revised our nutrition education booklet Calcium Connection- Healthy bodies one generation to another. This booklet is filled with age specific information about why we need calcium from adolescence through older adulthood. A simple calcium quiz allows you to see your personal 'calcium score', and also includes simple steps for helping you get enough if you aren't already. Enhanced with new graphics, a calcium-rich shopping list, recipes and even a calcium plan, this booklet is a must read for all adults! If you're a health professional or teacher, these booklets are available for you to provide for your clients or parents with whom you work. It's easy to request your booklets, and remember, if you work in California they are completely free! Health professionals and/or teachers residing outside California can request them for a nominal charge.

Since adequate calcium intake is important at all ages, planning family meals at home that include calcium-rich foods can help everyone meet their daily calcium needs. Eating together can be any mealtime occasion from breakfast to dinner. Benefits of family meals go beyond just knowing that your family is getting the adequate nutrients they need for optimal health, like calcium. Families who eat together also have time to engage in important conversation which helps builds self-esteem and healthy emotional connection.  So, the next time you pour milk into your kids glasses at dinner, enjoy a yogurt smoothie with lunch, or have a piece of broccoli and cheddar quiche for breakfast, think about all of the unique benefits you're getting, from healthy bones and beyond!

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Ashley Rosales, RD

Project Manager

Much has been written about the health benefits of children eating breakfast. Some of the key benefits of breakfast for school children include:

• Students who eat breakfast are in class more often, have improved behavior and better brain functioning.
• Effective school breakfast programs are associated with higher achievement test scores, better grades, and positive learning environments. Successful school breakfast programs are also associated with lower rates of absenteeism and tardiness, as well as fewer visits to the school nurse.

It is also important to remember that some children need school-sponsored meals in order to avoid hunger. During our long recession, participation in the school meals program has skyrocketed. Fortunately, school breakfast and lunch meals offer reliable and consistent sources of food, assuring that our children get the nutrients they need.

Beyond the obvious benefits of academics and health, school breakfast meals can also provide a positive environment that help to build a sense of community. To learn more about this aspect of school breakfast, I interviewed Dayle Hayes, MS, RD, creator of School Meals That Rock  on Facebook.  Dayle has devoted her career to child nutrition and developing effective healthy school environments. As you’ll see from her responses to my questions below, lately she has been focusing not only on what children eat at school but also on how they are eating.

Can school meals be fashioned into a type of “family meal?”

Eating school breakfast in the classroom can easily be a good model for positive communal mealtimes. Some states mandate school breakfast in high risk areas and four (California, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Indiana) consider the time children are eating in the classroom as instructional time. While children are eating the teacher can:

• Discuss the expectations for the day, i.e. helping the class get organized
• Read or tell a story
• Encourage children to converse in small groups

What do teachers think about breakfast in the classroom?

Teachers with experience in providing breakfast in their classroom recognize the social benefits of this time together. Breakfast time brings a calming atmosphere to the classroom – centering the students’ attention on what is to occur next. Students work as a classroom community to help with set up and clean up which helps to teach responsibility. In many ways this experience parallels what we encourage families to provide during meals at home.

Why should schools strive to support pleasant and positive mealtimes vs. just getting the students fed?

Mealtime should be a time for students to relax, socialize and nourish their bodies and minds. When the eating environment is pleasant, students eat and behave better. More positive environments included trained adults supervising the cafeteria or classroom and schedules that allow adequate time for students to eat.

Since the beginning of human culture, eating together has been important to families and communities – and provides rituals that bind us together. School breakfast in the classroom can also help to fulfill this role. What are your schools doing to create a family-like, positive mealtime eating experience?

Maureen Bligh, RD
Project Manager