Family at a dinner table (© Robert Nicholas/OJO Images/Getty Images)

Family meals not enough to keep kids off drugs, study says

6/8/2012

Researchers have long thought that families that dine together eat healthier, and, according to addiction researchers, may also raise drug-free kids. Turns out, though, that teens who frequently eat with their families are not any less likely to use drugs compared with teens who break bread less often with mom and dad, according to a study in the Journal of Marriage and Family. Previous studies didn't monitor the families long enough, or failed to take into account other factors that might account for addictive behavior, such as closeness, communication and spending time together away from the table.

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