Maria's Last Diet

by Maria's Last Diet

Did your family’s pattern of eating contribute to you being an overweight person?

Take this new measure of family eating habits and see what you think.

                            Family Eating Habits Questionnaire*
           by Natalie Klempel and colleagues at Fordham University

   For each statement select one of the following options:

Never       Occasionally       Sometimes       Much of the Time       Always

1. My family ate large meals. 
2. Meals were an important part of my family life. 
3. In my family, members were encouraged to have second helpings at meals. 
4. Healthy meals were prepared in my family. 
5. Eating together was the most important part of our holidays and celebrations. 
6. If I was eating less than usual, family members became concerned. 
7. Eating was an important part of my family life. 
8. In my family, large portions of foods were served. 
9. Family members pressured me to eat even if I was not hungry. 
10. My family took a long time to finish a meal together. 
11. My family members suggested eating when I seemed stressed out or upset. 
12. All of my family members ate together on a regular basis. 
13. Healthy eating was encouraged in my family. 
14. My family members tried to eat together whenever possible. 

What did you come up with?

The research shows that family cohesiveness around meals and familial healthy eating habits protect against unhealthy eating.

The following items represented the four different family eating habits in this questionnaire:

Importance of Eating to Family Members: 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14
Cohesiveness of Family Eating: 1, 2, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 13, 14
Healthy Eating: 4, 6, 11, 12
Comfort Eating:  6, 7, 10, 11, 14

*All verbs were changed from present tense to past tense to indicate past family (family of origin) eating habits.