Poll shows Kiwis value family dinners

Ketina Chivasa (rear) makes it a priority to eat dinner each night with Tatenda, 12, (left) and 9-year-old Tanaka. Photo / Greg Bowker

Almost all Kiwis with children believe having dinner together regularly is a vital part of family life - yet for those struggling to make ends meet doing this at least five times a week is tough.

An estimated 98 per cent of Kiwi families with children believed having a regular family dinner was important, but only 45 per cent of the most deprived families did this five or more nights a week.

In comparison almost 60 per cent of the least deprived families had dinner five or more nights a week.

The findings, in a Curia Market Research poll, commissioned by Family First NZ, found of 1000 Kiwis surveyed 67 per cent of Kiwis who did not have children, believed a family dinner was important.

A gender split was obvious with 80 per cent of women saying family dinners were very important, compared with 55 per cent of men.

Auckland mother-of-two Ketina Chivasa treated family dinners like a second school – her kids learn to cook, learn about manners, to set the table and learn about their cultural roots in Zimbabwe.

She was one of those who was able to have dinner almost every night with her two kids, aged 12 and 9, in their Glen Eden Home.

It's a device-free event with no phones to be seen, and provides precious-quality time for the buys family.

"For me the dinner starts from making it. We get to make it together. By taking part in cooking with me they become more interested in the food.

"Then we just talk. I've been amazed by how many things I've learnt about my kids and what's happening, even issues like bullying in school. It's a bonding time. It's very special.

"So much comes from just sitting in the same room."

Chivasa is a single mum and sometimes travels internationally for preaching. She recently gave up working as a nurse full time to start her own company, which was in part to have more evenings with her children. She's also a marathon runner and fits in her exercise every morning.

Despite a busy life, having dinner together is not a difficult choice for Chivasa.

"You can be a single mum, but what are your priorities? I prioritise the children. The free time I have I spend it with my kids.

"Your kids have to be a part of your day somehow and dinner time is the best time."

Tatenda Chivasa, 12, agreed with her mum that family dinners were important.

"It's time to spend with your family. It's a chance if you guys are all busy. It's a way to build your relationships every day.

"It's fun, we're laughing and enjoying and eating. I love doing the cooking but it gets a bit messy."

Oxford University research, released this year, showed that the more often people eat with others the more likely they are to feel happy and satisfied with their lives.

Author and professor of the experimental psychology department at Oxford University Robin Dunbar said it was known that social networks were key in combating mental and physical illness.

"A significant proportion of respondents felt that having a meal together was an important way of making or reinforcing these social networks.

"In these increasingly fraught times, when community cohesion is ever more important, making time for and joining in communal meals is perhaps the single most important thing we can do – both for our own health and wellbeing and for that of the wider community."