eating patterns

Eating meals as a family around a table may well be a practice or habit which is changing. People eat at a table in cafes and restaurants but less so in homes where the meal may be grazed or at the TV.
The benefits of a meal eaten around a table is that it has ritual, the food may be eaten slowly and there is a community feeling. It is also more rewarding to the cook when the food is appreciated rather than gulped down.
Slowly eaten food has advantages and glycaemic indices etc pale into insignificance compared to eating slowly.