Food

Survey reveals newfound family time around the breakfast table

The pandemic has disrupted morning routines for 80% of U.S. parents, but the silver lining may be Americans' newfound time around the breakfast table with their children.

bowl of cheerios

The pandemic’s silver lining

In a new survey commissioned by our Big G cereals, 70% of parents cite the biggest morning challenge is to sit down and have breakfast as a family.

However, with the pandemic shaking up usual morning routines, 73% of U.S. families with school-aged children now report they have been able to spend more time together as a family before starting their work or school day.

“Even in a challenging time, families are taking heart in the extra moments they have to share with their kids,” says Amy Cohn, RD, senior manager of nutrition and external affairs for our Cereal division. “Cereal is a common denominator. While we know the school year may look different this fall, parents and kids can count on cereal to keep bringing them around the table together and helping to fuel their day.”

Learn more about the survey’s findings in this infographic:

Survey details

This survey was conducted online among a representative sample of 1,003 Americans 18 years of age and older, who are the parent or guardian of at least 1 child aged 5-18 that live in the same household as well as an oversample of 250 Hispanic parents of children the same ages. The survey was fielded by Lucid from June 23-July 5, 2020. The margin of error for the total sample at 95% confidence level is +/- 3%.

References

  1. Stanford Children’s Health. “Why the Family Meal Is Important.” (https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/topic/default?id=why-the-family-meal-is-important-1-701)
  2. Hammons, Amber J, and Barbara H Fiese. “Is frequency of shared family meals related to the nutritional health of children and adolescents?.” Pediatrics vol. 127,6 (2011): e1565-74. doi:10.1542/peds.2010-1440 (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3387875/)
  3. The NPD Group National Eating Trends, 1 YE Feb 2019
  4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey Data. Hyattsville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, [2015-2016]
  5. Nielsen Homescan Panel, 52weeks ending April 2020