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National Geographic

Sharing a meal with friends and family could be the key to better mental health

Seaside views and garden flowers are the setting of a backyard meal at a guest villa in Positano, Italy. Photograph by Massimo Bassano, Nat Geo Image Collection The cuisines across the Mediterranean, Latin American, and Southeast Asian may vary, but the practice of sharing food and gathering around the table is so deeply rooted in these cultures that it's almost sacred. Meals are eaten together, plates are passed with intention, and no one rises until all are finished. But in other parts of the world, communal dining has become a rarity. The idea of taking a full hour for lunch is met with skepticism, and even basic rituals like sharing a proper meal are brushed aside as indulgent. How has something so essential to our well-being become so easily dismissed? Meal sharing around the world According to the 2025 World Happiness Report, meal sharing ranks among the strongest predictors of well-being, comparable to factors like income and employment. (The problem with 'happiness.') Yet the trend is in decline: One in four Americans now eats every meal alone, a 53 percent increase since 2003. The United States ranks 69th and the United Kingdom ranks 81st out of 142 countries for shared meals. By contrast, countries like Senegal, Gambia, Malaysia, and Paraguay top the global rankings, with residents sharing 11 or more meals with others each week. The report finds that people in countries with high rates of meal sharing also declare stronger social support and lower levels of loneliness, suggesting that the decline in communal meals in more industrialized societies is more than a lifestyle shift; it's a public health concern. Two sisters, one who works as a nurse and another in nursing school, laugh while cooking together in their home in Baltimore, Maryland. Photograph by Rosem Morton, Nat Geo Image Collection In the U.S., the idea of the family meal as a cultural anchor began to take shape in the 19th century, as middle-class households embraced structured mealtimes as part of the domestic ideal. This ritual became more deeply embedded in the national psyche in the early to mid-20th century, when advertisers and television shows popularized the image of the nuclear family gathered around the dinner table. As societies became more complex in the 20th century, shared meals solidified bonds within families. 'Humans have usually cooked with others because it's more energy and resource-efficient to do this,' explains Megan Elias, director of food studies programs at Boston University. 'Because we have lived and worked in groups, we eat in groups, too.' This long lineage of eating with others predates modern societies, but in the U.S., it was particularly prominent during the 19th and early 20th centuries. But as urbanization and digitization started to fragment daily life, those gatherings that once knitted society together began to fade away. Factory schedules introduced shift work and clock-based routines that made shared mealtimes harder to coordinate. By the mid-20th century, the rise of suburban sprawl and the spread of television dinners further encouraged solitary or rushed eating. Over time, the family table gave way to convenience, with meals increasingly shaped by speed, screens, and individual schedules rather than ritual or togetherness. (How leftover turkey launched the TV dinner.) In more recent decades, the digital revolution—coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic—has accelerated this fragmentation, with meals increasingly relegated to a fleeting necessity between Zoom calls, desk work, and social media. A family eats at a kitchen table at a Celtic spritual retreat in the village of Kilronan on Inishmore island, Ireland. Photograph by Jim Richardson, Nat Geo Image Collection However, the science remains clear: Eating with others is good for the brain. Research published in Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology shows that social meals stimulate the brain's endorphin system—the same pathways closely linked to oxytocin and dopamine, the neurochemicals responsible for bonding, trust, and pleasure. Sharing a table, it turns out, is as vital to human connection as conversation itself. (Dopamine doesn't actually make you feel good—here's the science behind the 'happy hormone.') Research published in Frontiers in Public Health suggests that communal eating experiences may help reduce feelings of loneliness, sadness, and emotional distress among older adults, contributing to improved mental well-being. Similarly, a recent study published in Clinical Nutrition revealed that adolescents who regularly shared meals with others reported fewer symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression than their peers who ate alone. These meals, researchers concluded, provided emotional support and a comfort zone against mental health struggles. If shared meals are indeed one of the most accessible and affordable remedies to modern loneliness, then perhaps reviving them is not about nostalgia, but necessity. In Crete, Greece, a couple dines on a lunch of stuffed grape leaves, an omelet with wild herbs, and potatoes fried in olive oil. Photograph by Matthieu Paley, Nat Geo Image Collection When asked what we risk losing when eating alone, Elias emphasizes conversation. 'Sharing a sensory experience over a meal can make other people seem more 'real' to us,' she says. In the absence of those everyday interactions, which Elias calls 'the glue of daily life,' people risk becoming emotionally and socially untethered. Meal sharing also appears to be closely related to some, but not all, measures of social connectedness. Most notably, countries where people share more meals have higher levels of social support and positive reciprocity, and lower levels of loneliness. (Happiness and wealth aren't enough—here's why you should strive to 'flourish.') Consider Turkey, where a rakı sofrası (raki table) consists of a ritual of small plates, shared laughter, and hours of conversation. Likewise, in Italy, families often devote half of Sunday to a leisurely lunch, sharing courses of pasta and roast together. Throughout Greece, meze platters in tavernas encourage groups to break bread communally, forging a sense of kinship at the table. Anthropologists call this phenomenon 'commensality,' the act of eating together to strengthen social bonds. In these Mediterranean settings, hospitality is itself a healing practice, turning the table into a natural antidote to loneliness. 'Food and sharing food are very important elements in building identities, both as individuals and as members of communities,' says Fabio Parasecoli, professor of food studies at New York University. 'When this sense of belonging is not there, it brings emotional consequences. That act of physically eating together is a crucial part of how we define ourselves.' A senior woman serves brunch to her husband and daughter in their home in Brooklyn, New York. Photograph by Sarah Blesener, Nat Geo Image Collection Amid rising isolation, what would it take to restore communal eating to everyday life? Urban planners propose 'common kitchens' in housing, psychologists suggest workplace lunch reforms, and ministries are funding meal-based programs to connect seniors and youth. In care homes, communal dining has replaced solitary meals, with studies showing improved mental health, appetite, and cognition among older adults, while also easing loneliness and encouraging a sense of belonging. There are even grassroots efforts to try to restore the table, like supper clubs and platforms that connect strangers over home-cooked meals. These modern gatherings may vary in style, but their message is clear: The table remains one of the simplest, most powerful ways to bring people together.