Why sharing meals can make people happier – what evidence from 142 countries shows
The importance of sharing meals is recognised across cultures, from the Jewish Shabbat meal to the fast-breaking Iftar meals during Ramadan. The known link between food and social relationships is ancient. The English word companion, the French copain (friend) and the Italian compagno (partner) come from the Latin cum and pānis – literally “with-bread”. The Chinese term for companion/partner (伙伴) stems from a similar term (火伴) which literally translates to “fire mate”, a reference to sharing meals over a campfire. But how important is eating together to our happiness? This is the question that I and my co-authors answer in the World Happiness Report 2025. In our new data and analysis we looked at the link between how often people share meals and whether they feel good about their lives and experience positive emotions. We also documented that there was a massive difference between countries and regions when it came to how often people shared meals. Comparing the statistics from the 2022-23 Gallup World Poll about sharing meals with standard measures of wellbeing, we found …
.jpg?itok=W9dq9r1n&w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1 "Commentary: In sharing acts of kindness on social media, there’s a fine line between inspiring and exploitative")
