Children are much more likely to have healthy diets if they eat the same foods as their parents, a new study indicates.

Scottish researchers investigated different aspects of family meals involving over 2,000 children aged five. They found that the biggest impact on the type of diet the children consumed was whether they ate the same or different foods as their parents.

The findings were consistent irrespective of the children's background.

Overall, children who never or rarely ate the same foods as their parents had the poorest diets, while those who did eat the same as their parents were significantly more likely to have healthier diets.

The researchers from the University of Edinburgh noted that some other habits at mealtimes also had an impact on diet, but not to the extent that eating the same foods as parents had.

These included eating in the living room or bedroom, not eating at regular times and snacking a lot in between meals. An unpleasant atmosphere at mealtimes was also linked to a poorer diet.

The study also noted that firstborn children tended to have a healthier diet than subsequent children.

The researchers acknowledged that while eating together as a family is important, this can also be a difficult time.

One in four families said that their mealtimes were never or only occasionally enjoyable, while almost one in seven said meals were always rushed, with some saying they did not even have a change to talk at this time.

The researchers said that more attention should be paid to helping parents to establish healthy eating habits in their children's early years.

"Offering separate ‘children's food' for a main meal may often result in children missing out nutritionally. It is likely that in cases where children eat different foods, they are eating a less nutritious option. This is already known to be the case with kid's menus in restaurants, so children are best off eating the same foods as their parents," they said.