One reason some families give up on dinners is that too much conflict occurs. As an adult, you can minimize your negativity. Introduce a topic your child might be interested in, perhaps from the news. And certainly small children may need to be urged, coaxed and cajoled to eat. Kids do not get into nutritional deficit because they're picky eaters.
Little kids eat in spurts.
Adapt to your family's evolving needs and wishes. Inflexible family meal rituals can become oppressive. Yes, according to a 1997 U.S. study of 527 rural young people aged 12 to 18. The teens who ate an average of five meals each week with an adult relative were well-adjusted, while those who ate just three meals a week with an adult relative were more likely to be depressed or be taking drugs, and less likely to be hopeful about the future or to have good relationships with their peers. The family meal was a more reliable predictor of adjustment than age, gender and family structure.