My uncle have a weak immune system. So when we used to visit him and when we sat down for breakfast, lunch and dinner, we took time to eat. This was back in Japan and we sat around kotasu. Each meal took more than 20 minutes. Take a bite, chew a lot... , talk a bit like what I was planning to do for the day, or what I did for the day... An age (time) when things moved much slower. And the Kotasu where I sat was heated by mametan. see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kotatsu. He ate slowly and took his time because he said it was better for his health.

We seem to eat to live, where as in other culture, they live to eat. It's viewed as a pleasurable time of get together with family to talk, laugh and enjoy ones family. My parents were very strict about this.

When I visited my parents on my winter break from college, one day, my mother lamented that I ate like a dog!! wolfed down the food in nano second. She was very dismayed by my newly acquired bad habit. A bad habit that has been hard to break. I still do it occasionally.