Abstract
BackgroundWhile US home cooking declined in the late twentieth century, it is unclear whether the trend has continued. This study examines home cooking from 2003 to 2016 by gender, educational attainment, and race/ethnicity.MethodsNationally representative data from the American Time Use Study from 2003 to 2016 and linear regression models were used to examine changes in the percent of adults aged 18–65 years who cook and their time spent cooking, with interactions to test for differential changes by demographic variables of gender, education, and race/ethnicity.ResultsCooking increased overall from 2003 to 2016. The percent of college-educated men cooking increased from 37.9% in 2003 to 51.9% in 2016, but men with less than high school education who cook did not change (33.2% in 2016) (p < 0.05). College-educated women who cook increased from 64.7% in 2003 to 68.7% in 2016, while women with less than high school education had no change (72.3% in 2016) (p < 0.05). Women with less education spent more time cooking per day than high-educated women, but the reverse was true for men. Among men, the percent who cook increased for all race/ethnic groups except non-Hispanic blacks. Among women, only non-Hispanic whites increased in percent who cook. Among both men and women, non-Hispanic blacks had the lowest percentage who cooked, and non-Hispanic others spent the greatest amount of time cooking.ConclusionsHome cooking in the United States is increasing, especially among men, though women still cook much more than men. Further research is needed to understand whether the heterogeneity in home cooking by educational attainment and race/ethnicity observed here contributes to diet-related disparities in the United States.
Highlights
While US home cooking declined in the late twentieth century, it is unclear whether the trend has continued
A recent systematic review found that increased home cooking is associated with overall healthier dietary patterns [9], though authors noted that many studies on cooking are observational and required stronger evidence
Despite the potential benefits of home cooking on dietary intake, overall cooking levels in the US declined in the second half of the twentieth century and early years of the twenty first century [10], with increased food costs, decreased time availability, and lack of skill noted as key factors [11,12,13]
Summary
While US home cooking declined in the late twentieth century, it is unclear whether the trend has continued. Despite the potential benefits of home cooking on dietary intake, overall cooking levels in the US declined in the second half of the twentieth century and early years of the twenty first century [10], with increased food costs, decreased time availability, and lack of skill noted as key factors [11,12,13].
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