[Christmas article: From holiday candy to carnival buns: A systematic mapping of cake consumption in a forensic daily...

Cake and sweets are often the icing on the workday. Cake is often believed to enhance social cohesion, well-being, and blood glucose levels in the workplace. Against this background, this study aimed to systematically slice through a year of cake intake at a Danish forensic pathology department.

To achieve this, cake events were logged in all of 2024. Variables included date, cake type, occasion, weekday, and whether the cake was announced in advance via e-mail. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used for analysis.

Cake was served on 50.8% of workdays, indicating a regular rhythm of cake and non-cake days. Only 33.1% of cake events were announced in advance, introducing an element of surprise. Thursdays were peak cake days, possibly due to scheduled teaching. July and November tied for the most cake occations (17 days each), while March was notably low in sugar (6 days). Traditional cakes, candy, and chocolate were the most common types of treats. Most events were justified by birthdays or work-related occasions.

Taken together, these findings suggest that cake plays a vital role in the department's culture, serving both as comfort and an energy booster in a demanding work environment. The frequency of cake days suggests a semi-formalised, perhaps institutionalised, culture of cake. Future research should address the balance between workplace well-being and nutrition, the role of fruit as a debated alternative, and whether official cake procedures are now warranted.

Entirely cake-based.

None.