Large portion sizes have been associated with large energy intake, which can contribute to the development of overweight and obesity. Portion sizes of non-home cooked food have increased in the past 20 years, however, less is known about portion sizes of home-cooked food.
The aim of the study was to assess if the portion sizes measured in calories in Danish cookbook recipes have changed throughout the past 100 years.
Portion size measured in calories was determined by content-analysis of 21 classic Danish recipes in 13 editions of the famous Danish cookbook "Food" from 1909 to 2009. Calorie content of the recipes was determined in standard nutritional software, and the changes in calories were examined by simple linear regression analyses.
Mean portion size in calories increased significantly by 21% (ß = 0.63; p