Abstract

Cooking is not merely a household chore; it is a foundational pillar for family systems, social bonds, and long-term health. Over the past few decades, the decline of home-cooked meals has affected not only nutritional quality and physical health but also family cohesion, child development, and elder care. In the 1980s, when home cooking declined in the United States and the trend of ordering food increased, experts warned that if governments handled child and elder care and private companies took over meal preparation, the family structure would weaken. At the time, this warning was largely ignored.