Pie: a food nobody has studied, and a crust everybody has

We found no trial that studied pie as the food of interest. The three human studies that fed one used it as a test meal for something else. In healthy men given a sugar pie, insulin rose a second time at 30 minutes, driven by glucose, and glucagon fell, which the beef and fish meals did not do, in a 1996 study whose sample size is not in the abstract. A solid shepherd's pie, minced beef and mashed potato, stayed in the stomach considerably longer than dextrose or beef drinks in healthy male volunteers, with the meal numbers left out of the abstract. What the surveys can say is how much of this kind of food Americans eat. In NHANES 2003 to 2006, the cake, cookies, quick bread, pastry and pie group supplied 7.2% of daily energy in 9,490 adults, tied with yeast bread at the top of the list, and 7% in 7,332 children aged 2 to 18, tied with milk. Both are single-day recalls, and pie is pooled with cakes and cookies, so its own share is smaller.

The numbers, per 100 g

What a real portion looks like

• Among US children aged 2 to 18, the cake, cookies, quick bread, pastry and pie group supplied 7% of daily energy, tied with milk as the top energy source in NHANES 2003 to 2006. — 7,332 US children aged 2 to 18, single 24-hour recall, NHANES 2003 to 2006 (n = 7332) Evidence C source
  7% of total energy from cake/cookies/quick bread/pastry/pie
• Among US adults, the cake, cookies, quick bread, pastry and pie group supplied 7.2% of daily energy, equal to yeast breads as the leading energy source in NHANES 2003 to 2006. — 9,490 US adults aged 19 and over, 24-hour recall, NHANES 2003 to 2006 (n = 9490) Evidence C source
  7.2% of total energy from cake/cookies/quick bread/pastry/pie

What your body absorbs

• After a sugar pie meal in healthy men, insulin rose significantly at 30 minutes with the rise in plasma glucose, and glucagon fell, whereas it rose after beef and fish meals. — healthy adult men, randomised trial of four test meals (sugar pie, whipped cream, beef steak, fish fillet) Evidence B source
  Significant insulin increase at 30 min after sugar pie; glucagon decreased significantly after sugar pie
• A solid shepherd's pie meal stayed in the stomach considerably longer than dextrose or beef drinks in healthy volunteers. — healthy male volunteers, randomised comparison of three food regimes measured by gamma-scintigraphy Evidence C source
  Mean gastric residence time and time to complete emptying considerably longer for the solid meal than for liquid foods
• In 24 people with type 2 diabetes, a ready-to-eat wild greens pie providing 50 g carbohydrate gave a better postprandial glucose response than a 50 g oral glucose load. — 24 patients with type 2 diabetes, three-way crossover, 50 g carbohydrate meals (n = 24) Evidence C source
  Better postprandial glycaemic response than oral glucose load (P < 0.001)

What cooking and storage change

• Across 28 studies of wheat-based foods such as bread, cookies and pasta, acrylamide formed during baking was the most studied processing contaminant, with a pooled concentration of 136 micrograms per kg. — commercial and laboratory samples of wheat-based foods in 28 analytical studies Evidence D source
  Acrylamide 136.29 micrograms/kg; HMF 70.59 micrograms/kg; PAHs 0.11 micrograms/kg
• Heating edible oils below 200 C, the range of ordinary baking, did not measurably raise trans fatty acids in 33 laboratory studies. — 21 edible oils in 33 experimental heating studies, search to October 2020 Evidence D source
  Below 200 C no appreciable change; 200 to 240 C total TFA +0.38% per 10 C (95% CI 0.20 to 0.55)

What it does to your health

• Across 19 cohorts with about 1 million adults, each extra 1% of energy from trans fat was associated with 6% higher all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. — 1,013,273 adults and 195,515 deaths in 19 prospective cohort studies, search to February 2020 (n = 1013273) Evidence C source
  Per 1% energy from trans fat: all-cause mortality RR 1.06 (95% CI 1.01 to 1.10), CVD mortality RR 1.06 (95% CI 1.02 to 1.11)

Safety, limits and interactions

• WHO recommends that adults and children keep trans fatty acids at or below 1% of total energy, a strong recommendation, which for a 2,000 kcal diet is about 2.2 g per day. — adults and children, WHO guideline 2023 Evidence E source
  Trans fat at most 1% of energy (strong); further below 1% (conditional)
• WHO recommends that adults and children keep saturated fat at or below 10% of total energy, a strong recommendation, a population target rather than a limit for one food. — adults and children, WHO guideline 2023 Evidence E source
  Saturated fat at most 10% of energy (strong); further below 10% (conditional)

What people believe that the data does not support

• In a 2021 US survey, 15% of adults ate sweet foods such as cookies, cake, pie and brownies two or more times a day. — 4,034 US adults, SummerStyles survey 2021 (n = 4034) Evidence C source
  15% ate sweet foods at least twice daily; AOR 1.53 for income below 35,000 vs 100,000 dollars or more
• FDA determined in 2015 that partially hydrogenated oils, then the main source of artificial trans fat in the food supply, are no longer generally recognised as safe. — US food supply; FDA page content current as of 2024-04-30 Evidence E source
  PHOs removed from GRAS status; compliance dates 2018 to 2021
• Under 21 CFR 101.14, a food with more than 13 g of fat, 4 g of saturated fat, 60 mg of cholesterol or 480 mg of sodium per reference serving cannot carry a health claim on its US label. — US food labels, 21 CFR 101.14(a)(4) Evidence E source
  Disqualifying levels: 13.0 g fat, 4.0 g saturated fat, 60 mg cholesterol, 480 mg sodium per reference amount

The bottom line

The health data this page holds about pie is mostly about its fat. Across 19 cohorts with 1,013,273 adults and 195,515 deaths, each extra 1% of energy from trans fat was associated with 6% higher all-cause mortality and 6% higher cardiovascular mortality, with intervals of 1.01 to 1.10 and 1.02 to 1.11, an association in observational data. WHO in 2023 made two strong recommendations for adults and children: trans fat at or below 1% of energy, about 2.2 g a day on 2,000 kcal, and saturated fat at or below 10% of energy. These are population targets rather than limits for one food. In 2015 the FDA determined that partially hydrogenated oils, then the main source of artificial trans fat, are no longer generally recognised as safe, with compliance dates from 2018 to 2021. A commercial US pie is therefore no longer the classic shortening source it once was, and home-made and imported pies sit outside that rule. Ordinary baking does not create trans fat: heating edible oils below 200 C had no appreciable effect on trans fatty acids across 33 laboratory studies of 21 oils, heated alone rather than inside a crust. Acrylamide is the contaminant baking does make. Across 28 analytical studies of wheat-based foods, mostly bread, cookies and pasta with no pie samples, the pooled concentration was 136 micrograms per kg. A savoury pie is a different food: in 24 people with type 2 diabetes, a wild greens pie with 50 g of carbohydrate gave a better post-meal glucose response than 50 g of glucose in a non-randomised crossover, and glucose was the only comparator. Under US labelling rules, a food with more than 13 g of fat, 4 g of saturated fat, 60 mg of cholesterol or 480 mg of sodium per reference serving cannot carry a health claim, which is a labelling decision rather than a health judgement. Who should be careful. The cautions on this page are the two WHO limits and the trans fat cohort data above, and they apply to the crust rather than the filling. In a 2021 survey of 4,034 US adults, 15% ate sweet foods such as cookies, cake, pie and brownies two or more times a day, self-reported and with pie pooled with the rest. This page has no card on allergens, pregnancy or drugs. That is a gap in the cards, not a sign that pie carries no allergen.

Sources

1. pie-dv2-01 · survey
   The two top ranked food/food group sources of energy and nutrients were: energy - milk (7% of energy) and cake/cookies/quick bread/pastry/pie (7%)
   Nutrients, 2013 · checked 2026-09-23
2. pie-dv2-02 · survey
   The highest ranked sources of energy and nutrients among adults more than 19 years old were: energy - yeast bread/rolls (7.2%) and cake/cookies/quick bread/pastry/pie (7.2%)
   Nutrients, 2012 · checked 2026-09-23
3. pie-dv2-03 · RCT
   Thirty min later due to plasma glucose elevation, a significant increase in insulin was observed with the sugar pie...30 min after feeding the plasma level of this hormone increased with both beef and fish feeding and decreased significantly with the sugar pie meal.
   Horm Metab Res, 1996 · checked 2026-09-23
4. pie-dv2-04 · RCT
   a mixture of minced beef and mashed potato (shepherd's pie) was used as a solid meal...There was only a slight difference in the emptying times of the two liquid foods, whereas values for MGRT, VGRT and the time for complete emptying were considerably longer for the solid meal.
   J Pharm Pharmacol, 2007 · checked 2026-09-23
5. pie-dv2-05 · non-randomised crossover
   Twenty-four patients with T2DM consumed three ready-to-eat mixed meals, i.e., "wild greens pie" (meal 1), "chicken burgers with boiled vegetables" (meal 2) and "vegetable moussaka" (meal 3) and an oral glucose load, all providing 50 g of carbohydrates...Patients consuming each one of the three mixed meals showed better postprandial glycemic responses compared to the oral glucose load (P < 0.001).
   Eur J Nutr, 2017 · checked 2026-09-23
6. pie-dv2-07 · occurrence meta-analysis
   Most studies (69.7%) evaluated acrylamide in bread, cookies, and pasta, while PAHs (26.2%) were determined mainly in wheat grains and pasta...The highest concentration was for acrylamide (136.29 µg·kg-1) followed by HMF (70.59 µg·kg-1) and PAHs (0.11 µg·kg-1).
   Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr, 2023 · checked 2026-09-23
7. pie-dv2-08 · occurrence meta-analysis
   Thirty-three studies encompassing twenty-one different oils were included in this review. Overall, heating to temperatures <200 °C had no appreciable impact on different TFA levels.
   Nutrients, 2022 · checked 2026-09-23
8. pie-dv2-06 · meta-analysis of cohorts
   A 1% energy increment in dietary trans-fat was associated with 6% higher risk of mortality from all-causes (RR = 1.06; 95% CI:1.01-1.10) and CVD (RR = 1.06; 95% CI:1.02-1.11).
   Clin Nutr, 2021 · checked 2026-09-23
9. pie-dv2-10 · guideline
   WHO recommends that adults and children reduce trans-fatty acid intake to 1% of total energy intake (strong recommendation).
   WHO 2023, Saturated fatty acid and trans-fatty acid intake for adults and children: WHO guideline · checked 2026-09-23
10. pie-dv2-11 · guideline
    WHO recommends that adults and children reduce saturated fatty acid intake to 10% of total energy intake (strong recommendation).
    WHO 2023, Saturated fatty acid and trans-fatty acid intake for adults and children: WHO guideline · checked 2026-09-23
11. pie-dv2-09 · survey
    The frequencies were measured of consuming various sweet foods (chocolate/candy, doughnuts/sweet rolls/Danish/muffins/Pop-Tarts, cookies/cake/pie/brownies, and ice cream/frozen desserts)...During 2021, 15% of adults reported consuming sweet foods ≥2 times/day
    Nutrients, 2023 · checked 2026-09-23
12. pie-dv2-12 · fact sheet
    In 2015, the FDA took the significant step of determining that PHOs, then the major source of artificial trans fat in the food supply, are no longer "Generally Recognized as Safe," or GRAS.
    FDA, Trans Fat, content current as of 2024-04-30 · checked 2026-09-23
13. pie-dv2-13 · regulation
    (4) Disqualifying nutrient levels means the levels of total fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, or sodium in a food above which the food will be disqualified from making a health claim. These levels are 13.0 grams (g) of fat, 4.0 g of saturated fat, 60 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol, or 480 mg of sodium, per reference amount customarily consumed, per label serving size, and, only for foods with reference amounts customarily consumed of 30 g or less or 2 tablespoons or less, per 50 g.
    21 CFR 101.14, Health claims: general requirements · checked 2026-09-23