Birthday cake

[3] His cake was said to be as big as an oven could make it, with candles stuck in it, marking the years of his age.

Birthday cakes became accessible to the lower class as a result of the industrial revolution and the spread of more materials and goods.

In contemporary Western cultures, birthday cakes for children are often topped with candles, secured with special holders or simply pressed down into the outer frosting.

In the Anglosphere, the number of candles often corresponds to the age of the individual being celebrated, occasionally with one extra for luck.

[5][6][7] Though the exact origin of the birthday candle ritual is unknown, there are multiple theories which try to explain this tradition.

[8] In 18th century Germany, the history of candles on cakes can be traced back to Kinderfest, a birthday celebration for children.

There, they were free to celebrate another year in a place where Germans believed that adults protected children from the evil spirits attempting to steal their souls.

One statement depicted a birthday cake as having lighted candles which correspond to each year of life.

[13] In June 2017 researchers at Clemson University reported that some individuals deposit a large number of bacteria onto the cake frosting when blowing out the candles.

[6][7][14] They found that on average, the act increased the amount of bacteria by 14 times, but one of the researchers described this as "not a big health concern".

To illustrate, adding a coin into the baking of the cake can represent financial success for the birthday individual.