You must have seen a golden decoration on the sweets. Since from ages they are used as a decorative tool for food. Gold leaves are not only used as ornaments but also in our households. The gold employed in culinary is pure, very soft and delicate. 
Though it’s not an essential part of human diet. Gold is a mineral that is safe to eat. The taste is flavourless carrying no aroma. Gold leaves are commonly used for making the food look more eye-pleasing. Earlier this decoration idea was used by the rich ones. But now a day it is a common thing. Same as gold, silver leaves are also been used to garnish the dishes.

Usage 
-Gold leaves are usually added in desserts and confectionaries. Mithai, an Indian sweet dish effectively uses gold leaves as a garnish. 
-The leaf is sold in sheets or flakes. The latter are frequently sprinkled on the top of candies to give a gold glimmer. Flakes are also used for floating flecks to alcoholic drinks. 

Nutritional Value 
-Gold is chemically inert with the human body easily passes over the digestive tract. 

*Note: The tradition of Edible Gold was started by ancient Europeans. 
During the 15th century, Alchemists used gold for medicinal treatments.