Alli F.

Candy Argument Essay

Americans consume about 25 pounds of sugar per capita per year. That is way too much! Eating sugary foods kicks off a chemical reaction in your brain that makes you want to eat more sweets. Experts say that you can get diseases like diabetes, obesity, and heart disease from eating too much sugar. You can also get cavities. In the Psychology Today article, they give 5 reasons on how candy can improve your health, mood and brain power. We all know that eating too much sugar is bad for you, but there are also other negative effects other than the high amount that people eat. This expert thinks that Hershey and Mars should continue to make candy, but they need to make some changes. This expert thinks that they need to change how they get their cocoa, the way they market and price their candy, and finally, the dyes that they use to color their candy.

One reason why the Hershey and Mars companies should make some changes is because of the way they get their cocoa. Farmers are using children to pick the cocoa. Children are being kidnapped and forced to work on the cocoa farms. Did you know that 70% of cocoa comes from the west of Africa, and 1.8 million kids work on cocoa farms in Ivory Coast and Ghana? Some people disagree saying that these kids have something to do when they are bored, but this expert challenges this claim. These children are in danger because they are using sharp machetes and spraying chemicals. This is not fair to the children who have to work on the farms because it is an unsafe and dangerous working environment. Some children are abducted from their families and then taken to the cocoa farms to work. These children do not get paid for this hard work. Newsela.com says that, “Government and news reports described kids forced to drop out of school.” Newsela reporters have said, “It can mean hard work and a dim future for those who work on cocoa farms.”

Another reason why the Hershey and Mars companies should continue making candy, but make some changes, is because of the way they price and market their candy. Did you know that last year 12.6 billion dollars were spent on only chocolate candy? And that 2.1 billion dollars was spent on candy only on Halloween? This expert thinks that some of that money could have been donated to a good cause. The U.S. is the largest consumer of candy in the world. We need to stop eating so much candy! The way that stores market their candy should be changed. They should not be allowed to target children. Stores put out fun holiday themed packages that catch young children’s attention at their eye level. They want more sales by targeting young children who do not know that the candy is bad for them. This is a sneaky way to sell their product. Another sneaky thing they do is to offer a prize or reward for buying the candy. If the candy companies changed how they market their candy, they may have less sales, but children would be healthier, and more money might be spent on better things.

Another reason why the Hershey and Mars companies should continue making candy, but make some changes, is because they don't use healthy food dye in their candy. Red 40 is mostly found in candy, but can be found in other foods products as well. This dye is bad for you and has petroleum in it. According to Livestrong.com, this dye can cause hyperactivity in children, and may even cause cancer. Americans today are eating 10 times as much food dye as we did in 1955. Eatingwell.com’s article, Hidden Health Risks Of Food Dye, states, “Research has associated food dye with problems in children including allergies, hyperactivity, learning impairment and irritability and aggressiveness.” Some people might say that there is not a lot of food dye in things you eat, but this expert says that there is food dye in a lot of stuff you eat. For example, there is food dye in your cereal, baked goods, gelatin powder, drugs and cosmetics. Hershey and Mars are considering/researching the idea of using cabbage, beets, and carrots instead of red food dye! This would be a much healthier option!

The Psychology Today article claims that candy is good for you and can improve your mood, health and brain power. These claims may be true, but there are other reasons not to eat candy. Candy companies get their cocoa from farms that force children to work. They also market to young children and people spend a lot of money on their products. Finally, they use unsafe food dyes that are unhealthy for our body. This fifth grader is distracted by all of the candy displays in the stores and they make me want to eat more candy. Hershey and Mars need to change the way they do things to protect children who work on the farms, the children who go into the stores, and the children who eat their candy.