If you walk down one long corridor of Niles West during a passing period, it would be really difficult not to pass up someone selling some kind of sweet, highly processed, sugar-filled product that we all like to call candy.

My point is this: candy is ubiquitous at Niles West. We sell it in the vending machines, we sell it during class, and we sell it in the hallways as well. We all know the nutritional value candy has to offer, yet, it is still a leading fundraiser for many clubs.

So why do students consume so much candy at Niles West?

To start, it tastes good. It gets us energized for a few hours, and it’s cheap. Candy is a treat, but is it still considered a treat if you eat a candy bar three times a day? That’s like Christmas once a week.

There are some students at Niles West who eat candy more than once a day. Start adding up that sugar intake, and it would probably be cheaper and more efficient to buy a bag of sugar and eat that and still have the same intake of sugar. Kind of gross, right?

There is nothing wrong with a candy bar, as long as the consumer is responsible and strong enough to control the intake of it. Niles West needs to learn how to control the desire for candy, and all is well. Just because your best bud is selling your favorite candy bar for her softball team, it doesn’t mean you have to buy it, let alone eat it.

With that being said, the idea of banning candy is absurd. Clubs and activities would suffer raising money. Dance Marathon and Relay for Life wouldn’t be nearly as successful as they are if it wasn’t for candy-selling. But more importantly, banning candy wouldn’t teach us how to control ourselves. Kids would still find ways to indulge in their favorite foods.

Kids will be kids, and regardless of the nutritional value, they’re going to want to eat candy. I ask the student body of Niles West not to stop eating candy, but consider what you are eating. Look at the pros and cons of indulging in that Snickers bar, and make a mature decision about what you are about to eat. It takes takes discipline, but in the long-run, you’ll probably be happy and proud about your decisions.