What’s your favorite caffeinated
drink? Which little rush of sugar do you like to indulge in? I asked every
girl on my floor in Stover Hall what her favorite caffeinated drink was and not
one girl said, “I don’t drink caffeine.” Various responses were given: Dr. Pepper,
Diet Coke and Baja Blast. In August 2012, the President of The Church of Jesus
Christ Latter-Day Saints released a statement that the church is not against caffeine and
not against the Word of Wisdom. Though
some people still hold fast to their opinions, there is nothing wrong with
drinking caffeine and because of this fact, it should be served on campus.
During finals week, many
students resort to drinking Monsters, Red Bulls, or AMP’s. These drinks are
dangerous and harmful to our bodies, because of the extreme levels of caffeine
that are in each drink. “A small 2010 study found
that drinking moderate amounts of caffeine, about 40 mg, improved performance
on a test of reaction time, but drinking higher amounts — equivalent to the
levels found in a (250 ml) can of Red Bull, or 80 mg — worsened performance on
the reaction test.” Studies have shown that
small doses of caffeine as in 2-3 cans of soda, could potentially improve
performance, rather than drinking higher amounts of caffeine.
Some people argue that caffeine is
against The Word of Wisdom. “The Word of Wisdom is a law of health revealed by
the Lord for the physical and spiritual benefit of His children” As
before mentioned, in August 2012 the First Presidency released a statement
stating, “the church does not prohibit the use of caffeine.” Arguing that caffeine is against The Word of Wisdom is no longer a justifiable
argument, when the leaders of our church have received revelation regarding the
subject.
Though some people on campus have
decided not to drink caffeine, this doesn’t mean that everyone has the same
standard. When it breaks no campus rules and also doesn’t break the Honor Code,
why isn’t something so basic available on campus? The argument that it is a
higher law to not partake of caffeine is absurd to be the standard of the
campus.
In my dorm, Stover Hall, there are many
girls with stashes of Dr. Pepper, Coke and energy drinks in their refrigerators
to help with mid-day lags in productivity. The presence of caffeine on campus
is definitely there, I don’t know one person that got through finals week
without a bit of indulgence. Even without it being finals week, we all have
days that we struggle to finish our day strong, where one soda can help us
through.
BYU has been rated on the Top 10
Stone Cold Campuses for many years straight now. BYU has some of the best
students in the world and are held to very high standards that we are glad to
keep because we are happier for it. These standards include modesty in all
times and places, along with the Word of Wisdom and not indulging in alcohol
and substances that can be harmful to your body. The students of BYU are
trustworthy people and followers of the guidelines given to them. Nowhere does
it say or has it said that caffeine is against the Word of Wisdom so we should
trust and believe in modern day revelation and not look down or judge those
that do drink caffeine.
Caffeinated sodas could so easily be
implemented into daily life on campus by stop serving “caffeine free” Coke and
simply changing the label and serving regular Coke. Sodas are served in: The
Cannon Center, The Blue Line, The Museum of Art, The Cougareat in the Wilkinson
Center, and The Pendulum Café. We don’t even need a
variety of caffeinated sodas; just the ability to obtain some caffeine on
campus is a relief. If students are going to walk to J.Dawg’s or Wendy’s they
might as well serve it on campus and be able to make a profit off the many
people that would be happy to stay on campus and study and enjoy a soda.
Skyler Thiot, an advertising major
from Dallas, Texas, created a Facebook page entitled, “BYU for Caffeine.”
Within the first two days of the site being up, the page hit 100 “likes.” After
two weeks of the site being active the site reached 200,000 “likes.” This page
showed the demand for caffeine is there and with it breaking zero rules,
caffeinated soda should be widely available on campus without being frowned
upon.
Caffeinated sodas are a better alternative
than harsh energy drinks that are being consumed and sodas are actually proven
to help with productivity. With caffeinated sodas breaking no rules and the
demand for the soda is there, why not give it a shot? BYU is acclaimed to be a
very globally diverse campus and we should take that diversity to our soda
fountains and just see the reaction that the students have.
