Oatmeal, potato chips and jelly beans - all iconic American foods most kids grow up with.  But how about caffeinated oatmeal, potato chips and jelly beans?  May sound unusual, but these classics are now being served with a dosage of energy.  What are causes of concern are who these products are being marketed to and the lack of regulation by the FDA.  Currently, food and beverage products are not required to label caffeine content so consumers may be unknowingly ingesting caffeine from unsuspecting products.

With energy drink sales continuing to soar, medical professionals have begun to look into caffeine’s addictive qualities and call attention to the withdrawal symptoms some may experience when they let go of caffeine.  Unbeknownst to many Americans is that caffeine is in fact a psychoactive drug meaning it has the potential to change individuals’ moods, perception and behavior.  Interestingly, caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive drug in the world and some doctors worry that caffeine could act as a gateway drug for users.  Despite all of this, the U.S. government has yet to take action and in the meantime, Americans, especially teenagers and young adults, are spending more money on these products and growing more addicted.  

Last year, officials at the National Capital Poison Center referred twice as many callers to emergency rooms due to fears of caffeine overdose than any other poison control phone call.  It seems that the lack of education surrounding caffeine use may be endangering the lives of Americans.  

Whether it's for physics or French, a textbook is an essential component of any college level course.  Professors rely on them and students depend on them.  However, the question is, are they affordable anymore?  Students are shelling out hundreds of dollars each semester on new books only to receive a small fraction of the price back, if at all, when they re-sell their texts at the end of the year.  The combination of new editions being released with increasing frequency and the drive of universities to be current, textbooks are losing their shelf life, and college students are losing large amounts of money every year. 

The controversy surrounding high-priced textbooks seems to be centralized in the U.S. Many of the same books cost nearly a quarter of the price overseas because textbooks are priced to market.  One college student is so outraged with the system that he turned to the internet, posting entire contents of textbooks (without publishers’ consent), making books accessible to any college student.  Government officials claim these types of acts are illegal and are currently tracking down this young man. 

There are legal alternatives on the internet, such as the website www.flatworldknowledge.com, which is working with publishers to provide open and free online textbooks.  Hopefully this movement will thrive; otherwise I cringe to think of textbook prices for the next generation.