Caffeine Craze: Brigham Young University

I believe Caffeine should be sold on campus.  Whenever I would finish a long, hard day of work there was never anything I love my soda and it is wrong for BYU to be making a judgment call on a beverage that is not against their policies.

In recent news, Carri Jenkins, the assistant to the president for University Communications at Brigham Young University, released a statement in response to NBC’s Rock Center Special, which broadcast an episode spotlighting what it is like to live LDS in America. The Rock Center Special said that the Mormon Church condemned the use of Caffeine.  This segment got a lot of people thinking about the LDS Religion.  Jenkins’ statement said that Caffeine was in fact not against Mormon beliefs and that the confusion is due to Caffeinated beverages not being sold on BYU’s campus, which as we all know is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Included in the statement Jenkins said that the reason it is not sold on BYU campus was because there is not a demand for it, which is untrue, we need to show the BYU Administration that there is.

The demand for Caffeine on campus has always been there. Many students assume that Caffeine is wrong because of the beverages not being sold on campus. They have been tricked into believing something that is not true, caffeine is not against the Honor Code.  The BYU Honor Code condemns the use of hot drinks and strong drinks, which are interpreted to be coffee, tea, and alcoholic beverages. The students of BYU have set up a Facebook page that is dedicated to the sales of caffeine on campus. The Facebook page, BYU for Caffeine, has this statement on their page:

BYU is using past interpreting the word of the wisdom and are blaming no demand. I just want them to stand for no caffeine and be honest about it or allow us to drink these sinless drinks while visiting campus or attending the next BYU home game.

This statement describes the pages stance on the issue.  The group at one point offered to give out 500 free cans of caffeinated soda on BYU grounds and was shut down within minutes of opening up business by the BYU Police. It turned out that the group did not have a proper permit to be staging a protest on campus, but it got a lot of people thinking.  Perhaps BYU isn’t selling them not because there is a lack of demand, but because of supposed health downfalls that come along with drinking caffeinated beverages. 

Of the positive effects of partaking in caffeine, it has been proven to prevent the onset of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’. Maia, L. and De Mendonça, A. (2002) The caffeine decreases the loss of dopamine producing brain cells which ultimately, makes you less likely to develop these serious mental illnesses.

 Some people believe that caffeine should not be sold on campus because it only does negative things to your body when consumed.  If you do in fact drink too much there are definite health pitfalls to consuming caffeinated soda such as difficulty sleeping or irritability.  You will nearly always have negative side effects if you use too much of one thing at a time. The positive outcomes to drinking caffeinated beverages do in fact far outweigh the negative.

            Some people pose a very good question in regards to caffeine for sale on campus; why not go off campus to go buy the caffeine that you want so badly? First off, some people are on meal plans and are not able to purchase items at stores that are not on BYU campus. Secondly, BYU is making a judgment call for its students that it does not have to. Caffeine is perfectly acceptable for the LDS community to consume, therefore, it should be sold on campus.

            The demand for caffeine is and always will be here at BYU. If it were to be sold at the sporting events and other public gatherings, then sales would most likely increase.  CBS News in 2009 did a study and found that more than half of the American population consumes caffeine on a daily basis. With numbers like that, and our values where they are, how can BYU not be selling caffeinated beverages? Is it because they’re worried about the way people outside of the Mormon Church will view them?

            Many members of the LDS Church are criticized for their beliefs.  The Rock Center Special on Mormons did a fairly good job of explaining the basics of our religion, but did in fact have a few incorrect statements, among them caffeine not being allowed for members.  Do we as a church really want people believing lies about our religion? Because I sure don’t!

The Demand for Caffeinated Beverages is only going to continue to grow if this issue goes unsolved.  Caffeine should be sold on BYU campus and available to those who want it.