The Persuasive Speech

Name:

Tutor:

Course:

Date:

The Persuasive Speech

Introduction

School districts should not be allowed to stock their vending machines with stocks of soft-drink products as well as the energy and sweetened drinks. The above products contain essential elements and ingredients that help in functionalities of the human body to a certain extent. However, allowing of vending machines in the institutions to stock the products has great consequences on the health and well-being of the school-going children. Surveys, research records, and accounts of the extent, adverse consequences, and effects that these products have on the children point out to the need for scrapping them off from the gadgets. For the health benefits and body development of the children, school districts should halt the sale of soft-drink products in the vending machines.

Discussion

Background Information

Soft drinks, energy, and sweetened kind of beverages are known to contain taurine, caffeine, supplements, sugar sweeteners and vitamins in their compositions with differing percentage from one product top another. According to Chambers (12) the marketing of the products is always aimed at improving the energy levels in the body, increase of concentration, boosting of athletic and sports performances, improvement in stamina and facilitating weight losses. In the United States, the recorded sales of beverage growth topped at $9 billion in the year 2011. In the world, it is a booming business venture with 140 countries recording high turnovers from the sale, marketing, and distribution of the products.

            School going children and the young adolescents make up between 40% and 50% of the total number of consumers. In the daily intake, rates of U.S adolescents, an average of 60 to 70 milligrams of caffeine were recorded up to 800 of the same (Somogyi 9). The products, which were obtained to contain the highest intakes in the young children, were identified as soda, soft drinks and thirdly the energy drinks. Studies showed that among twelve to fourteen year old children, twelve to seventeen year old children and eighteen to twenty four year old children recorded 28%, 31% and 34% of daily consumers respectively. The young adults had consumed the products in moderation although some took extreme amounts on a daily basis.

            In the world, caffeine is the psychoactive drug commonly used that is legal. It is benzodiazepine antagonist receptor, adenosine, and stimulant of the central nervous system as well as phosphodiesterase inhibitor. Doctors and medicinal professionals state that intake of less than four hundred milligrams of caffeine is considered safe on a daily basis. The lethal doses are toxic levels of between five and ten milligrams. The effects of caffeine are varied depending on the target function of its ingredients. Psychologically, it has been known to cause cerebral vasoconstriction and coronary attack in young children (Kovacs 1). It is responsible for smooth muscle relaxation and stimulation of skeletal muscle. The ingredient reduces the sensitivity of insulin in the body as well.

            As a stimulant, caffeine in children can cause increased breathing, which facilitates diversion of locomotors muscles and negating advantage of the ergogenic entities. It is associated with development of blood pressure. Young children should not take caffeine levels of more than a hundred milligrams on a single day. Caffeine alters reaction time in the male counterparts. It can improve the attention in children and being alert, however, the sleep patterns can be altered as well as disturbances and blood pressure chances. Withdrawal symptoms have been realized in children of the ages between 9 and 13 years. Headaches have been reported, alertness and changes of performances on cognitive kind in the young adults.

            The potential effects in children who have access to the soft drinks, energy drinks, and sweeteners laced with caffeine may affect the cardiac conditions. Sudden deaths, syncope, hypertension, and arrhythmias are ailments associated with the excessive use of the main concentration of the products of soft drinks. 16% of the US children who go to schools and have ADHD are more prone to suffer diverse consequences from the use of soft drinks and those who have heart conditions (Food and Drugs Agency 1). Studies on the threats associated with multiple disorders and diseases like diabetes continue to increase the risk associated with caffeine use especially to the young children. Similarly, eating disorders indeed mount the challenge on the calorie intakes.

Action

Promotional marketing aimed at the increased use of soft drinks, energy and sweeteners in the beverages target the youths and young children. The strategic modalities include the use of sports events, sponsorships by athletes, celebrity endorsements, social media, and product placing. The main aim is geared towards increasing the levels of consumption at any given setting while having more numbers taking up the products from the previous records. In schools, due to the sponsorships given by the product manufacturers, the products are contained and compelled in the vending machines. Hence, their availability becomes easier with calculated pricing in order to achieve the profitability targets.

            Stern action should be taken by the federal government, regulation bodies, legislators, and institution heads on the availability of the products to the young school-going children. The federal government should impose policies on the withdrawal of the products from the vending machines in schools out of the reach of the children. The institutions’ governing bodies should liaise with the government to ensure that the changes are translated to the letter for purely health concerns of the children. Campaigns, regular public speeches, and availability of print out materials should be availed in all institutions containing the medical facts of the adverse effects of using the products. The materials should be backed up with scientific proof.

            The Food and Drug Agency should be instrumental in carrying out tests on the concentration levels of the available products in the market in collaboration with other regulation bodies. Preedy (36) argues that all advertisements and promotional activities of the products should be investigated on the contents while compelling the manufacturers to state the composition and label the adverse effects of the associated contents. The information should be relayed in schools with clear labels and facilitation of education to the children on the same.        

Conclusion

The availability of soft drinks in the vending machines of district schools poses a great risk on the health of the school-going children. The soft drinks and other products that contain energy supplements and sweeteners posses toxic levels of ingredients that can harm the health of the children if not monitored to detail on the consumption levels. Long-term consequences, diseases, ailments, and complications are bound to affect the children depending on the daily intake consumptions. In order to avoid the potential effects, the district schools should immediately ban the stocking, sale, and distributions of the products in the vending machines across the country. Prevention of the adverse effects will enable healthy growth development and avert loss of lives.  

Works Cited:

Chambers, Kenneth P. Caffeine, and Health Research. New York: Nova Biomedical Books, 2009. Print.

Food and Drug Agency. Food and Beverage Regulation. Web. November 20, 2014.

Kovacs, Betty. Caffeine Facts. Medicine Net. Web. November 20, 2014. < http://www.medicinenet.com/caffeine/article.htm#caffeine_facts >

Preedy, Victor R. Caffeine: Chemistry, Analysis, Function, and Effects. , Cambridge: Royal Society, 2012. Print.

Somogyi, Laszlo. Caffeine Intake by the U.S Population. California: Oakridge Publications, 2010. Print.