Pinoys' sugar rush driving confectionery, ice cream sales

It is not just a sweet tooth for Air Aguinaldo, it is a whole lot of palate.

- JASPER EMMANUEL ARCALAS

In between editing articles for a student publication and writing literary works, Air finds comfort in sugar.

Name it: cotton candies, gummy bears, chocolate bars, madeleines. Oh, not to mention, a plate of her aunt's baklava that has been crisped to perfection, oozing with... syrup.

She can even eat three packs of cotton candies in one sitting.

Air is wary that excessive sugar consumption could be bad. But for the 20-year-old creative writing student, eating sweets is part and parcel of her creative process.

"Aside from satisfying my cravings, eating sweets is also one way to relieve my stress," she said.

"I am not picky with food, although I do have the visual appetite of a child, so I easily get attracted to vibrant looking desserts," she added.

Air spends between P200 and P500 a week for sweets. She spends more during examination days.

Once, she went back-and-forth to a convenience store for a sugar rush. She bought a chocolate bar. Next, a pack of worm-shaped gummies. And then some mango cream-filled marshmallows.