Overconsumption

In our modern era and globalized society, trends move in and out of vogue quickly. Our society has become increasingly episodic and transient regarding trends. In fact, trends are keen to change so quickly that our society has developed hoarder-like tendencies when it comes to collecting the new, cool, or fun things that are trending. Stores run out of whatever the trendy item is after mere hours of having it displayed on shelves, refrigerators, and boxes. While the origin of this sudden spark in consumption can not be exactly pinpointed, many credit overconsumption with an increase in conformity culture promoted through different social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and more.

In my personal experience as a teen girl creeping toward adulthood and navigating through both the physical world and digital world with my own money, I have found myself becoming susceptible to certain trends, and avidly against others (which many of my peers fall victim to).

While I speak ill of falling victim to conformity and consumer culture, the trend I have succumbed to is the mounting popularity of the beverage industry. Specifically, I enjoy stopping at coffee shops such as Starbucks and consuming a wide array of specialized drinks consisting of heaps of sugar and caffeine from places like 7 Brew. However, in my opinion, trending drinks purchased to brighten your morning are no comparison for the mass consumption seen in trends such as the growing Needoh fad or “squishy dumpling” infestation, similar to the fidget spinner epidemic observed in 2018, leaving heaps of useless plastic to laggardly decompose in a landfill.

For those of you not familiar with the rising popularity of fidget toys such as Needoh or the dumpling squishies from 5 Below, the mass consumption of these items has grown out of proportion. For Needohs, TikTok popularized having an ample mix of different stim toys to fiddle with from the brand Needoh, which results in mindless consumers possessing ten of the same fidget — but in different colors. This seems like a waste of non-decomposable material being put into our already-suffering environment if you ask me. Seemingly worse, TikTok has popularized searching for and purchasing “mystery dumpling squishies” at 5 Below in obscene amounts. I personally know multiple people who have over 5 separate dumplings, which are all the same (minus the color). 

A research organization, sentientmedia.org, wrote on how overconsumption affects both humans and the environment in “How Overconsumption Affects the Environment and Health, Explained.” Writer Seth Millstein explained that “Air pollution alone is expected to cause nearly 9 billion deaths per year by 2050, according to the World Economic Forum. Plastic in the ocean is expected to quadruple over that same period, according to the WWF, while the Millennium Alliance for Humanity and Biosphere warns that global oil reserves could be entirely depleted by 2052.” Essentially, sparks in trends encouraging pointless consumption of plastic (and other nonbiodegradable resources) have a bigger impact than the general public typically focuses on and should be more concerned with to stimulate a better future.