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Gen Z is always ready for a sweet treat, and the trend blankets Instagram feeds with pictures of multi-layered beverages served in cute cups and pastries resembling works of art more than something edible. But the culture of “treating yourself” has morphed into a destructive lifestyle that hooks its customers into a vicious cycle of materialism that hurts their health and finances.

Sweet treats — small, visually appealing drinks and desserts that offer respite from a hard day — have quietly gained traction in the routines of young adults. They start in campus coffee shops and end in New York City cafes where customers can purchase the most enigmatically flavored pastries for double-digit prices — cereal milk cookie, anyone? 

Snack companies have noticed the rising popularity of these little treats. Loacker, producer of Quadritini wafer snacks, and candy boutique Lil Sweet Treat use marketing tags like “intentional indulgence” and “treat yourself,” branding their products as affordable luxuries that lift customers’ spirits without breaking the bank.

But the idea of affordable luxury is an empty one. If something is a luxury, it is not affordable; it must come at a price. Young adults falling prey to the sweet treat trend forget this, and I was one of them.

I felt the tug of the sweet treat trend in college, and as a certified sugar and caffeine addict, I was more than happy to find excuses to treat myself. Nodded off during class — I need a latte. Worked on a paper — earned a break with a latte. Ran into an ex-boyfriend — detoured for a latte. 

Before I knew it, I was “treating” myself every single day. What was once a special occasion became part of my daily routine. By the end of the semester, my wallet was empty and my body a mess. Yet my system had grown so accustomed to that kick of sugar in the afternoons and evenings that I felt worse without it. I was addicted.

This is the spell treats cast on consumers. They murmur in your ear: “You deserve this! You earned it! Just a one-time thing.” It is the easiest thing in the world to believe you have earned something. Snack industries are right there to help consumers receive their immediate gratification, until they become dependent on it. You do not need that latte or that pastry — you will function just fine without it. Sweet treat culture has turned “wants” into artificial “needs” that undermine the joy of living with frugality and self-control.

The problem does not lie simply in physical and spiritual health, but in practical finance. The treats have become an accessory, too. Influencers pose on their platforms holding an iced coffee the exact shade of their pants or biting into a cookie the size of their face. At trending cafes in big cities, the camera eats first. 

Purchasing $7 cortados every day or frequenting expensive dessert stores can become a phony lifestyle. Young adults overlook the exorbitant prices of trending drinks and desserts because they’re “occasional” treats. The young and impressionable see these photos on their feeds and want some of their own, to prove they can afford to treat themselves so well. They do not notice, with every tap of the credit card, the treats outgrow their “occasional” box and suck bank accounts dry. 

The sweet treat trend on social media has grown into a monster of consumerism, feeding on this generation’s love for sugar, desire for status, and attachment to material goods. Like any other trend, it sucks young men and women in and spits them back out penniless. Encouragement of overconsumption has destroyed the nature of indulgence and reward, precious in their rarity, only to be replaced by gluttonous instant gratification. 

This generation needs outlets for a dopamine hit that don’t come with 1,000 calories and a $10 price tag.

Megan Li is a junior studying economics.