I was at my friend Ledia’s party, and I was talking to a tall, skinny, geeky guy named Jessie.  He studies economics and psychology – meaning: he learns about how people buy things, and how that affects the economy.  So I asked him: “I’m a regular, everyday shopper – what’s the most useful piece of advice you can give me?” And Jessie said this: “the choices you make at the store matter much more than you realize”.  And I said “what do you mean?”, and he explained that most people feel like stores decide what to put on their shelves without paying too much attention to what the shoppers really want. Stores just sell what they wanna sell, right? Wrong!  What I learned from Jessie is that every time you buy something, it’s like you are voting.  Your vote is what you pull off the store shelf.  So, if there’s a deli near your school where you buy a snack after school, and you’re trying to eat healthy, and mostly they have chips and junk food, but every week you try to buy something healthy there, like yogurt, or a piece of fruit, or a bag of nuts, the store owners actually keep track of that, and they will change their stock, and actually start stocking more healthy stuff, making it easier for you to make healthy choices. So, remember, even if you don’t have a lot of spending money, and even if you’re just buying snacks at your neighborhood store, everytime you buy something, someone is paying attention! Your choices count! This is especially important for teens, because in the long run, you may want loans to build your credit and saving every penny by eating healthy is not only good for your health, but your finances as well.
– Freedom