Skittles®: Not Just Another Carcinogen Laden, Food Dye Ridden, High Fructose Corn Syrup Delivery Vehicle¹

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My wife, our recent college graduate son, and I met some family friends, Colette and Daniel, at an outdoor restaurant to enjoy a small band's performance on a Sunday afternoon in the summer. Our friends have a son named Leo, who was 5 years old at the time. The wife of one of the band members, who was a mutual friend, was talking to my wife and Colette. She could not help but notice, from a distance, how enraptured Leo was in conversation with me.

“Leo seems to be so engaged with Eric. That’s so impressive for a 5-year-old,” she commented.

My wife pointed in my direction, and said, “Oh - that’s because Eric is giving Leo Skittles®.”

Skittles® were first introduced in 1974 in the United Kingdom, initially by a British company, and later by Mars Incorporated. They were brought to the United States in 1979. The name "Skittles®" is derived from the British pub game of the same name, which involved knocking over skittles (pins) with a ball. The first flavors were fruit-based, with variations like Tropical and Wild Berry introduced later. Today, Skittles® are a popular candy sold in over 65 countries and are the second most popular confectionery in America. (The most popular is Sour Patch Kids.)

When my children were young, the day after Halloween, while sorting through the kids' loot, I noticed some Skittles. Being a chocolate guy, I didn’t think anything of it. Since we were controlling parents, trying our best to limit our kids’ sugar consumption, we let our kids keep some of the candy and set aside the rest for me to bring into work to poison my co-workers instead. It might be a little late for me to confess, but my wife and I ended up eating more than a little of it before the candy made it to my office.

After dinner, a few nights later, when it came time for the kids to choose their dessert from their Halloween collection, they both chose Skittles®. Being skeptical that the five varieties tasted differently, and sensing an opportunity to engage with and simultaneously annoy my children, I proposed a taste-test challenge. Intrigued, they accepted. Although we stopped short of putting on a white lab coat, protective goggles, and rubber gloves, our testing was very scientific.

The kids would close their eyes, and I would put a Skittles® in their hand, and they would place it in their mouth. I would carefully track what I had given them and conceal my remaining inventory. They would guess the flavor they were chewing, and I would tell them if they were right or wrong. Most people don’t eat one Skittle® at a time, so one ancillary benefit of the taste test was portion control. They were right about 50% of the time. This became something we did with some degree of regularity until they outgrew Halloween and the ritual.

A few years later, after both of our children moved out, I came across some Skittles® in our pantry. We see Colette and her family often, and I thought, “Is Leo old enough for the Skittles® taste test?” On one visit, after getting consent from his parents, I introduced Leo to the taste test. He was enthralled. It didn’t take long for “Did you bring the Skittles®?” to be the first thing he said to me before he said hello. I recently asked him, “Are you happy to see me or do you just want the Skittles®?” To his credit, He was smart enough to say, “Both.”

Leo is now six, and his little brother Noah is old enough (3 ½) to participate. He’s even more fervent than Leo, who will forego the Skittles® for screen time. Noah will cheat sometimes if I don’t sufficiently cover his eyes. I know this because one time he guessed, “Green,” right after he popped it in his mouth.

“You nailed it, but how do you even know? You haven’t even taken a bite yet.” He didn’t have a cogent answer, but that didn’t prevent him from thoroughly savoring his lime Skittle® once he did start chewing. He started running around the couch, just saying, “Nailed it” over and over again.

A few months later, I decided to up my Uncle Eric game. What if the three of us wore Skittles® shirts whenever we did the taste test? Sure enough, for 60 bucks, I found Skittles shirts online and bought size-appropriate shirts for each of us, questioning my sanity as I clicked the “Place Order” button. (Have you ordered something on the internet and asked yourself, “What kind of loser would BUY this?”)

The last time I visited, I grabbed my Skittles “go bag”, which contains our shirts and a small Tupperware container of Skittles®. Noah was shaking with excitement when I arrived. Although I helped him put on his Skittles® shirt, he bragged to me that he had put his shirt on all by himself that morning. We began the taste test, and I was instantly in his world; the 60-year age gap between us dissolved. Of course, part of the taste test includes Noah putting a Skittle® in my hand and me tasting it with my eyes closed. I get to guess, too. I am fully present and in the moment, but I am also time-traveling to be 3 ½ again.

Both Leo and Noah ask if they can keep the shirts at their house, but their mom knows they will never take them off. Leo was once offered some Skittles® in my absence, and he declined, saying, “I only eat them when I’m with Uncle Eric.”

Arguably, this is the best $60 I’ve ever spent, and Skittles are SO much more than just another Halloween candy.

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Hand-crafted head-scratchers:

1. Is there an everyday item in your life that has a special meaning or significance?

2. What is the silliest item you have ever purchased? Has it brought you joy?

¹ Skittles® has removed titanium dioxide from its ingredients in the United States. This decision comes after years of criticism and concerns about the potential health risks associated with the additive, including potential DNA damage, according to multiple media outlets. The additive, which is used to brighten colors and make foods whiter, was banned in the European Union in 2022