How do the details in this passage support the authors' purpose?
Read the passage from Sugar Changed the World.
Starting around 1800, sugar became the staple food
that allowed the English factories—the most advanced
economies in the world—to run. Sugar supplied the
energy, the hint of nutrition, the sweet taste to go with
the warmth of tea that even the poorest factory worker
could look forward to. Sugar was a necessity.
Why were the English the first to build factories to mill
cloth? Because of the wealth they gained, the trade
connections they made, and the banking systems they
developed in the slave and sugar trade. Indeed, the
cheap cloth from the factories was used to clothe the
slaves. English factories, you might say, were built,
run, and paid for by sugar.
In 1800, when the English were consuming their
eighteen pounds of sugar a year, around 250,000 tons
O The authors include details about how much sugar
Americans consume to persuade readers that
modern diets are unhealthy.
O The authors include details about the changes in
diets over time to inform readers about how sugar
has transformed what we eat.
O The authors include details about how much sugar
people have eaten over time to entertain readers
with surprising statistics.
O The authors include details about American and
British diets to persuade readers that eating habits
now are healthier than they were in the past.