paste. Medicinal uses Historically, candy was used not only as food but also as pharmaceutical preparations, to disguise the unpleasant taste of the drug ingredients. Cough drops and some other drugs show this heritage in the form of sugar tablets containing drugs, active drug ingredients being added to hard candies, and panned sugar coatings surrounding unpalatable pills. During the Middle Ages, Thomas Aquinas authorized the consumption of sugar candy during the fasting period of Lent, because "sugared spices" (such as comfits) were, in his opinion, digestive aids on par with medicine rather than food. Storage and shelf life Shelf life is largely determined by the amount of water present in the candy and the storage conditions. High-sugar candies, such as hard candies, can have a shelf life of many years if kept covered in a dry environment. Spoilage for low-moisture candies tends to involve a loss of shape, color, texture and flavor, rather than the growth of dangerous microbes. Impermeable packaging can reduce spoilage due to storage conditions. Candies spoil more quickly if they have different amounts of water in different parts of the candy (for example, a candy that combines marshmallow and nougat), or if they are stored in high-moisture environments. This process is due to the effects of water activity, which results in the transfer of unwanted water from a high-moisture environment into a low-moisture candy, rendering it rubbery, or the loss of desirable water from a high-moisture candy into a dry environment, rendering the candy dry and brittle. Another factor, affecting only non-crystalline amorphous sugar candies, is the glass transition process. This can cause amorphous candies to lose their intended texture. Art and literature In George Orwell's satirical book Animal Farm which equates the Soviet Union with an animal farm ruthlessly dominated by a ruling class of pigs, a raven called Moses regales Animal Farm's denizens with tales of a wondrous place beyond the clouds called "Sugarcandy Mountain, that happy country where we poor animals shall rest forever from our labours!" Orwell portrays established religion as "the black raven of priestcraft—promising pie in the sky when you die, and faithfully serving whoever happens to be in power." The pigs bring the exiled raven back (Ch. IX), as Stalin brought back the Russian Orthodox Church. See also Peen tong – a Chinese brown sugar and candy References Candy