Since when did it become acceptable to swap a romantic relationship for a business one? When did it become easy to separate sex from love?

According to an annual “Top 20 Fastest Growing Sugar Baby Schools of 2012” list, the number of Texas female students seeking a sugar daddy to fund their education is increasing. Texas State University ranks No. 10 on the list.

The concept of an adult female student exchanging whatever necessary to forgo high tuition costs has been a public debate. Some consider it a mutually beneficial agreement that pays the bills. Others consider it prostitution. I consider it a short cut in life young women might eventually regret.

Sugar daddies are described as financially successful men too busy with jet-setting and board meetings to look for love. Not wanting to be alone, they seek partnerships and are willing to pay for them. Sugar babies are supposedly attractive, intelligent women who seek to be pampered and empowered financially and emotionally.

Unattractive people need not apply. They can buy their own algebra textbook.

This is what sugar daddy websites want you to believe. The reality of a sugar baby lifestyle is based solely on what the sugar daddy wants and what the sugar baby is willing to give. Many websites claim sugar daddies are looking not for sex but for companionship. Sugar babies are willing to help form and sustain a fake relationship without understanding something very basic. No matter how filthy rich or personally successful someone is, when they have to start paying someone for their company, they should reconsider their priorities.

This, of course, is based on the off chance your sugar daddy is, in fact, rich and not a deranged psychopath.

Being a sugar baby is about cashing in on appearance. A dependency on someone else and a loss of individuality is the name of the game. There have always been easy ways to get fast money, which usually result in dangerous consequences. A sugar baby lifestyle is no exception.

Our generation needs to work hard instead. It won’t be easy, and, no, it’s not fair. You might even have to eat ramen noodles every night, but that’s OK.

Your integrity is worth more than your college tuition.