Valentine's Day is less than a week away and every single convenience store/grocery store is trying to cash in on this made-up holiday. Chocolate is placed inside heart-shaped boxes, and Hershey's Kisses are wrapped in red, silver, and pink wrapping. Don't forget about the conversation hearts making their only appearance of the year, with their cute quotes like "be mine" or " love bug."

The more I learn about "Valentine's candy" the more I've concluded that "Valentine's candy" is the biggest rip-off ever. We pay more for the exact same candy. All that's different is the packaging.

What I don't understand is...how can this be Iowa's favorite Valentine's Candy, when you can get this type of candy every single day of the year. This candy isn't something special that only shows up in February. What boggles my mind even more is...every piece of this candy tastes the same! Whether it's Valentine's themed, Halloween-themed, Christmas-themed, or Independence Day-themed.

Iowa's Favorite Valentine's Candy

Source: CandyStore.com.

According to Candy Store, the Valentine's candy that reigns supreme in Iowa is M&M's. I hate to say this but...I'm rolling my eyes through the back of my head. M&M's have to be one of the most mid candies of all time. The study looked at bulk candy sales throughout each state and apparently, Iowa loves M&M's this time of the year. I bet most people buy M&M's and set them in a candy dish. Does anyone buy these specifically for someone else?

Candy is by far the most purchased Valentine's gift throughout the country as 57% of people plan on buying some sweets for someone. 40% of people plan on buying greeting cards and 39% plan on buying flowers.

I'm not trying to hate on those that love M&Ms but if you're going to buy someone chocolate for Valentine's Day...I think Iowa can step up and do something a little more unique than your run-of-the-mill bag of M&M's. Buy those for someone on February 23rd.

Valentine's Day Fun Facts

This is such a hard number to imagine but 58 million pounds of chocolate are bought during Valentine's week, according to Candy Store. Not everyone is planning on buying candy for someone special either. Almost half of people are buying a box of chocolates for themselves.

Chocolate manufacturers work 11 months out of the year to produce enough candy for Valentine's Day. For anyone looking to party, Vodka infused with conversation hearts became incredibly popular last year.

We can all thank Richard Cadbury because he created the first Valentine's Day candy box in the late 1800s.